drive shaft support bearing failure

J

john brenner

Member
Joined
Nov 4, 2012
Location
lititz pa
TDI
2003 tdi jetta,2009 tdi touareg
2009 TDI treg I believe that bearing may have failed while putting my foot into the pedal pretty hard. At first only vibration then it started thumping under center console. I checked into the two piece replacement bearings but they are only designed for gassers. My question is will I need to have the whole shaft replaced or is there a cheaper fix?
 
Yeti35

Yeti35

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 7, 2009
Location
SL, UT
TDI
2010 Touareg V6 TDI
Same shaft on the diesel as the gas. Only gets different if you have a V10 I believe. You can replace just the bearing, but not a DIY thing. You need a shop to do it. If the shaft is worn at all from the bad bearing then you need to replace the whole thing. You can get a refurb for a lot less and DIY. Not that hard.
 
N

NoobyT

Veteran Member
Joined
May 29, 2013
Location
N/A
TDI
N/A
Centre bearing failure is a very common problem on the T1 and T2 Touareg at around 60,000 miles or 5 years, whichever comes first. The rubber surround breaks up. Quite a few people now treat this as a service item every 60K regardless - mine is due now.

If the shaft is banging, do not drive the car: you may damage the drivetrain. Get it flat-bedded to your chosen workshop.

The V10 has a slightly shorter shaft than the other Touaregs [and the R5 which was never sent to the US anyway].

A VW dealer will only want to fit a complete new shaft which is expensive when there are many excellent transmission shops who can refurb the shaft with a new bearing for a few hundred bucks [a quarter of the dealer price].

This is just one of many threads on the subject:

http://www.clubtouareg.com/forums/f43/center-propshaft-carrier-bearing-21876.html
 
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SilverGhost

SilverGhost

Veteran Member
Joined
Mar 25, 2005
Location
Back in So Flo - St Lucie
TDI
'05 Golf - totaled :(, wife's '13 Beetle - buy back, TDIless
We had two customers come with facelift Touraegs and the rubber around the bearing tore up. O'Rielys Autoparts sells the center support bearing for about $150 around here, but we have no way of reinstalling the shell over the center CV joint. the proper way involves a mandrel and press. I would think a drive line shop, with the right tools, could do the repair in <30 minutes.

For a DIY a refurbished or new driveshaft is the only real option. This is not something you can rebuild in your driveway.

Jason
 
A

autdi

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 11, 2004
Location
Alabama
TDI
2000 NB, 2003 NB, 2006 Touareg, 2015 Jetta, 2013 Beetle, 2013 Touareg
Although you should really have a driveline shop balance it.

I went with Colorado Driveshaft and did the swap through the mail way.
 
E

earlthepearl

Veteran Member
Joined
Jul 12, 2007
Location
Morganton, NC
TDI
2000 New Beetle 5M, 2004 Passat 6M, 2009 Jetta Sedan (buy back), 2010 Touareg (buy back)
NoobyT said:
Centre bearing failure is a very common problem on the T1 and T2 Touareg at around 60,000 miles or 5 years, whichever comes first. The rubber surround breaks up. Quite a few people now treat this as a service item every 60K regardless - mine is due now.

Aside from a blown turbo and AdBlue system issues, our 10 Treg has been performing just fine, with 154 k mostly highway miles on the clock. Not a peep from the center support bearing. Perhaps I should crawl under there and check it out. I also assume I should be looking for someone who will be able to do the job right, for the right $$$.;)
Click to expand...
 
H

hmartincalle

New member
Joined
Oct 19, 2016
Location
Orange County, CA
TDI
2006 Touareg
I've learned Touareg main center bearings typically fail between 40,000 and 70,000 miles. The dealer replaces the whole drive shaft and center bearing for around $1,450.00. Failure can start as a chirping sound, like CV joints going bad, or loud thumps right under your armrest. It is a failure in engineering, design and craftsmanship. The dealer says the rubber bearing can't withstand the torque. Just replaced my second one at 130,000 miles. Who makes and markets cars that over-promise and under-deliver like this? I love the Touareg, never ride it hard, dealer service it exclusively and always garage it. First bearing had to be replaced at 70,000 miles. The second at 130,000. Total to date about $3,000.00 for everyday driving. Nothing off road or rough. Just poorly designed - though I still love the car in spite of this.
 
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mjhandy

mjhandy

Veteran Member
Joined
Jun 3, 2007
Location
Kitchener, Ontario
TDI
2009 Touareg TDI
I did, and your right. I was stupid and bought it almost blind. What i did see on the car fax from the US didn't mention this, but also doesn't mean it wasn't done.
 
Yeti35

Yeti35

Veteran Member
Joined
Nov 7, 2009
Location
SL, UT
TDI
2010 Touareg V6 TDI
Carfax only mentions stuff done at a dealer or covered by insurance. If they did it them selves you will never know about it. I would bet it was replaced. Mine at least made it to 70K ish miles before going. It was covered under the extended warranty.
 
Sprocket

Sprocket

Sprockette's hubby
Joined
Nov 18, 2004
Location
MI
TDI
2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee Summit Eco Diesel, 2005 Passat Silverstone Grey, 1996 Passat Storm Grey
Replaced mine with the Vertek support bearing around 115k miles. Easy peasy and should never have to do it again ;)
 
compu_85

compu_85

Gadget Guy
Joined
Sep 29, 2003
Location
La Conner, WA
TDI
... None :S
Mercedes uses this type of bearing and support as well - my SDL has two of them. They don't last forever on any car. It does seem like the rubber part is a little under-designed, but I wouldn't classify it as a huge blunder.

-J
 
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