My 03 CTS has sprung a leak. I noticed a dark spot on my garage floor where I keep the car parked and it had the smell of differential fluid. Checked up under the car and rear differential is covered in fluid..as is a little of the underbody just behind the differential. Anybody else had this problem?

Car's still in warranty (about 44,000 miles) so I'm scheduling it for service next week, but I'm wondering if this is a problem other owners have had? And was it repaired to your satisfaction?

I'm hoping it's just a loose filler nut, or possibly a bad seal. We'll see.

Curt

Anybody else had this problem?

not me

hmmm

It has been posted before so you're not alone. Glad to see you still have your warranty. The CTS differential seems to be the weakest link in the drivetrain! Good Luck.:)

Had the same problem a few weeks ago. Took the car to the dealer. Had to replace the two seals. Warranty covered.

Thanks guys...I'm making an appointment on Monday.

Curt

I hope it's not an expensive fix. My 03's warranty runs out in October and it seems like everybody's differential goes out around 45K....I'm only at 29K. I might have to invest in the extended warranty.

i haven't noticed any leaks yet but my rear diff was screaming last night after 45min drive down to my parents house.

I as well don't recall any leaking... but have had the dealership replace the rear differential now for the 3rd time :mad: once back in March 04, then on September of 04 and recently last week they replaced it again!!! Hopefully it's all good now since I gave them hell at the dealership for this and some other stuff....

part is about $1,200 from what my service rep. said.... so without warranty and if you can't live with that noise then it would be pricey.... :eek:

I had to replace the rear diff. seal at 3k on my 06 3.6L.

I had to replace the rear seal on my 06 3.6L at 1800 miles. No trouble since.

I havent had a rear diff problem.... :knock on wood: :)

I havent had a rear diff problem.... :knock on wood: :)
this is my second rear diff whining

i had them replace the diff and now it's leaking like whoa. nice little puddle in my driveway like a junker...kinda embarrassing but i'm bringing it in hopefully this week. i hate that diff, i'm goin to feed it creatine because it's such a damn pansy.

Diff #2 is whining just like #1. Also getting a clunk in the rear that wasn't there with #1 - seems like there is a bit of backlash in the gearset.

roger that....i have the same exact problem. when i first got the diff replaced it was great and i was really excited. nice and smooth, good downshifts, quiet. now it's humming, clunking, and leaking. good thing it's only been a month, eh? quality.

thank god it's under warranty...

I havent had a rear diff problem.... :knock on wood: :)
Same here. Even inspected it once while under the car - everything looked good.

Diff #2 is whining just like #1. Also getting a clunk in the rear that wasn't there with #1 - seems like there is a bit of backlash in the gearset.
same here except diff #2 is now louder than diff #1

well, in about a week or so i'll be able to check diff #3...so beat that.

(granted, they don't try to deny me because my borla "burnt up the differential bearing")

I'm afraid to say my '04 has had no problems in 27,000 miles.:eek:

well, in about a week or so i'll be able to check diff #3...so beat that.

Easily done - my service dept is installing diff #5 for me next week...:rant2:

Easily done - my service dept is installing diff #5 for me next week...:rant2:

Something is terribly wrong here. There has to be something outside the box causing this. Is the geometry of the drive train correct and nothing is in the smallest bind? Does the dealership even know how to check?

Something is terribly wrong here. There has to be something outside the box causing this. Is the geometry of the drive train correct and nothing is in the smallest bind? Does the dealership even know how to check?

Yeh, I mean nobody is THAT unlucky. I guess if he constantly does burnouts, upgraded the power, or maybe hits a lot of speedbumps really fast then I could understand it.

Barring anything he's done himself, I just can't see 5 diffs failing one after the other unless there was something else wrong with the car that was causing the problem. Either that, or the mechanics at his shop are incompetent or have just 1 large batch of bad diffs they're using to replace everyone's with.

Yeh, I mean nobody is THAT unlucky. I guess if he constantly does burnouts, upgraded the power, or maybe hits a lot of speedbumps really fast then I could understand it.

Barring anything he's done himself, I just can't see 5 diffs failing one after the other unless there was something else wrong with the car that was causing the problem. Either that, or the mechanics at his shop are incompetent or have just 1 large batch of bad diffs they're using to replace everyone's with.

Actually, it's 4 failing - the 5th will be installed next week. As I indicated on the poll, it's driven by lady senior citizen - no abuse. I fill it with gas & take to dealer for periodic differential replacements. Wish I knew what the problem is... Think the dealer would like to know as well...

Actually, it's 4 failing - the 5th will be installed next week. As I indicated on the poll, it's driven by lady senior citizen - no abuse. I fill it with gas & take to dealer for periodic differential replacements. Wish I knew what the problem is... Think the dealer would like to know as well...

Sorry, didn't read that part.

Anyway, that sucks. Hopefully they can figure out what's causing it.

i jsut got a call from my dealer about the leak...they said something about a pinion bearing. or pinion something. diff's ain't my thing, but someobody should know what that is. parts are on order...i'm kinda diggin my srx now...man is she smooooooth...

i jsut got a call from my dealer about the leak...they said something about a pinion bearing. or pinion something. diff's ain't my thing, but someobody should know what that is. parts are on order...i'm kinda diggin my srx now...man is she smooooooth...

You have two main gears in the diff housing, the RING gear and the PINION gear. The pinion gear is the one that comes out of the housing and hooks to the drive shaft. It supported by a PINION BEARING. Sounds like its bad or the seal is. Probably the seal if it just leaks. The bearing would make some noise.

http://usera.imagecave.com/BobsWork/pinion.jpg

thanks robert, that helps. i'm not completely stupid, but i figured the pinion did exactly that (since i used to race RC trucks and know how the pinion interfaces with the rest of the motor)...

i hope they get everything squared away. leaky diff = unacceptible

thanks robert, that helps. i'm not completely stupid, but i figured the pinion did exactly that (since i used to race RC trucks and know how the pinion interfaces with the rest of the motor)...

i hope they get everything squared away. leaky diff = unacceptible

Yep, Changing those gear ratios really made a car move in the 1/4 mile. I changed mine in a Plymouth Road Runner and my '65 Corvette.

Sorry I didn't post the outcome earlier, but my Gateway decided it wasn't getting enough attention and it needed some repairs!

Anyway, took the CTS in on Friday (3/31) and within 15 minutes of getting there, service writer came to the lounge and said both seals were bad. Gave me an 05 DeVille and sent me on my way. Three hours later, CTS all fixed!

I haven't done much driving with it since I picked it up (only about 45 miles), but my "seat of the pants" to indicate the differential is a little tighter ( I assume to replace the seals they have to pull the tubes) -- no more clunk from the diff on slow stops when the trans goes into first. The other thing I noticed, and I'm assuming they probably had to pull the brakes as well is my rear brakes are super-sensitive right now...not sure what they did, but I hope it works it way out, or it's going back for an adjustment!

Curt

I haven't done much driving with it since I picked it up (only about 45 miles), but my "seat of the pants" to indicate the differential is a little tighter ( I assume to replace the seals they have to pull the tubes) -- no more clunk from the diff on slow stops when the trans goes into first.
Curt

i'll give the EXACT same diagnosis upon getting mine back end of last week. you described it perfectly about the clunk being smoother.

i'll give the EXACT same diagnosis upon getting mine back end of last week. you described it perfectly about the clunk being smoother.

Hmmm..I like smooth "Clunks"!!:D