There have been a number of threads on here concerning the FreeTrack's propshaft coupling, the gradual failure of which tends to lead to a progressively worsening vibration between a very particular rev-band and that god-awful vibration of the rear-view mirror. If you're not familiar with it, then from inside the car it sounds and feels like somebody's fitted the world's biggest exhaust whilst you weren't looking. As far as I'm aware, it isn't a safety issue; it's more just a hugely irritating issue.
If you haven't seen the propshaft coupling, don't expect anything too exciting:
After two years and with the prospect of taking some friends on the long run down to Cornwall next month, I gave in and have had the coupling replaced; apart from the money thing, I can't think why I didn't do it sooner and the difference is remarkable. It has, essentially, put some joy back into driving.
The most common cause of failure on the coupling appears to be, from other owners I've spoken to, the rubber on the coupling just hardening and no longer serving its purpose as a vibration damper. The item itself is dealer part only and it's common to most VAG chariots that have the Haldex four-wheel drive system on the A5 platform, so that includes the FreeTrack, Tiguan, Yeti, Q3 and more besides. The fact that the dealer had three in stock, at £250 a pop, suggests that it's a common point of failure across the entire platform.
Unusually, mine hadn't hardened (oo-er Missus) but the innards had partly detached themselves from the outer, for want of a better description, leaving the coupling unbalanced; the bit that's raised above the outer edge should be flush with the rest of the coupling:
Fitting was about an hour and a half at an independent VAG specialist; the main dealer had quoted for the work, but were looking at about £250 for the labour, which seemed a little on the obscene side. Probably a couple of hours' work to do it yourself, should you be that way inclined and have the facilities; I had neither!
That's about it really. I thought I'd put my experience down into a post along with some photos, on the off-chance that it's of use to somebody at some point down the line. I can genuinely recommend changing the coupling, should the vibration and noise set in; the difference is phenomenal. My only caveat is that the price of the coupling seems to be rather variable; it was nearer £200 when I priced it earlier in the year, so has gone up 20% between then and now. The buggers....
R.
If you haven't seen the propshaft coupling, don't expect anything too exciting:
After two years and with the prospect of taking some friends on the long run down to Cornwall next month, I gave in and have had the coupling replaced; apart from the money thing, I can't think why I didn't do it sooner and the difference is remarkable. It has, essentially, put some joy back into driving.
The most common cause of failure on the coupling appears to be, from other owners I've spoken to, the rubber on the coupling just hardening and no longer serving its purpose as a vibration damper. The item itself is dealer part only and it's common to most VAG chariots that have the Haldex four-wheel drive system on the A5 platform, so that includes the FreeTrack, Tiguan, Yeti, Q3 and more besides. The fact that the dealer had three in stock, at £250 a pop, suggests that it's a common point of failure across the entire platform.
Unusually, mine hadn't hardened (oo-er Missus) but the innards had partly detached themselves from the outer, for want of a better description, leaving the coupling unbalanced; the bit that's raised above the outer edge should be flush with the rest of the coupling:
Fitting was about an hour and a half at an independent VAG specialist; the main dealer had quoted for the work, but were looking at about £250 for the labour, which seemed a little on the obscene side. Probably a couple of hours' work to do it yourself, should you be that way inclined and have the facilities; I had neither!
That's about it really. I thought I'd put my experience down into a post along with some photos, on the off-chance that it's of use to somebody at some point down the line. I can genuinely recommend changing the coupling, should the vibration and noise set in; the difference is phenomenal. My only caveat is that the price of the coupling seems to be rather variable; it was nearer £200 when I priced it earlier in the year, so has gone up 20% between then and now. The buggers....
R.
