Differential Unit problems of the 2011 Toyota RAV4

Rear axle seals failed due to clogged differential vent. Car has 93k miles on it. The vent is impossible to reach and can't be cleaned easily. Also it costs $1300 to fix it.

Leaking rear differential seal on driver side. Only 70000 miles.

My Rav4 has 66,000 miles. I noticed an oil leak coming from the rear differential. My local dealer inspected the car and told me that there is a recall for a pinion bearing inside the rear differential but after only listening for noise of a faulty bearing they determined that mine was not defective. However the oil leak is coming from the pinion seal which is the same shaft as the bearings affected by the recall. One of the first signs of a bearing failure is a leaking seal. The failing bearing causes a vibration often times not heard or felt but which causes an oil seal to fail. The dealership did inform me however that I have a front wheel bearing that is failing. I do have an appointment to have everything fixed with a trusted local mechanic shop however I am concerned that Toyota is using poor quality parts that could lead to increased accidents.

At a routine oil change was told there was a "transaxle leak" that required immediate attention from an authorized dealer. There was no visible leak in the driveway, no check engine light or other warning. So when this developed is unknown. Told not safe to drive. Repair would be $3000. Transmission and differential had to be removed to seal leaking. This vehicle has 34k miles on it. Was told this only seen in cars over 100k. Has been well maintained--all service checks and recalls completed. Toyota accepts no responsibility. No sign of a potentially dangerous situation.

At approximately 67,000 miles (or likely much sooner), this 4wd vehicle experienced a leaking seal in the left rear differential/axle. The leak was discovered by the dealer during a recent visit to handle several outstanding recall issues. From doing extensive online research, this appears to be a widespread and common problem with the 4wd Rav4s. It is a very costly repair (as much as $800 at the local Toyota dealer), so I respectfully request that the ntsb investigate the Rav4 rear differential seal leaks for a possible recall or technical service bulletin. Please note that Toyota already issued a warranty enhancement notification (z4f) which extends the new vehicle limited powertrain warranty for a rear differential coupling issue. I believe that this warranty enhancement should extend to the rear axle seals as well. Failure of the rear seal(s) can of course lead to total failure of the powertrain and cause serious injury or death. I have attached a photo showing the leaking left rear axle seal.