No ty voe!!
APP310 Rear Drive Unit — The VW MEB Bearing Disaster
We have analyzed the APP310 in the ID.3, ID.4, and Enyaq several times. Forum users complained when we drew our conclusion after the first teardown - and once again, every subsequent unit confirms the same pattern. We are not deviating.
The latest case: motor completely seized at 214,000 km. The owner had clearly been driving with audible buzzing for a long time and ignored the sound.
Our conclusion was a design problem, not a quality problem. All bearing part numbers are unavailable in the supply chain. Of these, 4 bearings do not exist as serviceable parts at all. The motor had only 200 ml of oil left, burnt off by 180,000 km, and we are now seeing the exact same pattern repeating: the motor runs with insufficient oil, which is the primary cause of failure, and you can see black “carbon” residue coating the internals. The motor has no oil drain plug and was never designed for an oil change.
So in summary:
oil cannot be changed — it burns off — problem
bearings are not available in the supply chain — problem
the motor is repairable if you are not too late — problem
we developed our own repair kit — excellent
the motor is well-built but it leaks — problem
there is no official service interval — problem
Our recommendation: do not ignore buzzing or humming noises, and change the oil in both differentials every 100,000 km.
Affected — APP310 Rear Drive Unit
Volkswagen ID.3 (2020 – present, Pro / Pro S trims still use APP310)
Volkswagen ID.4 (2021 – Q4 2023; Pure base trim ongoing)
Volkswagen ID.5 (2022 – Q4 2023)
Volkswagen ID. Buzz (2022 – 2024, base variants)
Škoda Enyaq iV / Coupé iV (2021 – present, 50 / 60 trims still use APP310)
Škoda Elroq (2024 – present, 50 / 60 trims)
Audi Q4 e-tron / Q4 Sportback e-tron (2021 – 2024, RWD trims)
Cupra Born (2022 – present, base trims still use APP310)
OEM Part Numbers — APP310
1EA900100
1EA900100A
1EA900100B
1EA900100C
1EA900100E
1EA900100G
0CW301103
0CW301103A
Not Affected — APP550 Rear Drive Unit (redesigned)
Volkswagen ID.3 GTX (2024 – present)
Volkswagen ID.4 Pro / Pro 4Motion / GTX (Q4 2023 – present)
Volkswagen ID.5 Pro / GTX (Q4 2023 – present)
Volkswagen ID.7 / ID.7 Tourer (all variants, 2023 – present)
Volkswagen ID. Buzz 77 kWh variants (2024 – present)
Škoda Enyaq 85 / RS (2024 – present)
Škoda Elroq 85 / RS (2024 – present)
Audi Q4 e-tron AWD / Q4 Sportback e-tron AWD (2024 – present)
Cupra Born VZ (2024 – present)
Cupra Tavascan (all variants, 2024 – present)