1st BMW (2012 X5 40d)- Need help

Hiya,

First time owner, first post etc and I'm here looking for a bit of help please.

Bought a 2012 BMW X5 40d (125k miles) from private seller just before Christmas from private seller with FSH etc. However, on the drive home I'd noticed a strange noise......

Long story short, the front diff has gone (leaking oil) and I clearly need to get it replaced as it's very noisy and the smell of oil into the cab is horrible. I can't justify a brand new OEM part, and I'm nervous about getting a chinese one off of eBay.

So I thought I would put a post out to see who people would recommend within the UK? I've seen a couple of companies that do reconditioned ones, but I'm not sure that my existing one would be any good to return for a surcharge refund. I am also slightly confused with part numbers. The place I took it to to have a look for me were very helpful, and gave me a print out, but it lists two part numbers : 31508635861 (I believe to be a discontinued part?) and 31508635860

There's also a couple of other niggly bits with the car I'd like to get sorted:

Rear wiper mounting split - I'll either fix or replace
Drivers door handle light - advice needed, where to buy and how to fit
Front Window Washer jet - end one has broken, I've made a temp fix for now
Unlock crack - sometimes when I unlock, I can hear a cracking noise on the rear left, seems to be around the wheel/handbrake

Obviously those smaller bits can wait until I've got the bigger problem sorted out.

If there is someone out there who could point me in the right direction, it would be greatly appreciated.

Many thanks in advance