Hey guys, i recently had a problem with my 545i driving from phoenix to flagstaff.
The car is taken care of better then i take care of myself, it is a 2004 545i with almost 93000 miles.
I was driving up to flagstaff and my car said transmission malfunction and got stuck into 5th gear and didnt come out
nothing like this has ever happened and it just happened out of nowhere. and when i turned my car back on the malfunction didnt come back, but the car shifts hard now.
anyone have any clue whats going on with it??

 

It's probably a low voltage battery problem.

 

What makes you think it's a battery problem?

 

i've heard of transmission slams. have read anything about gear being stuck.

 

You will need to read the transmission code(s) that may have been set.
Without reading the codes, diagnosis is like throwing the dart in darkness. Everybody will have different diagnosis.

I suggest you pay for one hour of diagnosis at a dealer [or a competent independent mechanic].

 

Low battery voltage with play havoc with all the electronics in the car...even sending the transmission module to failsafe mode... i.e. stuck in a higher gear. The transmission module will not reset itself while the ignition remains on. If the ignition is turned off and battery voltage has risen to an acceptable level, the transmission module will again behave properly and all will seem normal.

Not saying that is the problem, but that is what battery voltage has to do with things.

Another possibility is a worn ignition switch. Since a '04 has a conventional key and thus switch, they can wear and sometimes cause weird electrical problems as the "on" circuits losses voltage across a compromised contact withing the switch.

 

That makes alot of sense. My car has been sending all kinda random faults as well

 

The last code i recieved from this was p1f1(pd) I believe they are all the same when I get them. Just the second number will fluctuate.