M54B30

Hi again Guys;

I took my car to my transmission indy, he drove it for a few miles and seen the little hard engagement from 3th to 4th gear when rev. is high. He told me this is nothing to do with mechatronic (V and not at all with selenoids, gaskets et. He has to open up the transmission itself and has to change/replace the part(s) that has some wear. So the car will then be fine. But he also advised me to drive the car like this, since it was a very minor problem.

I was not satisfied with his reply, today, i spoke to a mechanic at Sonnax Turkey, i explained every single detail of my problem on the phone and the technican told me that my indy was right and i have to get my transmission itself opened up and have to change the part that has some wear on it. He told me the cost could be between Usd 500 and Usd 1500 incl everything, depending on the condition of the wear inside the transmission. He has to open and see first. ZF oil should be replaced. Filter as well if needed. He also reckoned, since mine is a minor issue and Usd 750 could be the total cost.

So now I am confused.

Could you give me your ideas ?
Could my indy and the Sonnax technician right ?
VB and selenoids and gaskets inside is not the faulty ones.

Thanks for reading and your patient

All the best.

KyleB

With as much as you've posted lately, it sounds like you bought a car with a LOT of problems. I'd get rid of it and find something else.

M54B30

It is a 11.5 year old car. I expect some problems. I do not have major problem in fact. Most are minor but disturbs me since i am a kind of a picky person unfortunately I like investigating problems, learning new things, I love cars and like discussions and thank you for helping me a lot till now...Much appreciated.

My car has a lot of features that most e60 here at the similar or even much higher price range do not have at all.

So, from this point of view, changing my car will not be a good idea.

Thank you for your advise anyway...

E60Japanese

My transmission had gone into saftety mode and wouldnt change gears
The guy I bought it from had been to three mechanics who all told him the transmission had to be rebuilt or changed at a cos between $10K to $15K

I rebuilt the valve body, filter seals for about $1K

its been perfect for a year

I know that you may be a bit worried to spend a $1K and it may not fix the problem
i was too

But after fixing mine and 4 others, it was the same every time.

M54B30

Thank you.
I have not yet found a relaible company yet here that will pinpoint my problem and rebulit my VB.
My transmission indy and Sonnax Turkey both think that the problem lays inside my transmission. Though, they do not recommend to open my transmission until there is a slippage when changing the gear or a transmission fault occur. So, I left the matter aside for the moment.

At the moment, I have focus my other small problems like difficulty in horning and difficulty in closing my trunk etc.

I also met a person that soon will code my car that will even allow to see the rpm and gear selection and signal indication on my HUD and also many additional things that will increase my enjoyment with my car.

All the best.

cmyachtie

this may help with your trunk lid.....
Hack for Trunk Opening Hard and Fast - Save $$!! - Bimmerfest - BMW Forums

Worked great for me.!!

M54B30

Great. Thank you.

Tomorrow, I plan to do it in my truck.

Thanx again for this clever solution !

profusion

Hello. I have a 2007 BMW 525xi and recently the transmission also started having the same issue as M54B30.

The car seems to jerk 3 times when switching from 3rd to 4th gear. Also happens (not as bad) in 2nd to 3rd gear. 1st, 5th and 6th gears are fine,

I just bought a trans/pan kit and 10qts or oil. This valve body that everyone is mentioning, is this something I can get online? Any DIY links? And if I buy this valve body, does it need programming first before the install?

Any info will be greatly appreciated!

Thanks!

E60Japanese

Go to the DIY section and you will find a good write up abut transmission issues
If you are handy with some tools you will be able to do it easily

KyleB

Yes, you can get it online. I posted a pretty comprehensive thread a few years ago in the DIY section.

Low fluid levels or old, dirty fluid can certainly affect transmission performance. Like any mechanical problem, it's good to start with the basics before jumping to any conclusions. If you're not getting any error codes and the car isn't going into failsafe mode, and your only complaint is poor shifting I'd start with servicing the transmission with a filter and new fluid, reset adaptations, and see what happens.

Good luck.