shadyx1

So I was driving to work today and the dreaded "Trans. Malfunction" message comes up on the Idrive screen. I'm thinking to myself, "oh god how much is this gonna cost me to fix". I made it to work without being able to accelerate past 60 without going past 5 rpm. (i was on the freeway) So I got to work, turn off my car, turned it back on and the message was gone. I made it back home and still no message. Is this a serious transmission problem? or could it be that i need something as simple as transmission fluid flush or oil change? One of my friends told me it could just be one of those but he said he's not sure for BMW's. Any input? I'm planning on taking it to BMW when i get the chance but I'd like some knowledge beforehand. thanks!

btw my car is an 06 525i auto with about 71k miles on it.

1UP

Mine did something similar (went into limp home mode) but no dash warning lights.

Turned out to be a cracked auto sump plate, which is a common problem apparently as they are made of plastic (great BMW design, probably by the same guy who developed the swirl flaps!!!)

Anyway, get it looked at asap as you can only tell by taking off the undertrays. I think mine ran too low on fluid, got hot, burned the fluid, and now I think I have much bigger problems to deal with.

Hope this helps...

luigi524td

Suggestions about Auto Trans issue at low mileage / reasonably "new" car. When these sort of alerts happen they should (but aren't always) stored in the car's computers. So I made it a practice to snap a quick picture of the alert (including Check control iDrive message) with my cell phone. A picture is worth a thousand words!

Next, because in my experience, transmission problems do NOT self correct, and are a Dealer "Must See" matter. And, I think it is NOT a "hey, you're a year or two out of warranty - on a low mileage - carefully driven car - totally on your dime. I feel BMW has a responsibility to deliver a product that, if driven and maintained by THEIR standards, to expect that major components (like a transmission) to work properly for a reasonable period of time.

IMHO, 4-5 years and 60K miles is not your car's "lifetime"!

sevenup_guy

Have the dealer check this out . Maybe it could be as simple as updating the software and reinitializing it.

shadyx1

Thanks for the reply guys. But it did the same thing about 2 more times since I first posted. And a few more things happened. My Idrive screen won't turn on after a break from driving (like when its a 5-6 hr break) and then it will turn on when I drive the car for a few mins when I hold the power button for the radio. Even after that sometimes the Idrive just resets (like i restarted the car). I also get the "SOS system unavailable" msg. What do you guys think? I still haven't had the time to go to BMW for this problem (also scared of the cost) could this be a battery problem?

mookish

Battery?

cookiesowns

With these electrical issues your car is having, and pre 07 car, I'm assuming it's the MPM ( micro power module ) going bad, check your trunk for any water in the spare wheel well. If it's all good, smell for anything out of the ordinary. Then next thing to do is to have your battery checked and replaced go to BMW for this, considering if they assume it's just a battery and you still have issues they'll most likely do a good will and cover the costs of anything else. If you do replace with a generic they'll most likely tell you to replace it again.

Hopefully this helps, and I wish you luck.

PS: The MPM controls the cars main electronics from going into sleep and out of sleep. If it goes out, basically you're in a series of hurt. LOL

jaycal3

While the MPM may control the car going t o sleep and the SOS malfunction msg the OP is getting, I do not think the main error message about the transmission is linked to that unit... There are a couple DME's in the ebox up front that I think control the transmission along with traction control, dynamic drive etc... Those can get wet too if your storm drains are clogged (there is one directly under the ebox - ask me how I know)...

Of course it may just be the battery - which does a good job masking itself as a major issue when it starts to go.

shadyx1

well, now the problem is getting worse. The Idrive still doesn't start up when I turn on my car most of the time, and when it does start, it restarts itself often (I'd say about every 5-10 mins). But today, I finally got a error message saying "High Battery Drain". So I'm guessing (hoping) it was a battery problem all along. This leads to my next question. How much does a battery change cost at a So. cal dealership? I'm planning on taking my car in early next week for a full car diagnostic just to be safe. (how much should this cost me?)