I have a 2000 323Ci with automatic steptronic transmission. It has 100K miles on it and I drive 90% freeway. I'm the first owner and drive very gently. Recently and intermittenly, I've noticed that when I put it in reverse, the transmission slips a little for 1-2 seconds, then clunks (the car jerks), then fully engages. All forward gears are fine. No warning lights from the dash. No transmission oil change has been done on the car since it's supposed to be a lifetime maintanence free tranny. Is this a sign of transmission going bad? Or is this something an transmission oil change may fix? What can I do myself to diagnose the problem? Any help is greatly appreciated. Thanks!
Transmission slipping (clunks) in reverse
- Thread starter Alan
- Start date
Welcome the board!
Yes, the transmission fluid is supposed to be "lifetime" but many of us here believe otherwise. My dealer said the real intention by BMW was to prevent someone from adding the wrong fluid to the transmission, so they call it a sealed unit.
The dealer can replace the fluid. The symptom you describe is typical of at least low fluid level (hopefully nothing worse). I have experienced this in other (non-BMW) vehicles. I would take it to a BMW dealer and insist on a complete fluid change. Then see what happens from there.
You could take it to a general transmission shop, but the knowledge of European transmissions varies greatly.
Yes, the transmission fluid is supposed to be "lifetime" but many of us here believe otherwise. My dealer said the real intention by BMW was to prevent someone from adding the wrong fluid to the transmission, so they call it a sealed unit.
The dealer can replace the fluid. The symptom you describe is typical of at least low fluid level (hopefully nothing worse). I have experienced this in other (non-BMW) vehicles. I would take it to a BMW dealer and insist on a complete fluid change. Then see what happens from there.
You could take it to a general transmission shop, but the knowledge of European transmissions varies greatly.
Today I had my first run in with this problem. When I cranked up my 00' 323i and shifted from P to R the transmission jerked and then failed to engage reverse. Luckily the jerk moved the car far enough backwards that I could get out of my parallel parking spot. When I arrived home I proceeded to pull into my garage (which requires backing up). When I shifted from D to R there was no jerk of any kind, and the transmission failed to engage R. I thought "what the..." and tried shifting to P and back to R. Still no luck. I curse a little under my breath and try from P to R to D to R to P pausing for a second to allow the transmission to engage. Drive gears engage successfully but the transmission treats R as if it was N with reverse lights. I ended up putting the car in N and pushing it backward enough to pull forward into the garage...Maybe it will work in the morning, I sure hope so. Also the car made a funny noise when in R. Any ideas on this? Is this a classic example of the sliptronic?
It's not the classic sliptronic problem. That affected brand new trannies with just a few hundred to a few thousand miles. Unfortunately, what you are describing is just good old transmission failure.
I really hate to say it, but I think you have a major problem. If you want to have any chance at all of fixing it and minimizing further damage, you need to not drive it at all, and have it towed to a repair shop.
I really hate to say it, but I think you have a major problem. If you want to have any chance at all of fixing it and minimizing further damage, you need to not drive it at all, and have it towed to a repair shop.
No it isn't take a look at the Sliptronic Sticky thread... What you're describing is a classic example of transmission failure in a 5 year old car...
The sliptronic is when the car easily reverses a few hundred feet and then doesn't move forward or slips and catches.... What you need to do is buy a new transmission, seems like the e46 trannies aren't as reliable as one would think, thank GM quality....
The sliptronic is when the car easily reverses a few hundred feet and then doesn't move forward or slips and catches.... What you need to do is buy a new transmission, seems like the e46 trannies aren't as reliable as one would think, thank GM quality....
I'm on my second transmission now, having had mine replaced last summer at 120,000. The BMW transmission oil is made by Texaco...or at least mine was and is not for sale to the public. They only sell it in 50 gallon drums, I've seen it in independent shops. So you can take your own container to an independent and get some. BMW sells the filter kit with a new gasket, screen, and screws. (Realize also you can't do a 'complete' fluid change anyway, cuz there will be fluid stuck in the torque converter that you can't get out.)
There are two schools of thought on changing the fluid once you first start experiencing problems. Some say it is a waste of money, since BMW fluid is so expensive and the damage is probably already done. In this line of reasoning of lifetime oil, they say changing the oil only sturs up sediments and is not helpful at all given the new design of these transmissions. Others say there is always a hope that the problem is simply burnt fluid and a change of oil is a good first step that may or not work, but is worth a shot. (I had my fluid changed, to no avail...but my problem was with 5 and 4 gear downshifts...you should have seen how burnt that fluid was...it was disgusting black and smelt aweful...but with new fluid, my transmission did not come back to life...the damage was done and the little problems I would experience just kept occurring more and more frequently.)
I will never believe in lifetime fluid again (what a farce). Now that I have a new trasmission, I plan to have the fluid changed at a minimum of every 60,000 miles....but I'm considering every 30,000 miles. Does anyone here have a recommendation between the two?
There are two schools of thought on changing the fluid once you first start experiencing problems. Some say it is a waste of money, since BMW fluid is so expensive and the damage is probably already done. In this line of reasoning of lifetime oil, they say changing the oil only sturs up sediments and is not helpful at all given the new design of these transmissions. Others say there is always a hope that the problem is simply burnt fluid and a change of oil is a good first step that may or not work, but is worth a shot. (I had my fluid changed, to no avail...but my problem was with 5 and 4 gear downshifts...you should have seen how burnt that fluid was...it was disgusting black and smelt aweful...but with new fluid, my transmission did not come back to life...the damage was done and the little problems I would experience just kept occurring more and more frequently.)
I will never believe in lifetime fluid again (what a farce). Now that I have a new trasmission, I plan to have the fluid changed at a minimum of every 60,000 miles....but I'm considering every 30,000 miles. Does anyone here have a recommendation between the two?
![[hihi]](/images/smilies/icon_smile_hihi.gif "Hi Hi [hihi]"){kind=icon}
Called 2 different BMW dealerships today and asked for pricing on ATF change. Both gals from service dept say that the automatic transmission that I have is a "Closed System" and they do not perform fluid change on them. She told me to bring in the car and test drive it with a tech to replicate the problem. I may just need to bring it in and hope I can reproduce the problem..., but on the other hand, I hope this problem doesn't occur everytime
Yeah, seriously. If the transmission has a fluid pan that is detachable, then the fluid can be obviously changed.
It's funny - manufacturers have been touting "lifetime" fluids for a long time. The original 1967 Chevy service manual states that the differential fluid in my Camaro is a "lifetime" fluid and does not need to be changed unless repairs are performed on the rear axle that necessitate opening and draining the case. I changed the fluid shortly after I bought the car, and it was very apparent that the previous owners had abided by this "lifetime" recommendation.
It's funny - manufacturers have been touting "lifetime" fluids for a long time. The original 1967 Chevy service manual states that the differential fluid in my Camaro is a "lifetime" fluid and does not need to be changed unless repairs are performed on the rear axle that necessitate opening and draining the case. I changed the fluid shortly after I bought the car, and it was very apparent that the previous owners had abided by this "lifetime" recommendation.
Yeah, the Bentley manual walks you through the procedure to change the transmission fluid. It is not a closed system...look under your car...there are pour and drain plugs. They say it's closed because they believe changing the oil has no benefit and actually stirs up sediments. I suppose they're the experts? They are also the sellers of factory remanufactured units. LOL.
I’m with BMW of North America, LLC. I’m sorry to read of your concern about your transmission. If you and your BMW center would like our assistance, please phone us at (800) 831-1117 or email us at CustomerRelations@bmwusa.com, and mention Reference #200507000462 so that we can help you more efficiently.
Actually, I called the owner of my local repair shop and talked to him a little about the problem. He suggested bring my car to him so he could look at it and advise me on what to do. When he ran my VIN with BMW he discovered my car's drivetrain is still under warranty (CPO 6 yr 100k mile). That was great news because I did not know my car was still under warranty and he seconded all of the above posts saying that this could be an expensive repair. I took my car to Flow BMW after calling and speaking with the service manager. Now I'm waiting to hear from the dealership in the next few days to find out what the problem is and confirm that it will be covered under warranty. Oh yeah, I appreciate that BMW is out looking for ways to improve customer service by doing things like reading these forums.