Changing A/T fluid

[tsetse]

Re: Changing A/T fluid

ouch... about S$10k pain i believe if it is out of warranty.

btw, did you take the car since less than 50km? ie new from the showroom?

Oh it was replaced under warranty, so not too bad. When I collected my car, it had 30km on the clock, brand new from PML. I do some spirited driving especially with the tiptronic of whatever it is called from time to time.

But for the gearbox to fail so quickly...is unacceptable in my opinion though. The reverse gear had a big delay before it finally engages, till one fine day it stopped engaging the reverse gear altogether. Abit disappointing...

 

[R2D]

Re: Changing A/T fluid

So you mean the ZF Gearboxes typically only last 100k km on average...thats pretty short life. So what do you recommend? I'm thinking of changing ATF once every 30k km as I just had my gearbox replaced a few months ago at a mileage of 82000km.

What do you recommend???

sorry typo.. the service life is 100k miles not km....

normally we recommend a 40k km change of ATF.

cheers

 

[R2D]

Re: Changing A/T fluid

good stuff and shows your technical competence. those sitting on the fence will want to change ATF.

let's go further.

the nitrile seal location. by the time Lubegard gets to it, we may effectively not cause a softening effect as we "hope" the mixture will get to it. With the protectent and ATF mixture, how are we so sure chemically it does not affect other components.

also, i believe newer trannies are filled with Dexron IV. the Lubegard site seems to have tested it with the older Dexron II or III.

The nitrile seal is in the flow of ATF. The metal seals are for the ATF entering the torque converter. After going through the torque converter, the oil needs to flow back into the sump and this is where the nitrile rubber seal is.

Dexron IV standard is for long life syntethic ATF and they are usually friction modified. There are 2 types of protectant. Red bottle and Silver bottle. If your base stock oil is not friction modified, you will need the silver bottle. Since we use Torco, just the red bottle will do. Torco is a synthetic high visosity oil that is friction modified for extended drain intervals.

cheers

 

[jon2367]

Re: Changing A/T fluid

Oh it was replaced under warranty, so not too bad. When I collected my car, it had 30km on the clock, brand new from PML. I do some spirited driving especially with the tiptronic of whatever it is called from time to time.

But for the gearbox to fail so quickly...is unacceptable in my opinion though. The reverse gear had a big delay before it finally engages, till one fine day it stopped engaging the reverse gear altogether. Abit disappointing...

Glad to hear you got it replaced under warranty. For those of us already out of warranty, it'll be painful for the kids - no more college fund. Read somewhere that the GM gear boxes are notorious for valve solenoid failure and it manifests itself as no reverse gear. Replacing the solenoid may be somewhat cheaper than replacing the entire transmission - There may still be hope for the kids future.

 

[tsetse]

Re: Changing A/T fluid

Glad to hear you got it replaced under warranty. For those of us already out of warranty, it'll be painful for the kids - no more college fund. Read somewhere that the GM gear boxes are notorious for valve solenoid failure and it manifests itself as no reverse gear. Replacing the solenoid may be somewhat cheaper than replacing the entire transmission - There may still be hope for the kids future.

I guess I'm lucky on this. But for out of warranty, why aren't they recommending the replacement of the solenoid valves instead of suggesting the mechatronic unit or the gearbox to be replaced? Is it way to troublesome to reach those areas or simply for their ease of repairs. Just slap in a new gear box?

 

[jon2367]

Re: Changing A/T fluid

Ahh found it:
http://forum.e46fanatics.com/showthread.php?t=706809

 

[tsetse]

Re: Changing A/T fluid

Ahh found it:
http://forum.e46fanatics.com/showthread.php?t=706809

Ooohh Thanks for the link! Too bad mine is using the ZF tranny. But it sure makes us more well equipped on our gearboxes!

 

[R2D]

Re: Changing A/T fluid

The GM tranny is fitted in most e46 318 here in singapore, for the 6cyl, its the ZF tranny. The GM tranny has the valve solenoid problem while the earlier batches of the ZF had reverse drum breakage failure. In the later batches of 6 cyl (after 2003) ZF corrected the problem with a thicker drum wall to increase the strength. For the GM gearbox a different solenoid was introduced about the same time.

 

[douggie]

Re: Changing A/T fluid

I would definitely recommend changing ATF at fixed intervals. Heat will cause ATF to breakdown and become thin, no matter how super the fluid is. With our tropical climate and congested roads, it makes our transmissions run even hotter. This makes things worse. That is why there are people who even go all the way to install aftermarket ATF coolers in their cars.

There are several ways of changing ATF. One is the simple drain and fill. Due to the design of automatic transmissions, there is no way of draining out 100% of the ATF with the drain and fill method. So only a part of the ATF is being replaced. This method is safe because there will be no big changes in fluid viscosity and pressures inside the transmission. The drawback is of course there is still the old and dirty ATF remaining and it will "contaminate" the newly added ATF, which some people say that this defeats the purpose of changing ATF in the first place.

That is why there is the other method called the ATF flush. This will ensure that all ATF is purged out and new ATF is added. This involves connecting the transmission to a machine that drains out ATF and simultaneously pumps in new ATF while the transmission is engaged. When new ATF starts coming out from the drain side, it means that the transmission is completely filled with new ATF. Now, whether that is good or bad really depends on what you think.

It's really up to you to choose which method, but changing ATF is a must if you care about your transmission. Just my opinion.

 

[cyrus271]

Re: Changing A/T fluid

The GM tranny is fitted in most e46 318 here in singapore, for the 6cyl, its the ZF tranny. The GM tranny has the valve solenoid problem while the earlier batches of the ZF had reverse drum breakage failure. In the later batches of 6 cyl (after 2003) ZF corrected the problem with a thicker drum wall to increase the strength. For the GM gearbox a different solenoid was introduced about the same time.

Hi, is that the case with the E90? Have just come up to 40k km (3.5 yrs) on my car, so thinking of changing the ATF. The gearbox is definitely not as smooth as it was when new. Can PM me the cost? thanks!

 

[wt_know]

Re: Changing A/T fluid

isn't 40k milleage is too soon to flush ATF ?
my ride is coming to 2years with 40k milleage. that means every 2years must flush ATF ?
my previous ride, drive for 5years with 90k milleage (1st hand), never change ATF and the gear is still smooth smooth till the day i sold it

 

[pbear1973]

Re: Changing A/T fluid

isn't 40k milleage is too soon to flush ATF ?
my ride is coming to 2years with 40k milleage. that means every 2years must flush ATF ?
my previous ride, drive for 5years with 90k milleage (1st hand), never change ATF and the gear is still smooth smooth till the day i sold it

My JDM did 150k without any flush.. gearbox was smoother at the end than my brand new bimmer is right now...

 

[davidtch]

Re: Changing A/T fluid

My JDM did 150k without any flush.. gearbox was smoother at the end than my brand new bimmer is right now...

What u experience is normal for bimmer. I did not own a bimmer to share my experience long enuf. I read a lot about bimmer since late 90's mainly BMW Club Malaysia. In addition, driving experience is totally diff btw blue propeller & JDM.

 

[C3P0]

Re: Changing A/T fluid

I did not own a bimmer to share my experience.

Uncle, what talking you le...must be the haze....

 

[davidtch]

Re: Changing A/T fluid

Uncle, what talking you le...must be the haze....

Thx robot. What i meant is long enuf. It must be the haze. By the way, i m not uncle hor, i am Xiao Di.

 

[martmode8850]

Re: Changing A/T fluid

i am keeping to dont touch the ATF. my 3rd entry level 4 cylinder with GM tranny.

the rest of you folks who want to change, it really is your call. and for those who diligently change, try to keep your ride for more than 100k km, else we lose the data points in cost benefits...

 

[pbear1973]

Re: Changing A/T fluid

What u experience is normal for bimmer. I did not own a bimmer to share my experience long enuf. I read a lot about bimmer since late 90's mainly BMW Club Malaysia. In addition, driving experience is totally diff btw blue propeller & JDM.

That's true! The driving experience makes all the little things go away. Anyway the bimmer gearbox is a little rough only going from 3 to 2. Other than that it's perfectly ok.

There's this hill between my home and my office with a road hump halfway up. My baby always shifts "bumpily' (but not overly rough) from 3 to 2 just before that hump.

 

[Red_Bean_Bun]

Re: Changing A/T fluid

Thought about changing the rear differentials fluids as well ? Why do halfway

Hi, is that the case with the E90? Have just come up to 40k km (3.5 yrs) on my car, so thinking of changing the ATF. The gearbox is definitely not as smooth as it was when new. Can PM me the cost? thanks!

 

[cyrus271]

Re: Changing A/T fluid

Thought about changing the rear differentials fluids as well ? Why do halfway

heh - i didn't even know the two were related till I read this thread. Do you know how much to do both? Thanks in advance!

 

[jerms]

Re: Changing A/T fluid

my ride is at 60k and i did a ATF and differential top up.. not sure if R2D flush alittle old fluid out or just topped up.... to me its still very smooth because before my 3 series i drove a honda fit.