Re: E36 - Any Batch comes with 5-Speed Auto?
All BMW's of the 1991 era with the M50 engine had 5 speed gearboxes, which was the world's first mass production 5 speed auto by ZF. It is a gearbox that does not have many friends due to short life, clonky shifts, complex rebuild etc. For some markets, BMW fitted the 4 speed GM gearbox instead, supposedly for better durability; i heard ( it was also used by Opel in the Omegas..as well as the 4 cylinder BMWs) but another reason was probably for import tax offset reasons. Some models exported to Japan used Jatco gearboxes with very short ratios to improve acceleration.