So my mom drove my car this morning. No big deal . Im home from school and she tells me, i was driving ur car today and when i was just into second it made a bad noise. Slowed me down alot, like a bang. Im like what the hell? So i drive it, second feeling a little slugish, but not to bad, noticeable or maybe just me being worried. I have lunch, and return home in the car. I shift from 1st to 2nd, and i let it go into second. Its in, and im accelerating up a gradual hill, AND BANG BOOM! BOP! the car just jults bad, tach goes up high, because the car through itself into nuetral. REALLY bad noise though. Anyone know what is wrong? I seriusly dont get it..... AHHHH THIS SUCKS? anything to have someone look at? HELP ME OUT HERE TECHIES>
BRAD:dunno :( :confused: :mad: :eek: :95 :az:

you may have meshed a gear.....thats no good.
if it were stuck in 2nd, you would be in worse shape.

Meshed a gear, i dont even drive the car alot, how would i simply just mesh a gear....explain

kind of hard to diagnose over the internet...
does it seem to be a transmission problem or engine problem?
are you sure you didn't throw it in neutral when you heard the bad noise?
were the noises coming from the engine, transmission, or exhaust?

sound like a tranny problem. The tranny popping outta gear makes kinda a thud and the motor would then be free to rev up to however high you have your foot on the gas. The tranny would most likely come out of gear under a load.. Going up hill could cause it, not that it is supposed to happen, but that is where the load was coming from.

yEAH ITS A DEFINITE THUD. i THINK IM GONNA TAKE IT TO THE STEALER TOMMOROW. Any suggestions on what
i might tell them?:dunno

From what I gather from your original post, it sounds like second gear wasn't engaged fully and popped out...back into neutral. When this happens, there is a rather loud metallic sound which is best described as two fairly large and heavy pieces of metal that became un-meshed while under load. (Which is exactly what happened if my guess is correct.)

Bob ///M3

that sounds fairly relative. What kind of repairs should i do , and what should i have checked out..? I really want this thing better or the same as it was befor.

a lot of people try to avoid taking it to the stealer... i've had mixed results with warranty work at bh bmw, for what it's worth. there are a few good independent shops around LA that members can recommend for you. autowerkes in huntington beach does all my work, and they are good with transmissions (some shops send out tranny work). 714-842-2277. it's a little drive for you, but it may be worth it if the $tealer tries to work you over.

Assuming my guess is correct about what happened, most of the time it's just a matter of the driver making sure the gear is fully engaged instead of partially. There may be an issue with a chipped tooth on the gear but I doubt you have that problem.

You didn't mention whether you have the OEM shifter or an aftermarket short shifter. Either one (stock or aftermarket) can exhibit what you experienced but I think it would be more likely with a stock shifter simply because the "throw" is longer which lends itself to the gear not being fully engaged.

There is really nothing to check except for the linkage to make sure it's in good shape, not bent or hitting anything that may not allow full gear engagement. I would suggest you give it some time to see if it happens again.

From time to time an experienced driver can actually feel that a gear hasn't been fully engaged and can reduce the chances of the gear popping out by holding the shifter in place (until the next shift), making sure it is engaged (by clutching-in and re-checking the engagement), not applying a lot of throttle while in that particular gear (to reduce the loading on the transmission gear), or upshifting to the next higher gear quicker than usual. The difference between a fully engaged gear and one that isn't is only a matter of a small fraction of an inch. When you get familiar with your car's transmission and shifter, you will be able to "feel" the difference.

Lastly, if you find that the gear pops out more than just occasionly, there may indeed be a chipped tooth on the gear or a problem with the shifter's linkage. If it is a chipped tooth, this will require a replacement transmission or re-build. BMW only offers either new transmissions or re-built transmissions. They do not re-build them at their dealer's service shops. By the way, a re-built BMW transmission is just as good as a new one... If it happens to be the shifter's linkage, that is very simple to replace. I'm betting it was driver error by not fully engaging the gear and you really don't have a problem.

Bob ///M3


Originally posted by ///|V|3 BRAD
that sounds fairly relative. What kind of repairs should i do , and what should i have checked out..? I really want this thing better or the same as it was befor.

How old is the car? How many miles are on it? You could have a worn out synchro in the tranny. If that's the case, then it's rebuild time. :(

Originally posted by bungy42
How old is the car? How many miles are on it? You could have a worn out synchro in the tranny. If that's the case, then it's rebuild time. :(

Thats what it sounds like to me. You weren't doing any clutchless shifting were you? That has a tendency to tear synchros down to nothing leading to the type of problems you are describing.