I know I'll get a lot of flak for this...but why do people change the transmission fluid if the manufacturer says you don't need to?

did you ever step back and consider that the maker might be looking out for their best interests rather than yours?

I hear they blow up like grenades

because some of us have leaky reservoirs... :(

you dont have a trasmission reservoir Fab, unless you added one yourself.

did you ever step back and consider that the maker might be looking out for their best interests rather than yours?

perhaps but it seems unlikely...if they were they could easily make the same kind of deal they did with castrol and make lots of money...and I don't really see how a failing general motors transmission in their car would be good for their reputation.

yeah but if they put a sticker on it that says do not change fluid, your average backyard warrior might leave it alone instead of filling it in his garage and putting the wrong stuff in.

yeah but if they put a sticker on it that says do not change fluid, your average backyard warrior might leave it alone instead of filling it in his garage and putting the wrong stuff in.

Because BMW is deleting the DIY'er. Ex: the new 3...

true...but you could say the same about brake fluid, differential fluid or even motor oil...or anything else...i suppose what you're saying is possible but it just seems unlikely to me.

true...but you could say the same about brake fluid, differential fluid or even motor oil...or anything else...i suppose what you're saying is possible but it just seems unlikely to me.

Unlikely what? There is no DIP STICK on the new 3's....

im sorry i meant to quote e39 dream earlier in the thread

Unlikely what? There is no DIP STICK on the new 3's....

WOOT!?!
:confused

Unlikely what? There is no DIP STICK on the new 3's....


and there is no dip stick on our cars either...

and there is no dip stick on our cars either...

Yes, for the tranny... I was refering that there is no oil dip stick for the new 3. Sorry....

true...but you could say the same about brake fluid, differential fluid or even motor oil...or anything else...i suppose what you're saying is possible but it just seems unlikely to me.

The difference is that those other fluids you mentioned wouldn't last beyond the warranty period, and would end up costing BMW huge sums of money on repairs. Where as the "lifetime" tranny fluid will last well beyond the warranty period, at which point bmw no longer cares if your tranny blows up.

Seriously though, think logically about this. Regular oil has a shelf life on it, even if it's just sitting in a bottle in your garage. So how do you expect the oil and additives in the "lifetime" trans fluid to last 10 or 20 years? How about even 5 years. It's unlikely. Stuff breaks down regardless of how well it's mixed and "engineered"

Lifetime to BMW is equivalent to the end of the warranty period, at which point they can charge you for a new $6000+ transmission.

The difference is that those other fluids you mentioned wouldn't last beyond the warranty period, and would end up costing BMW huge sums of money on repairs. Where as the "lifetime" tranny fluid will last well beyond the warranty period, at which point bmw no longer cares if your tranny blows up.

Seriously though, think logically about this. Regular oil has a shelf life on it, even if it's just sitting in a bottle in your garage. So how do you expect the oil and additives in the "lifetime" trans fluid to last 10 or 20 years? How about even 5 years. It's unlikely. Stuff breaks down regardless of how well it's mixed and "engineered"

Lifetime to BMW is equivalent to the end of the warranty period, at which point they can charge you for a new $6000+ transmission.



true...but i could just take my car right on over to general motors and buy my transmission from them instead...and i hear what you're saying about the life of the fluid...but it seems like they could make alot more money doing transmisson fluid changes on cars out of warranty than doing transmission replacements...which most people probably wouldnt bother doing since by the time the transmission blows up the car has a value of about 7 or 8 thousand dollars...hardly worth spending 6 thousand on a transmission replacement...

Well, I suppose it's your choice. If you really want to keep the same sludgy trans fluid in your car for 20 years. Personally, I would much rather change it, and better to be safe then sorry.

Do you also run your engine oil for 20,000 miles? Because that's when bmw says to change it.

Well, I suppose it's your choice. If you really want to keep the same sludgy trans fluid in your car for 20 years. Personally, I would much rather change it, and better to be safe then sorry.

Do you also run your engine oil for 20,000 miles? Because that's when bmw says to change it.

ZING!

Well, I suppose it's your choice. If you really want to keep the same sludgy trans fluid in your car for 20 years. Personally, I would much rather change it, and better to be safe then sorry.

Do you also run your engine oil for 20,000 miles? Because that's when bmw says to change it.


I don't know what bmw says but my car and my owners manual say 9-10k so thats how often i change it...and again...they could make more money on oil changes if the suggested interval was shorter...however you are correct about the life in terms of time of the fluid...if you've had it in there for 30 years...you should probably change it...

WOOT!?!
:confused

ZING!
:rofl:

I don't know what bmw says but my car and my owners manual say 9-10k ...

Where does it say that in your owners manual?

My manual, which also covers the 528i, says to follow the lights. And those lights work out to between 15,000-20,000 miles.


and again...they could make more money on oil changes if the suggested interval was shorter

Actually I think they would make less, considering BMW covers oil changes on new cars for several years. (free maintenence program)

i wonder this *lifetime* fluid deal only applied in the US or everywhere BMW is sold officially.

i only drive 4000 miles a year and still change my oil every six months...having clean fluids in your car will never hurt...

why push it...? makes no sense to me...

Why change it? Why change motor oil? Commone sense dictates that new tranny oil is better than old.

Why do they say the factory fill is "lifetime"?
1. Cheaper for BMW to offer "free maintenance" on new vehicles. BMW extended ALL of its fluid change intervals w/ the advent of "free maintenance". Now, all of a sudden, its OK to change motor oil every 15k miles?! The factory fill for the tranny is very likely just fine for the first 50-100k miles. After that, BMW does not give a shit about the record of the car.

Thus, "free maintenance" consists of 3 oil changes and maybe some front brake pads for the first 50k miles, instead of 10 oil changes and 2 diff/tranny/power steering/brake fluid fluid changes. When you multiply the savings per car sold times the number of cars sold, that's many millions of dollars saved . . .

Answering the original question: Heat breaks down oil over time, varnises develope from this break down, varnishes cowagulate into sludge and muck everthing up. Changing the oil helps remove the varnises, changing the filter and cleaning the pan helps with the sludge build up and removal of the microscopic metal particals.

I know I'll get a lot of flak for this...but why do people change the transmission fluid if the manufacturer says you don't need to?

Look at the timing of when BMW purportedly changed to "lifetime" fluid. It occurred when BMW began its marketing program of free maintenance. Prior to that program, BMW recommended more frequent changes of everything: oil, filters, spark plugs, and yes transmission fluid. In other words, the transmission did not change, BMW marketing changed the purported need for changing the fluid. Therefore, if you plan on owning the car beyond the 3 or 4 year lease, you better change the fluid and not rely upon marketing to determine the maintenance and care of your vehicle. Do you actually want us to believe that you would blindly follow anything the manufacturer says?

Here's a good thread:
http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=494219

Hello guys, kind of new to the 5 series forum but have been around the 3 series forum for the past several years as I have a 1992 E36 as well. Anyway, I just started reading up on the 5 series and I hear quite a few people talking about the auto tranny being a GM tranny. So what GM car is it common with if any or is it its own variant?

I just bought a real clean 528iA yesterday for my wife. It has the auto trans with the manual shift option and the "M" sport option. Is this the GM tranny? I really don't have any worries about the car yet because as I said it is very clean (like showroom clean) and only has 49,000 miles on it.

I do all of my own work on all of my vehicles from light work to rebuilds on gas and diesel. I plan on keeping this 528 quite a while and I'm sure at one time or another I will need to address the tranny so I am trying to learn a bit more about it.

With 180,000 on my 3 series I have had the opportunity to get in to it pretty deep a couple of times for repairs. The 2 things that would seem trivial on other cars were the most challenging on the 3 series and that was the heater core and the starter.

The 5 seems like a real nice car. It is quite a bit more car than my 3 series and I am on a cram session to learn a bit more about it. I bought this car and my 3 series for what I would consider some excellent pricing and I think they are truly great cars.

JSF

What year is your car? What is the production date? Last 7 of your VIN?Hello guys, kind of new to the 5 series forum but have been around the 3 series forum for the past several years as I have a 1992 E36 as well. Anyway, I just started reading up on the 5 series and I hear quite a few people talking about the auto tranny being a GM tranny. So what GM car is it common with if any or is it its own variant?

I just bought a real clean 528iA yesterday for my wife. It has the auto trans with the manual shift option and the "M" sport option. Is this the GM tranny? I really don't have any worries about the car yet because as I said it is very clean (like showroom clean) and only has 49,000 miles on it.

I do all of my own work on all of my vehicles from light work to rebuilds on gas and diesel. I plan on keeping this 528 quite a while and I'm sure at one time or another I will need to address the tranny so I am trying to learn a bit more about it.

With 180,000 on my 3 series I have had the opportunity to get in to it pretty deep a couple of times for repairs. The 2 things that would seem trivial on other cars were the most challenging on the 3 series and that was the heater core and the starter.

The 5 seems like a real nice car. It is quite a bit more car than my 3 series and I am on a cram session to learn a bit more about it. I bought this car and my 3 series for what I would consider some excellent pricing and I think they are truly great cars.

JSF

Hey Jason, thanks for the quick reply. The production date is 10/99 and the last seven in the VIN are GU12715.


JSF

Lifetime is not your lifetime. Lifetime is the car's lifetime which has been classified as 100k miles. If you want your car to last longer then change (preferably sooner).

The difference is that those other fluids you mentioned wouldn't last beyond the warranty period, and would end up costing BMW huge sums of money on repairs. Where as the "lifetime" tranny fluid will last well beyond the warranty period, at which point bmw no longer cares if your tranny blows up.

Seriously though, think logically about this. Regular oil has a shelf life on it, even if it's just sitting in a bottle in your garage. So how do you expect the oil and additives in the "lifetime" trans fluid to last 10 or 20 years? How about even 5 years. It's unlikely. Stuff breaks down regardless of how well it's mixed and "engineered"

Lifetime to BMW is equivalent to the end of the warranty period, at which point they can charge you for a new $6000+ transmission.

Aww..nuts. I bought more than a year supply of engine oil and a lot of ZF gear oil for future use. I wonder how long the shelf life is before it starts to breakdown :bawling:help

PS. Down flame me for keeping so much oil in my storage, I got it direct from a local distributor since I WAS in the automotive parts business.....

Aww..nuts. I bought more than a year supply of engine oil and a lot of ZF gear oil for future use. I wonder how long the shelf life is before it starts to breakdown :bawling:help

PS. Down flame me for keeping so much oil in my storage, I got it direct from a local distributor since I WAS in the automotive parts business.....

BTW, its Redline Engine Oil...my baby only uses the best...!

Lifetime is not your lifetime. Lifetime is the car's lifetime which has been classified as 100k miles. If you want your car to last longer then change (preferably sooner).


Where did you see that classified as 100k miles? My tranny (manual) had gotten so sticky to shift last winter with 64k. I changed the fluid with synchromax.

It's been running like new ever since you can say it's got new lease on life at 64k. :)

Where did you see that classified as 100k miles? My tranny (manual) had gotten so sticky to shift last winter with 64k. I changed the fluid with synchromax.

It's been running like new ever since you can say it's got new lease on life at 64k. :)

I'm not real sure. Maybe I just saw it on here somewhere. What's funny is when I look in my Bentley the word lifetime is surrounded by quotes. :)

I agree. It should be replaced far sooner than even 100k.

I just changed my tranny fluid in my 02 530i. It only has 30k, but common sense tells me that the fluid is 5 years old, and like you said Gid, it breaks down over time. It just makes sense to replace it. It's called "routine maintenance" in my book. I used AmsOil full synthetic, and will do it again around 80K.

I just changed my tranny fluid in my 02 530i. It only has 30k, but common sense tells me that the fluid is 5 years old, and like you said Gid, it breaks down over time. It just makes sense to replace it. It's called "routine maintenance" in my book. I used AmsOil full synthetic, and will do it again around 80K.

"General Shelf Life" per the engine oil bible
Base Oils, Process Oils 3 years
Hydraulic Oils, Compressor Oils, General Purpose Lubricating Oils 2 years
Engine Oils and Transmission Oils 3 years
Industrial and Automotive Gear Oils 2 years
Metal Working and Cutting Oils 1 year

If its shelf life is only three years how can it hold up longer with use?

Hey Jason, thanks for the quick reply. The production date is 10/99 and the last seven in the VIN are GU12715.


JSF

Chassis number GU12715 Vehicle code DM63 Series E39 Model 528i Body type saloon Catalog model USA Production date 1999 / 10 Engine M52 Transmission Automatic Steering Left Catalyzer YES Additional Information for Vehicle code DM63Production FROM : 1999/09/01 TO : 2001/11/30 Engine M52TU Engine Oil 6.50 Liter Transmission Automatic Transmission Model A5S 360R Transmission Oil 9.00 Liter Rear Axle Oil 1.00 Liter Coolant(w/o Air Conditioner) 0.00 Liter Coolant(with Air Conditioner) 10.50 Liter Brake fluid 1.00 Liter Remarks : Final drive (rear axel), Automatic transmission: lifetime oil filing

Hello guys, kind of new to the 5 series forum but have been around the 3 series forum for the past several years as I have a 1992 E36 as well. Anyway, I just started reading up on the 5 series and I hear quite a few people talking about the auto tranny being a GM tranny. So what GM car is it common with if any or is it its own variant?

I just bought a real clean 528iA yesterday for my wife. It has the auto trans with the manual shift option and the "M" sport option. Is this the GM tranny? I really don't have any worries about the car yet because as I said it is very clean (like showroom clean) and only has 49,000 miles on it.

I do all of my own work on all of my vehicles from light work to rebuilds on gas and diesel. I plan on keeping this 528 quite a while and I'm sure at one time or another I will need to address the tranny so I am trying to learn a bit more about it.

With 180,000 on my 3 series I have had the opportunity to get in to it pretty deep a couple of times for repairs. The 2 things that would seem trivial on other cars were the most challenging on the 3 series and that was the heater core and the starter.

The 5 seems like a real nice car. It is quite a bit more car than my 3 series and I am on a cram session to learn a bit more about it. I bought this car and my 3 series for what I would consider some excellent pricing and I think they are truly great cars.

JSF

Please reference this: http://www.bmwtips.com/tipsntricks/Tranny/GM1999Chart.jpg
http://www.bmw-z1.com/VIN/VINdecode-e.cgi Yes, you have a GM tranny...

Bottom line - Changing tranny fluid = $100-300 depending on where you live (labor/hour) and the fluid you use (penzoil/royal purple). Cost of new tranny IF something DOES go wrong - $1000-3000 depending on your tranny and if you get it new or "refurbished". Now its up to you to do the math..i personally dont mind spending $200 on a professional putting royal purple fluid in my tranny..preventive maitenance people..dont skimp on the easy and basic jobs..you will regret it!

Is it too late to change the tranny oil at 258,000 miles (automatic)? It has a very small intermittent leak at the transmission rear seal, and no shifting problems at all (mostly highway miles). The shops all say it's too late with that many miles on it, fearing if they change it now and transmission will malfunction...Any thoughts/experiences? thx.

To me "lifetime" fill means the lifetime of the tranny, diff, whatever. Now that lifetme is 100K, maybe, instead of the 2, 3, 4, 5Ks that it used to be. It's wicked cheap to change gear box oils every 25K instead of paying for rebuilds at 100K and there is no down time.

Is it too late to change the tranny oil at 258,000 miles (automatic)? It has a very small intermittent leak at the transmission rear seal, and no shifting problems at all (mostly highway miles). The shops all say it's too late with that many miles on it, fearing if they change it now and transmission will malfunction...Any thoughts/experiences? thx.

I'd probably just top it up if i were you. Some people have said their gearboxes have collapsed soon after changing the fluid when the car has really high mileage. Amazing the car has lasted over a quarter of a million miles! Does it still seem like it's got some life left in it?

So should I change the trans fluid at 177K, my independent refuses to, b/c its lifetime.

WTF?

He probably doesnt want to because he thinks if he changes it and the gearbox goes wrong soon after, you'll blame him. It's not that it's a difficult job to do, it's just a case of jacking car up and 2 plugs underneath to drain and fill. The internet consensus seems to be that doing it every 60k is a good idea, but what to do if you're past that...

It might make the car spring back to life but it might not and could kill it soon after. Then again you could leave it and it could die next week. It's a bit of a lottery with cars! I know when I changed mine, I cleaned the magnets that collect ground up pieces of metal from the transmission. They were covered in bits and my car has only done 65k. I can't imagine it's a great idea having fluid with bits of metal floating round in there grinding away.


Who can say what is the right thing to do? You need a jedi on the scene really.

general guideline

every 30 - 60k change it....much cheaper

if no change after 100k...be wary of what you do as you do not want to stir up things inside your tranny.....look at power flushes or no changes at all(if it aint broke dont fix it comes into a huge factor here)

Changing fluid at high mileages is still a good idea. Just don't use a flush service.

mine has 118k. I've had the fluid for a month or two but it's been ass cold. The way I see it, a simple drain and fill won't stir things up and will only get some bad stuff out. I'm planning on doing mine.

and i hear what you're saying about the life of the fluid...but it seems like they could make alot more money doing transmisson fluid changes on cars out of warranty than doing transmission replacements...
Guess what happens when you bring in a car that's out of warranty to the dealership? Most of them will right away change their 'lifetime' story and try to tell you that you should change your trans fluid.

I changed t fluid at 55K after I bought it. Can't hurt.

540 takes 8 quarts of synthetic motor oil. I'll change that every 7k/8k or so. Never gone over 5k in my other cars. However, this baby has 8 quarts. Easily last 7 to 8 k without any breakdown.