Tranny time

decoupe

decoupe

(deceased)
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Alberta, Canada
I’m looking at the various options to deal with a reluctant reverse gear. If the transmission is cold, I can usually engage reverse by letting out the clutch at idle VERY slowly. Once it’s warmed up it’s just metal on metal – painful, inconvenient and occasionally quite funny (requires gravity assit or co-operation from the passenger). All other gears are good and synchro is fine throughout. Something with the selector? With over 200,000mi on the transplanted unit, I have no complaints. Goes great in 5 forward gears.

So my options are:

Used from local wrecker = $575 (uncertain mileage and no guarantee)
Used from Bavarian Auto Recycling = $675 (cleaned,”tested”, 6mo guarantee and mileage unknown)
Rebuild from Ireland = $1,000 + ( “a guy I use” – basic but depends on what is wrong )
Korman = $1800 (full rebuild 2 year guarantee)
Metric Mechanic = $2200 (full “ultimate” rebuild with “improvements – 2 year guarantee)
BMW factory rebuild = $3500
Performance Gearing (Jim Blanton) = $4200!!!!!!!!!!!

Anyone had any experience with any of the above (excluding the wrecker of course) or knows of any other sources in North America? I’m tending to a rebuild, as I want to do this once and with used you also get uncertainty.

Thanks
 
reverse gear

I would first get under and see if somehow something is hanging up in the shifter mechanism. Make sure all shifter platform mounts are in good shape, on the trans, and to the body (the platform on my five speed is hung from the body at the back, and that mount broke once).

If you satisfied by examination that the problem is external, I would guess that getting another five speed ought to cost more like $350 (including the whole car) if you can find one. That will of course come with no guarantee, mileage will be whatever the car shows, but these units are pretty strong and very seldom go south.

Maybe, just maybe, you can run 50-50 ATF and 85/90 wt trans oil and solve your problem.

Failing all else, you've got a bent selector fork inside the trans. Let your fingers do the walking and try to find a trans shop in your area that will take the job.

Disclaimer: I've only been inside the 4-speed units.
 
Hi Doug,

Sorry to hear that gearbox is giving you trouble. I got it out of a 528i in a junkyard a year or so before you adopted the car. It would very occasionally act up on me, but I just assumed it was a high mileage effect. For what it's worth, I've heard that rebuilding these gearboxes independently is not economical. There are lots of special tools required, and the internal parts themselves are very expensive.

You could gamble by buying another used unit for under $500 and see how long it lasts, or you could go with one of the vendors listed below.

I remember Jan Gullet going through at least two gearboxes from Metric Mechanic before he got one that worked properly. I don't know if he ever ended up with a usable unit.

TJ
 
TJ - i think the tranny has something like 207,000 miles on it and still doesn't leak. That has to be worth something. I won't attempt a fix myself and there isn't anyone the local BMW crowd would recommend.

I'll go through all of the suggestions from Honolulu now that it is on the lift. The centre bearing is toasted and will replace it but doubt that has any effect on reverse.

There are few donor cars left using the Getrag 265 by the time salt and abuse have had their way with them up here. The units I've checked out are high mileage crap that would be short term solutions (and leak).

Like I said I'm leaning towards a rebuild - probably Korman and I'll follow your suggestion and get the flywheel lightened at the same time. Anyone out there used Korman?

Happy surfing. Our ski hill opened yesterday.

Doug
 
corsachili said:
I remember Jan Gullet going through at least two gearboxes from Metric Mechanic before he got one that worked properly. I don't know if he ever ended up with a usable unit.

TJ
Click to expand...

No kidding! I would hope after dropping 3k on a trans the company would be both speedy and courteous, but jeez!

I was considering getting one of them, but I guess now other options should be considered.
 
x_atlas0:

You might look at this as an option. More than I'm willing to spend with the exchange to CDN funds.

We can sell you a factory reman for $3900 with no core.

It won't be viable to rebuild your existing unit. I'm assuming it came
from an old 6 series, so it has lower quality gear sets than the late
Euro E30 M3 unit that we're offering. By the time we buy all new gear
sets for your existing trans, we'll be about $700 over the cost of the
factory reman.

Thanks

Brett Anderson
KMS-Koala Motorsport
www.bmwdiffs.com
(440) 564 7574
9988 Kinsman Rd
Novelty, OH 44072
(Near Cleveland)
 
My current trans is perfectly fine, shifts great. But I do know that it will eventually need to be redone, hence I have been looking around at the various rebuilders, as I would prefer to get a "better than new" trans, so upgraded bearings, better synchros, better shift forks, the works. I would want a trans to outlast the M30.
 
rebuilt tranny

I just ordered and received a 4 speed rebuild from BMW. I had different issues but like you had really only one choice that makes sense. I spent $2500 for the 4 speed and now I don't even think about it.
 
I *think* it was Metric Mechanic, and I don't know the specifics, so please don't take this as Gospel. I'd hate to besmirchify a company's good name inadvertently. But I think it was MM. Maybe in the end they even fixed it, again, I don't know the particulars.

Doug-wow............the center bearing went? Someone driving that like they stole it? = ) I don't think that driveshaft bearing had more than 50K miles on it. Must be the new owner's driving style. Lord knows I never drove the car agressively.
 
What, you just went parking at Laguna Seca?

You've had more fun with it than I have. It poured the one day I had booked into a track school.

On the tranny thing, I've had several people comment on the results of anybody's "rebuild" compared to a remanufactured unit from BMW. Vibration and noise being the chief complaint. I'm still waivering.
 
I have a close ratio 5 speed (dogleg) in my coupe and I love it , you might want to give that a whirl( TJ ,TooLow thinks she gets stolen on a regular basis)
We did have an issue with the selector linkage braking ,but some creative welding seems to have fixed that.Funny enough it always broke either at a stop sign or when parked.

Good luck
PJ
 
Have you considered that the problem might not be the tranny?

From you description of the symptoms, I would first suspect a clutch problem.

The only gear without syncros is reverse. It the clutsh was almost but not quite completely disengaging, the syncros would keep the forward gears from grinding and cold (thick) tranny oil would help reverse engagement.

Such a condition could be caused by broken or weak pressure plate springs (fingers), a clutch disk that has broken or a dragging pilot bearing.
 
I know there is a problem with the tranny (metal chunks stuck to the magnet) that has to be fixed but i will also replace the entire clutch assembly with a new kit (pilot,throw out, pressure plate, friction disc etc) from Bav Auto or others. No sense risking some minor failure that can be dealt with now for not much money or time.

Still considering all options. If the local pick apart had a record of the mileage on the two units in his system I might be more comfortable with another used one. This one lasted 200,000 + miles and never left me stranded but the less miles the better.

I've got about 4 months before the weather will be worth getting back on the road so no hurry.
 
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