540iA tranny shift question

[gguy04]

Hey guys, I've got an 02' 540iA sport with 67K miles on it, which I've owned for about 1.5 years now. I love everything about the way my car runs, with the exception of one little tranny quirk. I was hoping to get everyone's thoughts.

Knowing as little as I do about automatic transmissions, this might be tough to describe, so please bear with me. Basically, I get an RPM drop between 3rd and 4th gears that feels different from a gear change (the torque converter locking in??), and I don't like it. It feels awkward and ill timed. This does not occur under hard acceleration or when the engine is still cold. It also doesn't occur in sport mode.

The weird thing is, after I got a new set of tires put on (my first), it stopped doing this for a day or so. The same thing happened last week when my local BMW shop replaced some ball joints and other rear suspension components. The car held 3rd gear strongly with no RPM drops until 4th gear (no matter how lightly I accelerated). I never felt anything other than 4 perfect, crisp shifts. It was beautiful! Unfortunately the next day it went right back to its usual shift pattern. 1st to 2nd, then 2nd to 3rd, then awkward RPM drop (that is sometimes a tad abrupt--especially when cold), then 4th, and then 5th.

I hope this doesn't sound nuts. It just really bugs me, and I'm wondering if its even normal. What if my tranny just needs some adjustment or some routine maintenance? My BMW mechanic won't touch my tranny, by the way. He says no service is necessary and touching it would be a disaster of epic proportions. Great.

Any thoughts ya'll?

Thanks!
Chris

[Cbreeze]

Is the RPM drop after it shifts meaning you can feel it go to 3rd then drops? A slip would be a RPM rise where as a drop should be too high of a gear and lugging it.

The trans has torque management and also remembers how you drive it. The throttle gets blipped when it shifts so it sounds like something is funky with that. Pull the battery cables (negative) for at least a few minutes and see if it shifts like normal after you did that. Now finding what is wrong is still probably expensive but at least you took a step towards narrowing it down.

I actually can't believe that a tire change or ball joint change made it shift differently.

[gguy04]

"I actually can't believe that a tire change or ball joint change made it shift differently."

I know Cbreeze, I couldn't believe it either.

Well, my baby is with the mechanic right now, and unfortunately I am just scrambling to keep all crucial items repaired. I can barely stay above water with this car it feels like, so exploring a "non-issue" isn't going to happen any time soon. I will try the battery thing though!

Hey guys, what's the word on seals and gaskets with these cars? I don't understand why such a nice and well-made vehicle would have such cheap rubber components on it? My car is nearly 7 years old, and every seal and gasket on the engine is bad just about. My mechanic just told me I need vanos seals, a crank-case ventilation seal, some oil return pipe seal, and a few others. And he told me the guy who replaced my valve cover gaskets six months ago did a bad job and those are leaking again too. I feel like giving up.

Why does the M62 V8 eat seals/gaskets for breakfast? Or is it supposed to behave "normally" and be reliable for years to come once all the crappy factory rubber is replaced? I've never had to do this to ANY car I've ever owned.

My expectation was to drive this car until it was 20 years old. Seriously. I sold a 15-year old Camry to buy it. I think cars like this can and should last a long time. But I'm having my doubts that I will ever see a year without major expenses with this beast. At this point it would be cheaper to just lease a new 335i.

Anyone else feel like this?

*Discouraged,
~Chris

[amancuso]

.. At this point it would be cheaper to just lease a new 335i.

Anyone else feel like this?

*Discouraged,
~Chris

No and No... The problem here is that if your Camry was leaking, or seeping as your BMW is, no one would notice or care. That's the problem.

[Wolfen]

"I actually can't believe that a tire change or ball joint change made it shift differently."

I know Cbreeze, I couldn't believe it either.

Well, my baby is with the mechanic right now, and unfortunately I am just scrambling to keep all crucial items repaired. I can barely stay above water with this car it feels like, so exploring a "non-issue" isn't going to happen any time soon. I will try the battery thing though!

Hey guys, what's the word on seals and gaskets with these cars? I don't understand why such a nice and well-made vehicle would have such cheap rubber components on it? My car is nearly 7 years old, and every seal and gasket on the engine is bad just about. My mechanic just told me I need vanos seals, a crank-case ventilation seal, some oil return pipe seal, and a few others. And he told me the guy who replaced my valve cover gaskets six months ago did a bad job and those are leaking again too. I feel like giving up.

Why does the M62 V8 eat seals/gaskets for breakfast? Or is it supposed to behave "normally" and be reliable for years to come once all the crappy factory rubber is replaced? I've never had to do this to ANY car I've ever owned.

My expectation was to drive this car until it was 20 years old. Seriously. I sold a 15-year old Camry to buy it. I think cars like this can and should last a long time. But I'm having my doubts that I will ever see a year without major expenses with this beast. At this point it would be cheaper to just lease a new 335i.

Anyone else feel like this?

*Discouraged,
~Chris

The 540 is a high performance car. The V8 is a performance engine that runs hot and makes alot of power. IMO, the oil was not changed often enough on those cars and the oxidation ate the seals from the inside.

When i changed my valve cover gaskets, i had a look inside the valve covers and the groves that the gasket lays in. All had thick layers of caked on crud that came off in plates. I assume it's oil vapor accumulated over the years. But this crud worked it's way into the gasket material and the grove it sits in and "lifted" the gasket to cause leaks.

It was also present in the CCV diaphram when i changed it as the old one burst and i made it home with a smoke screen behind the car. I thought the car was FUBAR. My heart dropped. But the CCV fixed that.

The 540, like it's big brother the M5 like routine maintenance. They like preventative maintenance even better. They like to be maintenance whores here and there. You will spend money owning this car. No way around it. I did all the major gasket work myself. No biggie. just time and patience consuming. but alot of $$ saved and the Fun.

[gguy04]

"The 540 is a high performance car. The V8 is a performance engine that runs hot and makes alot of power."

Well, that's the answer everyone gives. But so is a Corvette, and you'd never have seal/gasket problems with an american V8. Besides the I6 has issues with seals too, from what I hear. It just doesn't compute for me.

Thanks for all the responses guys. I still love my car of course (and its a lot more beautiful than anything domestic). SO, I just agreed to have my mechanic fix everything. Here's the breakdown:

CCV valve - $667
vanos solenoid seals - $105
water pump and thermostate - $550

...Oi...