BMW E36 M3 transmission issues

[cylenterok]

Hey guys I'm a newbie on this forum and I just bought my first BMW about a week ago. It's an automatic 4 door E36 M3 with 192,000 miles. I got it for $3,600 and it's pretty clean. It has bilstein shocks and ac schnitzer brakes. Everything else is stock in the engine.

I started to feel the tranny slip only from 1st to 2nd and from 2nd to 1st at slow speeds. It does it mostly when I go over speed bumps (hate those) and coming to a hard stop. Other than that the tranny shifts great. I read a post in here http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum/showthread.php?t=724430 about transmission slippage and I wanted to know if anyone else had any idea about an easy fix for this problem. In this post they said it could be the speed sensor which was relatively cheap. I'm going to take it to the shop soon but I don't want these guys trying to rip me off. I know you guys at bimmerforums know what to try first and what to look out for. Please help someone.


Im trying to post some pics so you guys can see my Black M3...

[bmwdirtracer]

First off, stop referring to guys in the shop as trying to rip you off. You're on the mechanical forum, and there's a lot of pro techs on here, trying to help, for free, and they're going to resent your implications/ Hell, I do/////

Now I'll let that go, if you will.

Make very sure you find a good BMW specialist independent shop; you're going to want their help, in future, if not for this issue,

When's the last time the trans fluid and filter was changed.? Never is the wrong answer, by the way.

Check fluid level, give it a clean filter and new fluid, check for codes in every computer with a pro BMW capable scanner, do a smoke test of the intake system, and have a BMW pro check your car from top to bottom, and tell you what needs fixing, first. You can certainly do a lot of the work yourself, but you need to make sure you access a good knowledge base before you start throwing expensive parts.

I know, I'm rough around the edges, but I am what I am, and I will be on your side - but don't start out by calling me a crook, please.

Please know that only a bad shop has any reason to rip you off; the good shops have plenty of honest work, For instance, your car needs every part of it's cooling sytem replaced, an oil filter housing and valve cover gasket job, the door panels glued back together, and it's leaking steering fluid in every direction, the motor and trans mounts are shot, and the trans fluid is original/ The brake lights are funky, and you have a weird vibration under braking, at 50-60 mph. So, with $5000 worth of maintenance outstanding, why would I go looking to screw you, too?

You'll see that I personally have a thread, concurrent with yours, asking for pro's help with a difficult issue. I have a lot of specialized machines, which prevent me from being stumped too often. But this forum is what I consider the very best resource available to me.

I wish you greatest aloha, and hope that you will become a frequent visitor to the forum. We're all here to help....and for free, too/

[mgoods50]

+1 What he said

Welcome, and BTW, gorgeous car, and what a great price! Keep that re-paint clean and out of the sun as much as possible.

[cylenterok]

Thanks alot dirt racer. I didnt mean to sound like a guy who hates good mechanics and the work they do sorry about that. @mgoods50 thumbs up bro! I'm loving my car.

I just got the car about a week ago so I will be doing a full "tune up" and checking all the relvant fluids. I was reading the other http://forums.bimmerforums.com/forum...d.php?t=494219 about changing the ATF fluid and I'm really hoping this works. I'm sure it was never changed by the previous owner and I'm going to change it regardless. Ill let you guys know what happens.