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Thread: 2008 M5 136K Clutch replacement time.

  1. #1
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    2008 M5 136K Clutch replacement time.

    Clutch is clearly slipping, and wanted to review replacement options. On multiple websites, we have "BMW Genuine", LuK and Sachs. I would always go for the lowest priced ones, I may rethink this decision once kids are out of college and making money for themselves.
    Are there any recommendations ? I did see one review on Twin Disc SS-Trim Clutch Kit which clearly said the clutch doesn't slip at all and is very hard for the SMG to work in auto Drive mode:
    BEWARE OF THIS CLUTCH
    i bought this because it was cheaper than buy separate oem flywheel.when you go to spec homepage this clutch kit offers same comfort and more durability than oem, but its been a nightmare since i installed it!! this clutch does not slip at all, and thats the main problem! the car cant find a comfort engaging and its always engaging and desengaging when you start to drive! this clutch its a ON OFF clutch! its full engaged or not engaged...i hate it!!! i will have to buy a oem with fllywheel...tried to contact spec, not even an answer!!

  2. #2
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    Why should we replace the pressure plate, why not just replace the worn out clutch plate and re-use everything else to keep cost down ?

  3. #3
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    the pressure plates and dual mass flywheels are considered wear items. cheap and V10 never works out well.

  4. #4
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    As a DIY, my goal is to keep cost low. Its not my intent to use cheap parts.
    The flywheel is a massive steel part, if its still in specs, there is no point in replacing it. A clutch would wear out before the flywheel goes under specs. I don't know the actual tolerances here, but we may be over extending the pressure plates if the flywheel goes very thin.

  5. #5
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    Is there a listing of all the tools we need to replace SMG clutch ?

  6. #6
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    Word of advice, you better replace the slave cylinder while you're in there. It's bolted from the inside of the bell housing and I've seen a ton of them fail. And with the SMG, I wouldn't use anything but OEM or equivalent parts. And do you have the proper diagnostic software to properly reset everything when you're done? There are also marks on the flywheel and pressure plate. If you read BMW repair instructions, they go 180 degrees opposite each other. I hope you know what you're getting into. The SMG is finicky on a good day.
    ASE and BMW Master Certified Technician

  7. #7
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    Quote Originally Posted by White94RX View Post
    Word of advice, you better replace the slave cylinder while you're in there. It's bolted from the inside of the bell housing and I've seen a ton of them fail. And with the SMG, I wouldn't use anything but OEM or equivalent parts. And do you have the proper diagnostic software to properly reset everything when you're done? There are also marks on the flywheel and pressure plate. If you read BMW repair instructions, they go 180 degrees opposite each other. I hope you know what you're getting into. The SMG is finicky on a good day.
    I didn't know these details.
    I got the LuK flywheel and Sachs Clutch kit, about $1500.
    I dropped the car off to Mieneke, for the swap. I am just too bogged down with too many other things to dedicate my time on this.

    Mieneke said about 9 hours labor, around $1000. I have to trust them. He is a seasoned mechanic with over 30+ years experience working on cars.

    The clutch started slipping suddenly, and i have been driving it around at low RPM. This car also needs its idle valve actuators replaced, and I have ordered the gear kit.

  8. #8
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    Mieneke? with all the BMW/European specialized mechanics here in NJ.....smh....good luck!
    Last edited by AR424; 04-20-2019 at 07:26 PM.

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by AR424 View Post
    Mieneke? with all the BMW/European specialized mechanics here in NJ.....smh....good luck!
    This is an interesting point to discuss.

    I am primarily in a DIY mode. The mechanic who is doing it has experience, and is a better DIY guy definitely than me. He has all the tools, and can raise it up, unlike me trying to sleep under the car for many weeks to get this clutch replacement done.

    Now, this gets interesting. There was a time when BMW mechanics had to be "experts". These days, they are extremely modular and require swapping the parts.
    The expertise and experience is limited to this: When you see a plastic part, and no nuts or bolts or screws, you should know whether to push it, pull it, slide it, or lift it
    to remove . Anything else, you will be breaking some tab and getting into trouble with that part. This has been my hard earned experience.

    I checked on the car, the mechanic has pulled out everything nice and clean. He didn't have the clutch alignment tool and was waiting for it.
    The clutch friction plate has completely worn out, and the surface is very near to the rivets on it. I guess about 1mm of its surface is missing when compared to the new
    friction plate.

    I also looked at the Flywheel, and it had blue marks on it with heating due to the slipping clutch. One can take it out and machine it clean, but I think it makes sense to have a new flywheel in there.

    As a replacement kit, i think it makes sense to replace the pressure plate also, and its a good feeling overall imo.

    As a DIY, i think if i had time, i would have just replaced the clutch friction plate(s) and checked the performance.
    The car used to whine a lot while driving off from 2nd gear and used to hiccup quite a bit, with lots of vibrations.

    A bit more on the specialized mechanics:

    A highly trained BMW indy has damaged my 850ci, has no idea what is wrong with it, and threw in the towel:
    https://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/s...ight=sshivaram

    Paul Miller BMW from Wayne NJ couldn't figure out what was wrong with my 325xi, they kept it with them for 6 , yes SIX months, and finally
    had the car towed and dropped it off on my driveway with a dead battery. I was really ROFL that day, insane experience:
    https://www.bimmerforums.com/forum/s...ight=sshivaram

    There you go !

    Will update once the job on M5 is done !!

  10. #10
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    I dropped Car off on 4/17 at Mieneke, its still there as of 4/29/19. He has everything done he says, just waiting to program the clutch and reset it etc.
    Hope to get it today. he had promised a 9.5 hour charge, around $1000. i hope its not per day :P

  11. #11
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    Update: got call from mechanic. everything is done, new flywheel and clutch are buttoned in. Car won't fire up lol. Misfires, backfires a lot, just won't start up.
    Let the fun begin

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  13. #13
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    Weren't you saying something about BMW's being modular, and just require parts swapping? No need for an expert anymore? Good luck. Now you've got someone with little to no experience with the V10, and someone without all of BMW's special tools and diagnostic equipment.
    ASE and BMW Master Certified Technician

  14. #14
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    Techs that do diagnostic work don't just swap parts. That is a stupid statement. Show some respect Who is going to send you a part to swap it out to see if it fixes the problem nobody. Good techs who do diagnostic work are worth there weight in gold. Not every tech can do diagnostic work, they just don't have it in them and that's ok. And some times you need to spend money for diagnostics right now it seems that you've opened a can of worms having the muffler shop work on it. Hope fully it will work out.

  15. #15
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    @ White94Rx, jclausen, I hear your sentiments. Its very difficult to find that highly skilled mechanic. Most don't have time to get into detailed analysis.
    We are the experts here, using the internet and each other's knowledge.

    The clutch and flywheel are in, and the car is just back firing. I've known the Mieneke owner for nearly 15+ years here in my neighborhood.
    He is getting someone from outside to come in and work on the M5.
    This is something he is helping me out with with the labor, and he even asked me if I had the DIS with me to come work with his
    mechanic. I was sure I didn't have the time to make this a DIY project.

    Honestly, the Mieneke guy doesn't know whats going on, he is dependent on the mechanic to get the car running.

    Now, as a background, I had nothing but bad experience with some indy bmw experts in my neighborhood, and horrible
    time with the dealers. That actually forced me to get into a DIY mode, and I enjoy it.
    Two of my cars are broken and barely work because of messed up work by bmw expert mechanics and dealers and
    they have thrown in the towel. I have to fix these cars myself in my time.

    Cheers !! Will update what happens with the M5.

  16. #16
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    The flywheel and pressure plate markings and the reason to offset it by 180 degrees appears to be something if they came together as a kit from the factory and they were balanced and "tuned" with those markings depicting the best vibration free performance.
    Other than that, I couldn't find any other technical reason for the markings. Even if the markings are off by 10-20 degrees, its ok it seems per the manual.
    This offset issue doesn't apply if we are just putting in the new pressure plate and clutch and re-using the flywheel.

    The car doesn't start at all. It cranks , has spark and fuel, and there are no error codes stored.

    The "Master Technician" has reset the adaptations apparently, and he thinks the flywheel is incorrect and doesn't have the crank signalling part thats cut into the flywheel teeth.

    They are going to take out the new flywheel, and check and compare side by side with the old one, and we will take it from there.

    The Master Technician goes around to all the Mieneke centers here and helps them out with his knowledge and tools. He has everything.

  17. #17
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    I am sure i have the wrong flywheel.
    Clutch + Flywheel kit was $1500.
    On most websites, the flywheel for M5 itself is around $1200-2000.
    We are taking out the flywheel on Friday, will update what we find.
    Question: Would a wrong flywheel fit in there like OEM.

  18. #18
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    Good luck. I only install genuine BMW parts, so I don't have the issues like you're experiencing.

    And if I have an issue, BMW will pay me to fix it since I used their parts.
    Last edited by White94RX; 05-09-2019 at 09:10 PM.
    ASE and BMW Master Certified Technician

  19. #19
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    Found interesting quotations on the m5board (Its the correct flywheel from LuK, original minus the BMW logo - don't know if not printing BMW in some pattern makes it unbalanced):

    - "Sounds like the flywheel was incorrectly installed. Someone else posted about this a while ago. Bolt pattern is supposed to only let you install it in the correct orientation but apparently one can force it in some other way."

    - "There are nine different ways to mount the FW, but only 1 is right".

    - "well you have 1 down and 8 to go LOL"

    - "Any shop that has ever done a BMW flywheel before should know. That said if you did it yourself, there is dowel on the crank on one of the bolt holes. On the front of the flyhwheel in hte [sic] center there is a marking that looks like ^-^ that marking lines up with the dowel pin. Now you reallly have to beat on it to get it to fit wrong, and if you do you might crush the dowel. IT's replaceable if you have to."

    Here is the whole thread:
    https://www.m5board.com/vbulletin/e6...placement.html

  20. #20
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    CARS' up and running , it was the flywheel that wasn't aligned with the crank position.

  21. #21
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    So your mechanic, that wasn't experienced with BMW's, installed the flywheel improperly. Figures.

    Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk
    ASE and BMW Master Certified Technician

  22. #22
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    find a BMW specific mechanic for when it's time to do the rod bearings!!! no more Mieneke!!!

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