Transmission oil changed but won't go in gear.

[drewusmaximus]

Hi all, 2011 328xi auto 108k

I just drained about 3 quarts of tranny oil and replaced about 4 quarts of Valvoline Multi vehicle ATF. I did not change the filter because when I inspected the oil it actually wasn't bad at all. I started the car, let the oil flow through. Buttoned it up and didn't test drive it until this morning. I started the car, went through all gears and when I put it in drive, it doesn't move. It won't move in reverse either.. Did I miss a step? I put back in 4 quarts.

Thanks in advance..

I forgot to add. I filled it until it seeped out of the fill hole. I'm not sure what's going on. I had the car leveled on jackstands. I'm hoping someone has a solution because I won't be able to go to work. I'm afraid to shift into the gears in fear of the clutch packs getting ruined. It's the GM GA6L45R transmission. Thanks..

[marvinstockman]

Can I assume the trans worked before you changed the fluid? Can it be shifted manually?

[drewusmaximus]

Can I assume the trans worked before you changed the fluid? Can it be shifted manually?

It did work. It would shudder while driving and going uphill, which is why I decided to change the oil. I think I need to start the car, go through the gears several times, let it warm up then pull the plug to see if any oil comes out. If not, add oil until it seeps out. Then close it up, but, how would I know it's going in gear if the car is on jackstands? I added a half quart extra before starting the car, just to be safe. 3 and a half quarts originally cam eout and I added 5 quarts.I just started the car again and went through the gears slowly. I can feel the car go into gear this time. I'm wondering if I have to let the tranny warm up which I haven't.

[drewusmaximus]

Update: I started the car, went through each gear and paused at each gear. unscrewed the fill plug while the car was running, added another quart of oil, buttoned it up and took it for a drive. The car is working again, but I can hear a sound under the car when in Drive. I guess the sound goes away after a certain speed, but I don't like the way the it sounds. I performed the relearn procedure before driving. At low speed, it shifts too quick but it seems to shift better as i go into the higher gears. I didn't want to drive it too far because of that noise. I'm wondering if anyone might know what that noise might be and what can I do about it.

Thanks in advance

[dworthy]

Possible that you bent a heat shield and now it rubbing. Also if you had to remove a belly pan, make sure it's installed correctly, as speeds that thing will flap in the wind causing noises.

[drewusmaximus]

Possible that you bent a heat shield and now it rubbing. Also if you had to remove a belly pan, make sure it's installed correctly, as speeds that thing will flap in the wind causing noises.

It's more of a grinding rumbling noise. I think it needs more oil. I'm going to add more oil in a bit. I need to jack the car higher because leaving the car at the base of the jackstands is too low. It was difficult getting oil in the pan.

[kallekula]

I don’t know what transmission you have, but the final fill must be done when oil temp is between 30-40c. Seems like you can fit more oil the hotter the transmission oil is (?) I usually measure what comes out and it’s not always the same amount that goes back in. The transmission i have is the ZF 5HP24.

[drewusmaximus]

I have the GM GA6L45R trans. I used the Valvoline MaxLife Multi Vehicle. Brought two 5 gallon jugs. I already went through one jug and a quart of the second jug. When I drained it, it was cold and about 3 1/2 quarts came out. I added a little over a quart this morning and it seems to drive much better. I think I have to add a bit more, but it's difficult to get the car leveled without a lift and the lowest setting on the jackstands is still too short for me. I couldn't fit the jug under the car so I had to transfer the oil to an empty 75W90 size bottle and that barely fit under the car. It was a pain and a mess. So i put the car on the ramps, put a pipe between the driver seat and brake pedal to keep pressure on the brakes, since the e-brake won't work on the front wheels. Then I jacked up the back of the car to be leveled with the front and rested the back on jackstands. This time I was able to set the stands up two notches. That helped immensely, but my heart was racing the entire time, knowing the brakes were the only thing keeping the front wheel from moving. I'm going to do it again this weekend because I feel like I need to add more oil.

[kallekula]

Working under the car you need space. Buy a proper jack from HF. They have that Daytona series which is very similar to a snap-on. They even went to court about it. The long teach one is the one to get.
Then buy four beefy jack stands. The jack lifts about two feet.
You need proper tools, everything becomes more easier and fun

[drewusmaximus]

Working under the car you need space. Buy a proper jack from HF. They have that Daytona series which is very similar to a snap-on. They even went to court about it. The long teach one is the one to get.
Then buy four beefy jack stands. The jack lifts about two feet.
You need proper tools, everything becomes more easier and fun

That's what I did. I went to HF and grabbed their 2 ton red Pittsburgh. It was on sale for 108.00 and I grabbed the last one. That jack was a life saver. I brought the car high enough to put it on the second notch on the stands and I saw it can go higher, but the front wheels relying on that pipe was scary. I feel it needs a bit more oil, which I'll add this weekend. Right now, my commute is 16 miles a day.

[dworthy]

The other options is to get a set of ramps that you drive up on, and use a hi-lift jack in the rear, this tends to give me plenty of space to be able to get my fat belly under the car without troubles.

[drewusmaximus]

That's exactly what I did. Used the ramps up front and jacked the back up and was able to slide the stands under. I added more oil this past weekend until oil seeped out. I drove the car the past couple of days and it seems to drive good when the tranny is cold, but after it warms up, I still have a little shudder. If I'm at a stop light and sit there for over a minute, I can feel the tranny do a little bump. I assume because it's warmed up. The question is, did I put enough oil when the tranny was warmed up. Should I try to add more oil when the tranny is warm? I can use my OBD app on my phone to monitor the tranny temp (which I didn't do the last time) and when it reaches 120 degrees and if it's not seeping, add more oil? Or is the tranny done?

[drewusmaximus]

I'm happy to say after driving for a few days, the transmission is running great. No more shudder or slight bumps at a stop light. I guess it needed to be driven a bit to get the new oil completely circulated.

[dworthy]

Sometimes it takes a minute to get the oils all back into the trans. Normally you should fill it up at operating temps, then go thru the gears to pull the oil into the body. Then check the level again to see if it dropped. You may have to do this several times to get the fluid in all the right places.

[drewusmaximus]

That's the mistake I made. Not filling up at operating temps. Lesson learned.

[drewusmaximus]

So, the past two days I've been hearing a rattling sound while driving. As the car accelerates, I can intermittently hear a rattle, then goes away when the car shifts. The car shifts much better than it was before the oil change, but I hear that rattle noise more and more. I don't have the shudder anymore, but if I'm in line at a drive thru waiting, at times I feel a thump as if the tranny jumped in gear. At higher speeds I don't hear the rattling. It sounds like the rattling sound is coming from the front. I think I also hear a whining sound as the car accelerates and decelerates. Do I need to add more oil? Thanks in advance.

[dworthy]

If it's full, then it's full, there's no way possible if you are following the fill procedures to over-fill that transmission.

[drewusmaximus]

If it's full, then it's full, there's no way possible if you are following the fill procedures to over-fill that transmission.

It's not actually a rattling sound. It's more like a metallic crunching sound and it sounds like it's bouncing around. The last time I filled it, I think it wasn't warm enough. Don't get me wrong. It drives much better as the days pass, but once in a while that sound appears as I accelerate. Then it goes away. sometimes it doesn't occur at all. Sometimes it happens once. Sometimes it happens a couple of times while driving. I think I need to add more oil and make sure the temp is where it supposed to be. I just hope it's not slowly damaging every time I drive it. I can't add oil until the weekend when I have time.

[dworthy]

I would crawl under the car and start tapping, tugging, pushing plates and parts around to see if you can find something loose. I had a rattle that would only occur at 2.5k rpms on the M3 that drove me nuts for several years. I found it one day by tapping the exhaust to find a support plate had cracked.

[drewusmaximus]

I would crawl under the car and start tapping, tugging, pushing plates and parts around to see if you can find something loose. I had a rattle that would only occur at 2.5k rpms on the M3 that drove me nuts for several years. I found it one day by tapping the exhaust to find a support plate had cracked.

Everything is tight underneath. I replaced the plastic coolant flange and belt tensioner this weekend, but the sound existed prior to the parts replacement. I think it's the transmission. I'm going to add more oil when the transmission is at the correct temp. I believe the last time I added oil, the tranny wasn't up to temp.