Car won’t shift into gear

[Silver330ciE46]

I bought a Manual 2002 330ci yesterday and last night the while driving in 3rd gear, the car would only rev, but would not go. I pulled over and turned the car off. When the car is off I can shift through all the gears, but while the car is on it won’t allow me to put the car into gear. if I start the car in 1st it will only rev not drive. The clutch wasn’t slipping before this happened. Do I just need to replace the clutch or is this something else?

[dworthy]

Welcome to the Forum!

Just so I understand this correctly, with the motor off, you can go into any gear. Once the motor is turned on, you cannot select any gear with the clutch in. If you put the car in a gear, then go to start, it won't move at all either.

Things I would try first:
1) Put car in gear and see if you can move it, make sure the hand brake is off and you are on a smooth surface.
2) Look at the brake fluid, for the clutch uses the same reservoir.
3) Look for a puddle under the ground near the transmission.
4) Check the carpets inside to see if it's wet under the clutch pedal.

[bmwdirtracer]

+1, sounds like hydraulic failure.

[R Shaffner]

That's an odd set of facts.

Several things could make it hard to put the car in gear while the engine is running. Most of those would mean the clutch wasn't disengaging all the way. Causes for that can include linkage issues, hydraulic issues (master cylinder, slave cylinder, tubing, fluid), transmission issues, blown clutch (mechanical) issues, a worn/broken pivot pin, and even a blown pilot bearing.

With many of those issues, you might still be able to get it into gear when the engine is stopped. And in some cases, once in 1st or reverse, you might be able to start it with the clutch in and drive it in 1st or reverse. Or it might jerk forward or backward with the movement of the starter.

So there's a whole range of tests we could discuss if the clutch isn't disengaging at all, or all the way, when you press the clutch pedal down.

What's odd here is that you said the engine just revved when it was in gear. That starts to suggest a clutch that won't engage, or that is so badly worn it won't affect the car at all. Different set of possible causes for that.

Please don't be offended by this question, but since the car is new to you, are you sure it's all the way in gear when that happens?

With the engine off and clutch in, you might try moving it back and forth to different gears to see if it goes into one of them all the way. Then try to start the engine with it in gear and the clutch in, and let us know what happens.