09 328ixDrive BMW trans fluid flush question

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Pesca

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Hi,

Continuing solving some problems I have with the car (probably not well taken care of during its lease), I have a noise, increasing with the speed, not linked with the rpms, from the drive train.

A BMW dealer mechanic got a look at it (put it on a platform and check under there), and he believes the noise comes from the manual transmission case.

First thing to do will be to do a flush of the trans, and then I will see if the noise is gone or if I need to look further.

My question is that the mechanic told me that on the N52 engine, the manual transmission case has no drain plug, only a fill plug, as it is supposed to be a "lifetime" fluid in it.

So to change it or flush it, you need to suck it up before refilling. Is it true that there is no drain plug?
Is it easy to do a flush on a manual transmission for a N52 engine?

I will not do it myself anyway, but the BMW dealer mechanic is 115$/hour while a mechanic who will change the fluids in the Miata soon is probably at about 70$/hour... and will not try to sell other gizmos at the same time like the BMW technical advisor.

Does an indy shop can do the flush or do I need to go through a BMW dealer?

Thanks for your help and advise.
 
I think an indy shop can do it just fine. I am sure they can exchange the trans. fluid. I would use Amsoil SVG if its spec'ed for your vehicle.

I would not have high hopes of a change of the manual transmission fluid fixing much. Unless it somehow got water into it.
 
Originally Posted By: Donald
I would not have high hopes of a change of the manual transmission fluid fixing much.

Agreed.

OP, are you sure it is the trans that's making the noise?

I had a front end whine noise on our C300 and it ended up being the AWD transfer case. Wheel bearing could be another possibility.
 
We first did a test drive with the dealer mechanic, and he disregarded a wheel bearing as they were no different noise when shaking the car left and right.

So, we are pretty sure it is in the drive train. Could be the trans or the transfer case... or even worse.

During the test drive, he told me that they had to change some trans joints which were leaking and trans losing fluid.

The car has been quite beaten from what I can see... now. The leaser ate two sets of tires in only 60.000 kms, and sometimes the first gear is hard to find/set. He might have driven the car pretty hard after a cold Canadian night, I would not be surprised.
It may not solve the problem, but it will probably help quite a lot, I believe.

Like said previously, yesterday, he put the car on a roller of some sort and went to hear it more closely to try to determine where the noise could come from.

The idea is to start with the less expensive, and quite needed, flush of the manual trans, and move on the drive train until the noise is gone.

The tech advisor knows that I am on a budget and that I work on the car myself when I can, so, at least, he works on my side (until when, that is the question) and agrees to work step by step.

He told me that replacing all fluids in the drive train (for an automatic with more expensive fluid for the trans) cost more than 2.000$ for another client who wanted them to do it.

What readily available fluid could I used for the manual trans?

What about the fact there is no drain plug? Did you hear about that part? If there is no drain plug, how do you flush the fluid?
 
Check the front differential?

You have the AWD model after all.

If you have a manual transmission then dropping the pan is all you'll need. Flushing not required.

Change out the fluid in the front differential as well.
 
Last edited:
I have a 2009 328i with N52 engine and manual transmission. The transmission has both a drain and fill plug. It could be that the AWD version is slightly different, but I wouldn't think so.

I changed the MTF on my car a few months ago. I used the original fluid (MTF-LT-3) purchased from Bavarian Autosport. It was a fairly straightforward job. I would think the Miata mechanic could handle it just fine.

Originally Posted By: Pesca
Hi,

Continuing solving some problems I have with the car (probably not well taken care of during its lease), I have a noise, increasing with the speed, not linked with the rpms, from the drive train.

A BMW dealer mechanic got a look at it (put it on a platform and check under there), and he believes the noise comes from the manual transmission case.

First thing to do will be to do a flush of the trans, and then I will see if the noise is gone or if I need to look further.

My question is that the mechanic told me that on the N52 engine, the manual transmission case has no drain plug, only a fill plug, as it is supposed to be a "lifetime" fluid in it.

So to change it or flush it, you need to suck it up before refilling. Is it true that there is no drain plug?
Is it easy to do a flush on a manual transmission for a N52 engine?

I will not do it myself anyway, but the BMW dealer mechanic is 115$/hour while a mechanic who will change the fluids in the Miata soon is probably at about 70$/hour... and will not try to sell other gizmos at the same time like the BMW technical advisor.

Does an indy shop can do the flush or do I need to go through a BMW dealer?

Thanks for your help and advise.
 
Last edited:
Originally Posted By: drtyler
I have a 2009 328i with N52 engine and manual transmission. The transmission has both a drain and fill plug. It could be that the AWD version is slightly different, but I wouldn't think so.

I changed the MTF on my car a few months ago. I used the original fluid (MTF-LT-3) purchased from Bavarian Autosport. It was a fairly straightforward job. I would think the Miata mechanic could handle it just fine.

Originally Posted By: Pesca
Hi,

Continuing solving some problems I have with the car (probably not well taken care of during its lease), I have a noise, increasing with the speed, not linked with the rpms, from the drive train.

A BMW dealer mechanic got a look at it (put it on a platform and check under there), and he believes the noise comes from the manual transmission case.

First thing to do will be to do a flush of the trans, and then I will see if the noise is gone or if I need to look further.

My question is that the mechanic told me that on the N52 engine, the manual transmission case has no drain plug, only a fill plug, as it is supposed to be a "lifetime" fluid in it.

So to change it or flush it, you need to suck it up before refilling. Is it true that there is no drain plug?
Is it easy to do a flush on a manual transmission for a N52 engine?

I will not do it myself anyway, but the BMW dealer mechanic is 115$/hour while a mechanic who will change the fluids in the Miata soon is probably at about 70$/hour... and will not try to sell other gizmos at the same time like the BMW technical advisor.

Does an indy shop can do the flush or do I need to go through a BMW dealer?

Thanks for your help and advise.
Thank you very much for the info, drtyler
thumbsup2.gif
 
Originally Posted By: BMWTurboDzl
Check the front differential?

You have the AWD model after all.

If you have a manual transmission then dropping the pan is all you'll need. Flushing not required.

Change out the fluid in the front differential as well.
I keep that in mind, thank you.
 
Originally Posted By: Donald
I would use Amsoil SVG if its spec'ed for your vehicle.
To answer your question: No, Amsoil recommends to use only the BMW fluid.

Pelican parts writes that the BMW fluid (PN 83 22 7 533 818) is from Fuchs ( Fuchs Titan Sintofluid 75W-80).

Anyone knows if this is the case as 5 liters of BMW fluid is 136$ compare to 15$ for 1 liter of the Fuchs fluid?

I read that I need only 3 pints so 2 liters of Fuchs fluid should be enough.

Thoughts?
 
Originally Posted By: Pesca
Originally Posted By: Donald
I would use Amsoil SVG if its spec'ed for your vehicle.
To answer your question: No, Amsoil recommends to use only the BMW fluid.

Pelican parts writes that the BMW fluid (PN 83 22 7 533 818) is from Fuchs ( Fuchs Titan Sintofluid 75W-80).

Anyone knows if this is the case as 5 liters of BMW fluid is 136$ compare to 15$ for 1 liter of the Fuchs fluid?

I read that I need only 3 pints so 2 liters of Fuchs fluid should be enough.

Thoughts?



wait wait.. BMW says to use Castrol.... I might be wrong it could be Land rover....
but Dont BMW say right on the oil cap to use Castrol Syntec or Edge

says so here.

2qlzsdg.png


does it say in Manual to use Castorl Edge

I dont think Castrol could make this claim if its not true.. I think they could be sued.

so look in your manual and see if it says Castrol.
 
My jug of BMW MTF-LT-3 says 75W on the front. Sounds like the Fuchs fluid may be a similar weight when cold. The BMW fluid is a pretty low viscosity fluid, and it may be best in your situation in Canada (easier shifting on cold mornings). You could contact Fuchs and find out how their fluid compares.

I'm sure the Fuchs lube is fine, but I used the BMW specified fluid instead. Seems that on a lot of the BMW forums, folks use a variety of products with success. I have heard of mixing Redline MTL and D6 ATF fluids, and using that mixture in the transmission.


Originally Posted By: Pesca
Originally Posted By: Donald
I would use Amsoil SVG if its spec'ed for your vehicle.
To answer your question: No, Amsoil recommends to use only the BMW fluid.

Pelican parts writes that the BMW fluid (PN 83 22 7 533 818) is from Fuchs ( Fuchs Titan Sintofluid 75W-80).

Anyone knows if this is the case as 5 liters of BMW fluid is 136$ compare to 15$ for 1 liter of the Fuchs fluid?

I read that I need only 3 pints so 2 liters of Fuchs fluid should be enough.

Thoughts?
 
Originally Posted By: David1
Originally Posted By: Pesca
Originally Posted By: Donald
I would use Amsoil SVG if its spec'ed for your vehicle.
To answer your question: No, Amsoil recommends to use only the BMW fluid.

Pelican parts writes that the BMW fluid (PN 83 22 7 533 818) is from Fuchs ( Fuchs Titan Sintofluid 75W-80).

Anyone knows if this is the case as 5 liters of BMW fluid is 136$ compare to 15$ for 1 liter of the Fuchs fluid?

I read that I need only 3 pints so 2 liters of Fuchs fluid should be enough.

Thoughts?



wait wait.. BMW says to use Castrol.... I might be wrong it could be Land rover....
but Dont BMW say right on the oil cap to use Castrol Syntec or Edge

says so here.

2qlzsdg.png


does it say in Manual to use Castorl Edge

I dont think Castrol could make this claim if its not true.. I think they could be sued.

so look in your manual and see if it says Castrol.

I don't say to only use BMW fluid, I was answering Donald's query about the use of Amsoil SVG for the BMW.

When even the manufacturer of the product tells you not to use it, you still want to try?

Go ahead, but I won't.
 
I am quite tempted to try out the Fuchs fluid. It is a 75w80 instead of the usual 75w90 you find in other transmissions which follows what the BMW fluid seems to do.

It will mainly depend of the avaibility of the two products for me (sometimes, web sites don't want to ship to Canada).

Today, I will do the oil change, so I will get a look down there to look for the drain plug too.
Originally Posted By: drtyler
My jug of BMW MTF-LT-3 says 75W on the front. Sounds like the Fuchs fluid may be a similar weight when cold. The BMW fluid is a pretty low viscosity fluid, and it may be best in your situation in Canada (easier shifting on cold mornings). You could contact Fuchs and find out how their fluid compares.

I'm sure the Fuchs lube is fine, but I used the BMW specified fluid instead. Seems that on a lot of the BMW forums, folks use a variety of products with success. I have heard of mixing Redline MTL and D6 ATF fluids, and using that mixture in the transmission.


Originally Posted By: Pesca
Originally Posted By: Donald
I would use Amsoil SVG if its spec'ed for your vehicle.
To answer your question: No, Amsoil recommends to use only the BMW fluid.

Pelican parts writes that the BMW fluid (PN 83 22 7 533 818) is from Fuchs ( Fuchs Titan Sintofluid 75W-80).

Anyone knows if this is the case as 5 liters of BMW fluid is 136$ compare to 15$ for 1 liter of the Fuchs fluid?

I read that I need only 3 pints so 2 liters of Fuchs fluid should be enough.

Thoughts?
 
For those interested, there is a drain plug for the manual transmission on a E90. Part of the transmission is protected by a plastic shield to remove in order to do the drain and fill, but you can see both plugs with the shield on the car.

On an internet video, I saw someone changing a transmission fluid by running the engine to get it to temperature before closing the fill plug.
The BMW tech advisor talled me too about respecting a certain range of temperature in order to get the correct amount of fluid.

Are you guys aware of a specific procedure to change the transmission fluid on a BMW, or can we change it at ambient temp and don't worry about it?
 
Originally Posted By: Pesca

Are you guys aware of a specific procedure to change the transmission fluid on a BMW, or can we change it at ambient temp and don't worry about it?

When the transmission has no dipstick, let the whole car come down to ambient temperature. Drain oil into graduated cylinders, the fill with the exact same amount of new oil.

I did this 5,000 miles ago in my car, it still works perfectly.
 
That is a good way to do... when you believe your car is in good condition.

But I believe mine has lost some of its fluid, so that won't work for me for now.

I can go with what should be the capacity, i.e. 3 pints for this trans, and see what it means in this trans.
 
On mine, you're supposed to keep filling until the fluid starts spilling out of the fill hole (it's on the side). Not sure if your is any similar though.
 
This is a manual transmission.
Just dump whats inside and fill it to hole.
Do the same on the transfer box and the axles.
You dont have to bother with temperatures at all.
Low level of oil is one reason for a transmission to whine....
 
Originally Posted By: Pesca
I am quite tempted to try out the Fuchs fluid. It is a 75w80 instead of the usual 75w90 you find in other transmissions which follows what the BMW fluid seems to do.

It will mainly depend of the avaibility of the two products for me (sometimes, web sites don't want to ship to Canada).

Today, I will do the oil change, so I will get a look down there to look for the drain plug too.



Use the BMW LT-3 fluid. I believe it is made by Pentosin, and is an excellent fluid for the newer BMW 6-speed transmissions. My brother's 2009 E90 shifts very well at very cold and very hot temperatures with the stock LT-3 fluid. It is very expensive, but lasts a long time and shift feel is excellent.
 
Anyway, I cannot find a website that can ship it for cheap to Canada (shipping fee is equal to price of the 2 liters that I need, and does not include import taxes that I will have to pay).

So, BMW fluid will be... when we will get some as it is back ordered and need to be ordered from Germany (at least 10 days from the parts guy). I will try to find if another dealer has some left.

For those interested in not buying the 5 liters jugs, it exists also in 1 liter botlle (PN is 83 22 2 339 221).
 
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