Autobox A/T fluid change 325i

[crankedup]

Buying a used e90 325i 2009 model, it has 75000 miles up? I am confused regarding the autobox fluid and filter change / or not??
Thanks for any advise and comments.

[helix402]

BMW say no change needed, ZF recommend a change (with filter). The world of internet/forum advice is filled with for and against advice.

Despite what some say the job isn't rocket science. There are slightly different procedures for refilling depending if you use BMW or ZF instructions.

Edited by helix402 on Wednesday 9th August 14:52

[dcb]

crankedup said:

Buying a used e90 325i 2009 model, it has 75000 miles up? I am confused regarding the autobox fluid and filter change / or not??
Thanks for any advise and comments.

BMW say it is a sealed for life box.
Box manufacturers ZF say replace fluids and filter every 60K.

New box is about £1,000 and you may as well do the torque converter while
you are in there. Call it £2,000 - £3,000 all in, depending on local labour rates.

Fluid and filter change £200 - £300 IIRC. You could get in touch with
your local autobox specialist for more details.

For later BMW cars like the F30, I'd be interested to find out whether BMW
stick with their policy or have moved to something more compatible with ZF.

[xxChrisxx]

dcb said:

BMW say it is a sealed for life box.
Box manufacturers ZF say replace fluids and filter every 60K.

New box is about £1,000 and you may as well do the torque converter while
you are in there. Call it £2,000 - £3,000 all in, depending on local labour rates.

Fluid and filter change £200 - £300 IIRC. You could get in touch with
your local autobox specialist for more details.

For later BMW cars like the F30, I'd be interested to find out whether BMW
stick with their policy or have moved to something more compatible with ZF.

It's not a case of differing policy. The durability requirements are agreed between BMW (or any other OEM) and ZF when the box is signed off for the duty specified. If the requirement is filled for life (likey >150,000km) then that's what the box is tested and signed off to. It wouldn't have been warranted otherwise.

You'll likely find the words used in ZF's bumpf 'recommend' rather than 'require'.

EDIT: On the basis aged oil can cause shift quality issues and generally make the box act weird along with BMW's propensity for leaky sumps (I'm looking at you 6HP26!). I'm a proponent of an ATF service.... but it certainly isn't a requirement.

Edited by xxChrisxx on Wednesday 9th August 18:28

[crankedup]

Thanks chaps, I will have a chat with my local bmw indie see what they have to say. Seems to me that an A/T and filter change is sensible.

[SebringMan]

crankedup said:

Buying a used e90 325i 2009 model, it has 75000 miles up? I am confused regarding the autobox fluid and filter change / or not??
Thanks for any advise and comments.

If you are in the Kent area I'd get a second opinion from ETA. In comparison to many local specialists I have Geoff and Matt at ETA are a bunch of opinions I really value along with a few here. Many specialists near me fed me crap about how to service my M3, some with a good reputation (I'll say for the record that AutoBarn in Halesowen weren't one of them but two other known specialists did...). ETA are about one of the few specialists I trust, the other being the aforementioned AutoBarn and the other being of the Bristol variety, albeit with them having a large wait and quite a price tag to go with the work.

If it were me I would change it personally and ensure the correct oil is used and probably a genuine BMW filter ; I've had issues on the older ZF 4 speeds and poor repro gaskets and filters.

That said I do know of one ex-taxi E39 525d that did mega miles on the original gearbox ; about 525k to be exact ; that's not a typo. "Only" at 500k did it begin to play up ; it would hold first gear unless you booted it in 1st or changed manually ; not a bad feat at all!

[crankedup]

Basically a minefield! Off to buy the car this week, see how it goes for a while then decide. Seems for just a few hundred pounds it's worth doing though.
Thanks for all inputs.

[twokcc]

ZF recommendations

https://www.zf.com/global/media/medien_mastersite/...


Couldn't be clearer

80-120km or 8 years

[crankedup]

^^^^^
Thank you, I appreciate your input.

[Eddieslofart]

I vaguely remember someone driving to ZF in Germany for a fluid service/change.

Worked out cheaper than anything over here.

[Sardonicus]

I use http://www.sussexautos.co.uk for all my ZF needs they know their transmissions & also stock the correct ZF lifeguard 6 fluid, in fact only used them this week to service an X5 3.0d ZF6HP trans , Sussex Transmissions are also able to service transmissions too (no connection to them) they are main dealers for the ZF amongst many others

[anonymous-user]

i had the box oil/filter changed in my b3s which has a modified zf 5hp19 box. theres only a handful of places that can get the oil out of the torque converter so unless the garage has the vac tool there will still be a certain quantity left in there

mine was done using the appropriate oil/filter kit supplied by sytner (but could easily have been supplied by an authorised zf reseller) and the parts alone i think were well over 100. there is a specific procedure to dropping and refilling it and whilst not rocket science, it does help if the doer has prior experience

[Eddieslofart]

Sardonicus said:

I use http://www.sussexautos.co.uk for all my ZF needs they know their transmissions & also stock the correct ZF lifeguard 6 fluid, in fact only used them this week to service an X5 3.0d ZF6HP trans , Sussex Transmissions are also able to service transmissions too (no connection to them) they are main dealers for the ZF amongst many others

Just mailed them for the same. Thanks.