How to check auto box

[sidewinder]

Hi all

Taking my brother to see a bmw 320i on Boxing Day.i know enough about cars .but never owned a auto.
Is there a way to check the auto box is doing what it should?

Cheers
____________________
"Nitrous is like a cheap hooker, you want to hit it but are scared of the consequences

[Teflon-Mike]

Locate the ATF dip-stick under the bonnet.... check the level, look at the colour, should be red, sniff it, should smell like a tractor; if brown, and smells, then needs an oil & filter change; if black, then the clutches have worn down and the oil's ever bee changed; if 'golden'.... some-one has filled it with engine oil.. or you have the wrong dip-stick!.... {Point worth noting; I once got asked to go look at a Granada for a Aunt who said 'it conked out'.. checked the engine oil... it had none... "I'll fucking KILL-HIM" was her immediate reaction.... "I TOLD him that was the gear-box dip-stick!".. Her B/F had run it dry of engine oil, checking wrong stick!}

Driving? You ought feel / hear the gear changes, see them on the tacho when needle drops/rises; it will probably shift all the way to 4th by about 45mph on light throttle; point it at a hill, and don't accelerate to see if it down shifts; floor it at about 30 on an NSL to make sure 'kick-down' makes it down shift; 'force-shift' selecting 1, 2, 3, on the shifter, to make sure they engage, and the motor revs past the change points if in 'force'; look for a button or 'mode' selector if a more sophisticated box, with 'economy' and 'sport' modes on it; playing with it will change the change-up / down revs/load...

Be prepared for some slightly alien sensation, especially the engine noise / revs seeming not to have much bearing on how quick the car's going.

AND.. if it seems a bit 'lack-lustre'.. try using 3, (or whatever it's marked') instead of 'D'... esp round town or on a country road; it'll stop it trying to clunk into top, and will change the rev/load change pots for better 'response'.
____________________
My Webby'Tef's-tQ, loads of stuff about my bikes, my Land-Rovers, and the stuff I do with them!
Current Bikes:'Honda VF1000F' ;'CB750F2N' ;'CB125TD ( 6 3 of em!)'; 'Montesa Cota 248'. Learner FAQ's:= 'U want to Ride a Motorbike! Where Do U start?'

[UncleFester]

If you take it for a test drive ( and haven't driven an auto before ) watch out for the 'creep' function that happens in D as soon as you take your foot off the brake.

Also you need to basically sit on your left leg and do not use it for ANYTHING!
____________________
2017 Z1000SX

[Vincent]

Try kick-down from a low speed through all the gears and just make sure they change smoothly.
Apart from that, any problems should be obvious.

Do beemers use Jatco boxes like my R75? If so, they're fairly bullit-proof but you have to be careful if changing the oil as a lot of garages use the wrong spec.
____________________
Space Is Deep

[sidewinder]

Brilliant cheers both for the info
apparently it has a full bmw history with recent service.so should be ok.. .ive never driven a auto before so should be a experience I know it's going to feel really slow..
____________________
"Nitrous is like a cheap hooker, you want to hit it but are scared of the consequences

[Vincent]

I hadn't had an auto since about 1979 when I had a Dolomite but I really like mine now. With cruise control as well, driving is a cinch. Performance isn't too bad as the box has a Sport option but fuel consumption goes down a bit.

I had a few "mishaps" when going over to auto, mianly as I was driving a manual too. The easiest one was ramming the brake on when coming to a rolling stop thinking it's the clutch ....but it doesn't take long to get into the groove.
____________________
Space Is Deep

[sidewinder]

[Vincent]

What's the mileage? Mine was only about 45K so I wasn't too concerned about the gearbox.
____________________
Space Is Deep

[Vincent]

Just double checked this and it looks like the most common problem with the Jatco boxes is, if the oil level gets too low, the solonoids give up and First to Second change will go awry. So, if it jerks or struggles to go from 1st to 2nd smoothly, walk away. Make sure the kick=down test is done in "Drive" rather than one of the other gears.
____________________
Space Is Deep

[sidewinder]

[Teflon-Mike]

[arry]

[arry]

[Vincent]

Are they Jatco boxes arry?
____________________
Space Is Deep

[arry]

[-]

My 740 has a "sealed for life" ZF with tiptronic and Sport mode. It had a "shudder" problem coming back onto the power after coasting. This was almost cured with a new filter, wiring harness (might as well when I was in there) and the correct Esso Mobil (7111?) fluid (at £16 a litre).

Filling is was a faff needing the car up level on ramps and had to be running as you pumped fluid into the box until it overflowed.
The rest of the shudder was cured with some "Dr Tranny" (Don't snigger) anti-shudder fix, which I had to get from the states.

Make sure it doesn't slip under load and changes up and down smoothly. If it has sport and tiptronic, push the lever left and go up and down all gears. At under 90,000 miles I wouldn't be too worried though, mine has done around 190,000 with a 4.4 V8 through it.
____________________
TZR250 2MA road, TZR250 1KT road, TZR250 2MA race, TDR250, YZF-750R Boost colours.
Jaguar S Type 3.0 V6 Sport R, VW Transporter T5 GP LWB Shuttle 140ps DSG.

[sidewinder]

All its advertised at is 320i auto .so no idea if it has sports modes and the like but it is a 2004 model.
Loads of useful info here guys.should help him not to buy another dodgy motor. .will probably get him to book it in if he does buy it.and get the gearbox oil and filter done
____________________
"Nitrous is like a cheap hooker, you want to hit it but are scared of the consequences

[arry]

[CHR15]

stick it in drive and get up to 30 then brake reasonably sharply to a stop.

if it feels like someone has bumped into the back of you just before you come to a standstill walk away.

its a sign of failing mechatronics solenoids.

just replaced them on my e63 which uses a similar (all be it more advanced) box and it isn't a particularly fun or cheap job.


stick it in sport manual mode and put it in 4th on a flat surface doing a constant speed. watch the rev counter carefully for it fluctuating up and down by ~100 rpm ish.

sign of a failing torque convertor / lockup clutch. which is again lots of money.


have a scan underneath and look for gearbox drips. no level sensor or warning so they can leak themselves dry. sumps are made of plastic and warp over time which causes leaks. zf have done 3 or 4 revisions on the design over the years.
____________________
Turbocharged drag thing / project death weapon / GK73A
Ste: I'm not entirely sure how you'd go about verbally abusing someone with a potato but I'm sure it's possible.

[-]

[sidewinder]

Well we went and saw this bmw.it worked liked a peach shifted lovely and smooth.kick down was fine and nothing to be suspicious of.hechas booked it in for the gear box oil and filter to be chaged
____________________
"Nitrous is like a cheap hooker, you want to hit it but are scared of the consequences

[arry]

Make sure they know to use the correct oil. I don't know what oil it is in that particular box so well worth researching.

I nearly decided to change mine but then decided not to bother. I found a Fuchs oil that met all the technical specifications but the BM forums seem to go ape if you suggest anything other than the original Esso stuff about a hundred and fifty quid a change

[CHR15]

you have to use dielectric gear oil because the mechatronics wiring inside the gearbox is exposed to the oil.

i paid about £17 a litre for zf fluid. if you buy the same zf stuff with a bmw sticker on it its £21 + vat per litre.

it takes about 7 litres for a sump change.
____________________
Turbocharged drag thing / project death weapon / GK73A
Ste: I'm not entirely sure how you'd go about verbally abusing someone with a potato but I'm sure it's possible.

[sidewinder]

It's going to a bmw specialist.so hopefully they will put the correct stuff in....
____________________
"Nitrous is like a cheap hooker, you want to hit it but are scared of the consequences

[-]

Worth double checking. I don't trust BMW main dealers, let alone independent specialists...

On the ZF transmission, it's often this stuff, which our resident oil man seems to stock...

https://www.opieoils.co.uk/p-69401-mobil-atf-lt-71141-automatic-transmission-fluid.aspx

It's not just using the correct oil, but the fill procedure is very complicated. I'd also ask them how they do this. When I did mine, you had to put in a set amount, say 5L. Run the car to get the transmission oil to a certain temperature, as measured with the INPA software and an OBD cable. At this temperature, run through all gears manually then, return to Neutral and pump oil in with the engine still running until it overflows from the fill hole. If you don't follow this procedure, there will be at least 1L too little oil in the box.
____________________
TZR250 2MA road, TZR250 1KT road, TZR250 2MA race, TDR250, YZF-750R Boost colours.
Jaguar S Type 3.0 V6 Sport R, VW Transporter T5 GP LWB Shuttle 140ps DSG.