I have a 1995 740i with about 165K miles. I bought it 2-1/2 years ago when it had around 120K. The transmission had been replaced 11 months before I bought it. Since then I think it's fair to say I've been good about the maintenance. I started it back on the Insp I & II process and I have dumped about $7000 into all kinds of repairs (catalytic converter, suspension/alignment, fuel pump, central window switch [?], trunk release switch, etc., etc., etc.). I still have a list of other non-essential things to repair if I decide to keep the car.
Within the last month I noticed a problem with the transmission in Adaptive mode--it jumps between 4th and 5th at 40-50 MPH and is accompanied by what is best described as a grinding noise (as it sounds in the passenger compartment). So I took it to the dealer and asked that it be checked. They told me the transmission is on its way out--$6100. Well it wasn't dead, so I told him I'd wait on it a while before I commit. I use Manual mode and I don't have any problems and the Adaptive mode is only a problem after the car warms up. I hadn't told the dealer about a coincident problem that I noticed (because I FORGOT!): when the transmission was acting strangely and I had been driving highway speeds, when I got home (4 miles off the highway) and put the car in park, the engine raced (2200 rpm, repeatable condition). And just this week, as I was coming up the interstate, I turned on the cruise control and engaged it. It held the speed for about 10 seconds and then it turned off. I wondered if I had turned it off, but it was all the way off (indicator on dash turned off). And this is repeatable too. (I have to turn the switch to off and back on before I can turn on the cruise control each time.) So I have all of these problems and it got me to wondering if maybe I have a computer problem instead of discrete other problems. Any thoughts?
Also, I found a transmission remanufacturer (Phoenix Remanufactured Transmissions) that offers a 48-month/48K Mile warranty (about $2400 shipped). I asked the BMW dealer if they'd install one if I had it shipped to the shop and they would do that for around $1000. Does anyone have any thoughts on this if it really is a bad transmission?
Thanks!
Within the last month I noticed a problem with the transmission in Adaptive mode--it jumps between 4th and 5th at 40-50 MPH and is accompanied by what is best described as a grinding noise (as it sounds in the passenger compartment). So I took it to the dealer and asked that it be checked. They told me the transmission is on its way out--$6100. Well it wasn't dead, so I told him I'd wait on it a while before I commit. I use Manual mode and I don't have any problems and the Adaptive mode is only a problem after the car warms up. I hadn't told the dealer about a coincident problem that I noticed (because I FORGOT!): when the transmission was acting strangely and I had been driving highway speeds, when I got home (4 miles off the highway) and put the car in park, the engine raced (2200 rpm, repeatable condition). And just this week, as I was coming up the interstate, I turned on the cruise control and engaged it. It held the speed for about 10 seconds and then it turned off. I wondered if I had turned it off, but it was all the way off (indicator on dash turned off). And this is repeatable too. (I have to turn the switch to off and back on before I can turn on the cruise control each time.) So I have all of these problems and it got me to wondering if maybe I have a computer problem instead of discrete other problems. Any thoughts?
Also, I found a transmission remanufacturer (Phoenix Remanufactured Transmissions) that offers a 48-month/48K Mile warranty (about $2400 shipped). I asked the BMW dealer if they'd install one if I had it shipped to the shop and they would do that for around $1000. Does anyone have any thoughts on this if it really is a bad transmission?
Thanks!