Mark

Go on then, tell us what happened.

I thought I'd post this as an informative resource for others with this problem commonly known as "the Jatco Jerk". I'm in the process of having this fixed on my car and I'll post more information as it comes to hand. The "Jatco Jerk" affects 6 cylinder E36 and M50-engined E34 BMW's assembled in Japan. These "Japanese BMW's" were fitted with a Jatco transmission that has been used in a variety of cars including the Nissan Skyline. The Jatco transmissions commonly develop problems with poor shift quality that can worsen over time if not attended to. Including: - A jerky change between first and second gear (more noticeable when cold) - Soft-shifting or "flaring" between 2nd and 3rd gear and sometimes between 3rd and 4th gear. (transmission briefly returns to neutral before selecting the next gear) My car is currently in the capable hands of Aceomatic Automatic Transmission Services on Stanmore Road in Christchurch. They were recommended by my BMW specialist and often service BMW's for many of the European car yards. The transmission is out of the car and being pulled to bits as I type this to determine the exact cause of the problem. Thankfully my car has a mechanical warranty, so it makes sense to have the current transmission repaired with a guarantee as opposed to fitting a secondhand transmission that is in unknown condition. I'll get the full diagnosis on what was wrong, the repairs needed and the breakdown of costs and post it here for everyone's information. Likewise, if you have any knowledge of this topic feel free to post here so we can help others with similar problems. UPDATE 21/10/08 I have the car back and it drives beautifully. I'm actually thinking about taking it for a drive for the sake of driving again! Here's the invoice breakdown incl. parts and labour and the total cost: 1 GASKET $6.10 1 PUMP GASKET $15.28 1 HIGH CLUTCH SEAL KIT $24.81 1 PUMP O'RING $8.41 1 CONVERTER SEAL $8.26 5 HIGH FRICTION PLATE $192.50 1 CUSHION $23.71 1 INTERMEDIATE BAND $63.09 1 FILTER $29.54 1 SCAN TOOL CHARGE $35.00 1 CLEAN AND TEST SOLENOID $25.00 1 POWER FLUSH COOLER $90.00 8 LITRES TRANNY FLUID $120.96 + 12 HOURS LABOUR $734.28 ROAD TEST AND CONFIRM CUSTOMER CONCERNS, SCAN FOR CODES. PUT VEHICLE ON HOIST AND DRAIN TRANSMISSION FLUID, REMOVE THE PAN AND ADVISE CUSTOMER OF FINDINGS. REMOVE THE TRANSMISSION AND DISMANTLE AS REQUIRED. CHECK OVER FRICTION MATERIAL AND SEALS AND SUPPLY THE CUSTOMER AN ESTIMATE TO REPAIR. REMOVE AND DYNO TEST PRESSURE CONTROL SOLENOID. REASSEMBLE - REPLACING FRICTION MATERIAL AND SEALS AS LISTED AND REFIT TRANSMISSION TO VEHICLE. SET UP ALL CONTROLS AND FILL WITH TRANSMISSION FLUID. ROAD TEST AND RECHECK FLUID LEVEL, RECHECK FOR CODES AND FINAL OKAY. TOTAL COST INCLUDING GST $1125.80 TOTAL COST TO ME (CAR UNDER MECHANICAL WARRANTY) $250.00 Get one they're worth it! So there you have it, that's how much it cost to have my Jatco jerk fixed. The mechanic did say to me however that I had quite a mild case of it and that it gets much worse. He said that later E36's with this problem often cease to select first gear altogether and simply start off in 2nd. In these cases the labour costs start to really pile up. Â

How much for a set?

It's basically luxury spec as opposed to motorsport spec. Depends what you're after... comfort or performance.

CSL's are hands down the best looking non-stock wheel on the E36. Very jealous mate, where'd you get them?

Holy hell.. that picture is 4MB! Good thing I'm looking at it at work or I'd have used my entire monthly broadband allowance. Not a fan of the lights or the roundels as Simon mentioned... but otherwise looks good mate!

I read an issue of Performance BMW (the last I read once I saw the travesty) of some bloke who had built an E28 M5 ute. Thankfully he hadn't destroyed a real M5, it was just a regular E28 with the M5 engine.... but god it was ugly!

You don't have to be there for the whole day Matt! And so you know, I only found out yesterday from a workmate that this was happening so sorry for late notice. BTW... $5 entry. I've given the car a once over so I might put it in for the show n shine. Would be hilarious if I won a trophy!

Sorry, not a fan. I've yet to see one of these ute conversions that has managed to fabricate a convincing looking rear end.

FYI- the Canterbury Vintage Car Club is holding their annual swap meet today and tomorrow (11th and 12th) from 9am - 5pm, McLeans Island Road, off Johns Road. There'll be car parts for all makes and models (including BMW's) along with all sorts of other stuff. On Sunday there is a public show 'n' shine where any car can enter as long as it's mint, concourse, or tidy original as decided by the marshalls. I've never been before, but apparently it's huge...with over 650 individual sites. More info here Might see a few of you Chch lads there? - Mark.

Some South African built E30's have a long range fuel tank installed in the boot.

Bump... price drop to $8750 Also, car going in on Monday to have the Jatco jerk sorted out.

Did you make the vending machine and everything? Or just the video? Regardless... cool idea... now for the FHM version!!

Dell rocks the party. I bought my girlfriend a 2.0GHZ Core 2 Duo, with 250GB HD and 2 GB RAM for $1200. That was at least $300 cheaper than comparable spec laptops at any of the big laptop retailers. Normally I wouldn't recommend a Dell and I used to always quote the old saying "nobody ever buys two Dells", but their build quality and specs have improved markedly in the past couple of years.

It hit too close to home for me... I had to go outside and dry-hump my car to calm down.

I guess this is funny if you're from Auckland. Must be true what they say about you JAFA's... nothing exists past the Bombays.

It did look incredibly 90's, but the credits at the end of the video said "Copyright 2007". Odd. Perhaps this idea could go in to production... however what would this style of door compromise structural integrity? No b pillar and I'm assuming the doors are made of a flexible material to roll under the car like that... would they stand up to a significant impact in the event of a crash?

+1

No way guys... I just bought an E46 M3 almost the same for $17,500! What a deal! I've sent the money via wire transfer to Nigeria and I should get the car from America in two weeks! So excited!!!

No eyebrows Atta?

I'm pretty sure the noise you're hearing is a regular noise that many BMW's make. My car does it and so does every 6 M50/M52 engined car I've driven. (presume it's similar for the 8 cylinder cars) If you can get a sound or video sample of it someone could perhaps confirm?

I thought the radio aerial on E36's was built into the rear window along with the demister? That part doesn't look factory.... (I could be wrong though as you've mentioned realOEM.com)

You have good England.

Not a fan of the car seat covers or mats... but that's personal preference. Glad you enjoyed your drive. The Chch to Akaroa drive is a lot of fun.

If you decide to empty the reservoir and refill, you bleed the system simply by starting the car on and turning the steering wheel lock to lock a few times. (Saw that on the E30 touring episode of "Wheeler Dealers", love that show)