e46 Showing red cog and going into limp mode

[scottr 11]

Hi all, been a happy owner of an 2002 e46 320i (188km) for sometime now, but I suspect it's in the middle of it's death throes.  I'm having some issues with the gearbox (codes thrown and going into limp mode) and are interested in anyone else's similar experiences, or opinions on what could be wrong. Read on the for the story...

Got a panicked call from my soon-to-be-due wife the other day that the car had thrown a new warning sign (cog with exclamation next to the gear letter) and became very sluggish.  The car seemed to have gone into limp mode which means she managed to get it home without too much drama (luckily as it was raining heavily!).  She'd driven through some smaller puddles on the way and thought that could've been related.

A bit of testing showed I had forwards, but no reverse.

After plugging a scanner in I could see the following codes;

• 049 Symptom Gangueberwachung   (Symptom Gear Check)
• 054 Gangueberwachung 4                (Gear Check 4)
• 065 Gangueberwachung 4 (ENP)      (Gear Check 4 (ENP))
• 033 Drehzahlgeber Turbine               (Speed Turbine)

After a reset all appeared well, and both forwards and reverse worked.  After a short drive (50-100 metres), I got a new set of codes;

• 056 Symptom GLUE
• 049 Symptom Gangueberwachung   (Symptom Gear Check)
• 032 Drehzahlsignal n-ab (Abtrieb)     (Speed Signal n-down (output))
• 052 Gangueberwachung 2                (Gear Check 2)

I still had reverse.  After a couple of short drives back home (with clear and reset) it seemed to flip between having reverse or not.  Figuring it was deciding how 'limp mode' it needed to go, based on the codes thrown.  I did notice what might've been a couple of gear slips once i'd gotten some speed up going up a hill (about 30km).  This was the only potential experience of slipping, and I wasn't sure if this was a a result of being in limp mode and the car was saying no to the speed or the hill, or an actual transmission gear slip.

So I re-cleared the errors and left it about 3 days to let the car dry out, in case it was water related. 

After 3 days I jacked the car up, undone, checked and cleaned the plugs on the gearbox, tcm ecu, and relays.  Everything seemed dry and fine, so I put it all back together.  I also checked the transmission lines, cooler, and pan for leakages, the lines and cooler seemed fine, the pan seemed fine although there was gunk over the front of it, likely from an oil leak (the oil sump was covered in gunk as well).  Unfortunately it's not easy to check the fluid levels in these things, so I have no idea what the level is.

After a short drive (30 metres) I got two more codes;

• 049 Symptom Gangueberwachung   (Symptom Gear Check)
• 053 Gangueberwachung 3                 (Gear Check 3)

So something's clearly up with it although I'm not sure what.  It's consistently giving me errors, although the errors aren't consistent and are for different gears (2, 3, and 4).

I'm guessing it's possibly not gear specific, but a problem like bung sensors, low fluid, or something else.

Anyone got any ideas as to what's going on?  The car's had some love recently (fairly new RE002/003's all around, new battery), and it would be a shame to scrap it if it can be fixed.

Thanks!

Scott

 

[gjm 3258]

When was the last time the fluid and gearbox filter were replaced?

It can be fixed. A manual conversion can also be done if the gearbox is genuinely beyond saving.

We have a 2002 E46 320d which has covered 500000km on the original gearbox, so <200k shouldn't be a problem.

[BM WORLD 1283]

the 320i and 520i zf boxes are a bit weak and fail all the time

fit a stronger 330i box

[scottr 11]

2 hours ago, gjm said:

When was the last time the fluid and gearbox filter were replaced?

It can be fixed. A manual conversion can also be done if the gearbox is genuinely beyond saving.

We have a 2002 E46 320d which has covered 500000km on the original gearbox, so <200k shouldn't be a problem.

Hi, hasn't been replaced while I've had the car (since 107km).  Apparently a 'lifetime' fluid so I haven't changed it.  Possibly too late now (unless it's just turned to gunk and hasn't caused any actual damage).

It's always shifted fine and had no issues up until now, where it's consistently throwing (inconsistent) codes.

[scottr 11]

2 hours ago, BM WORLD said:

the 320i and 520i zf boxes are a bit weak and fail all the time

fit a stronger 330i box

Hi, thanks for the reply.  Could put the stronger one in, but cost is a factor.  The car's not worth much (<5k) and if we could replace the box and get another year or two out of the car that would be superb.

What would I be looking at for a 320i or 330i box? (box by itself, and/or fitted)

 

[Gabe79 410]

Filter and fluid change is about $400ish all in. Less if you do it yourself. At least get it checked before going for a new transmission. A few of the transmission specialists will do diagnosis for free.

 

Also, that notion BMW tries to peddle that this is a lifetime fluid might have been derived from the lifetime of some short lived species. It sure isn't the lifetime of humans, nor most cars. 

[gjm 3258]

49 minutes ago, scottr said:

Hi, hasn't been replaced while I've had the car (since 107km).  Apparently a 'lifetime' fluid so I haven't changed it.  Possibly too late now (unless it's just turned to gunk and hasn't caused any actual damage).

It's always shifted fine and had no issues up until now, where it's consistently throwing (inconsistent) codes.

As Gabriel says - the complete crap peddled by manufacturers about 'lifetime fills' is just that - complete crap. Utter rubbish. I'm astonished there hasn't been a class action suit against manufacturers for this.

The biggest issue with changing the fluid on one of our cars is getting the fluid into the gearbox. BMW (and other manufacturers) chose to back up their incredulous 'lifetime' fluid claim by removing the dipstick/filler tube from the gearbox.

Draining is easy, but first check you can remove the filler plug which is on the side of the gearbox - the car needs to be a little int he air to check this as you can only do it from underneath. Once you have confirmed this, undo the sump plug and drain the fluid. Once empty, remove the sump, and check for metal and other solid matter particulate. If you have swarf in the sump then the gearbox may well be toast.

If not, remove the gearbox filter, clean everything thoroughly with a lint free cloth, install a new filter, replace the sump (using a new gasket), and refill with appropriate ATF by pumping it up and into the fill plug hole. This is a slightly tortuous process and to be honest I don't recall exactly what is involved. The last time I did it, I referred to instructions from *Glenn*.

[Gabe79 410]

He's in Auckland anyway. Take it to one of the transmission shops like http://kaspa.co.nz/ They have a shop in Otahuhu, Glenfield and Silverdale. They'll do the diagnostics and check for you no charge in hopes of charging you for the service. You decide from there.

[scottr 11]

Hi all, thanks for the replies.  Looks like I'll take it down to an auto-transmission specialist as recommended. Hopefully it's as simple as bung fluid.

Thanks!