bimboy
09-30-2005, 12:12 AM
I bought a 1995 325i (auto, almost 100K miles) a few months back and got it inspected by a BMW mechanic before buying. He suggested a few fixes (replace transmission flex disc, valve cover gasket, accessories belt) and a tune up after buying which came to around $500. He visually inspected the car and test drove it and said there are no major problems. I did all the fixes he suggested..
A few months down the line I sensed that the gear was getting stuck at Reverse or Drive occassionally. Also the gear transition when in Drive wasn't smooth. So I took it to a shop that specializes in transmissions and had them look at it. I got a shock of my life when the mechanic said that the transmission has to be re-built (around $6500) or replaced with a new BMW remanufactured tranny ($4200 parts + labor - 2yrs unlimited miles parts + labor warranty) and said that replacing with a new one would be cheaper than rebuilding. I got a shock of my life.. Initially I couldn't completely believe him..I went to the shop and he showed me many metal pieces that have worn out and come out of the transmission..like the pulleys, clutch etc (not very familiar with this stuff anyway..). He said that this wear and tear has reached other parts of the transmission and they have been affected badly..I saw quite a few metal pieces and a worn-out pulley and others..still I find it hard to believe the complete tranny has to be replaced insted of just replacing the wornout parts....
I spoke about this to my wife and she got really furious. She was kind of against the idea of me buying a Bimmer (esp. this old) in the first place. I had to do quite a bit of convincing before buying it. Now I am in a dilemma, very confused and kind of upset. Answers to these q's would help me get out of this big mess I am in right now...
1. Should I try and sell the car as is w/o fixing the tranny. Not sure if this a possible.
2. Fix the tranny and then sell it to make sure I dont land up in such a big mess again. (doesn't make too much financial sense to me..)
3. Fix it and keep it. I dont mind keeping it and I certainly do enjoy driving it. Pretty fun to drive motor... But will always be worried what other big $$$ problem will arise...
4. What are the issues or big maintenance things that I need to be aware at 100K miles which would help me in making my decision. By that I mean which are the things that I need to inspect/check...anything big that can go wrong and burn my wallet again..i cannot take it anymore.
5. The most important of all - Is $4200 a lot to swap the old tranny with a new one. When I called the a BMW dealership they told me that a re-manufactured E36 tranny would cost $2750 (with taxes) if I give them the old tranny. Then the mechanic would be charging me almost $1400 for diagnosizing this problem and swapping the tranny. Isin't this too high? What can I expect to pay. I would be paying almost 75% of what I paid for the car to replace this tranny..
6. [May be a dumb question] Isin't it possible to replace/re-build the worn out parts rather than replacing the whole tranny..A problem this extensive is it common at 100K miles with a auto-tranny. Can this happen because of tranny abuse, bad maintenance or as such poor quality of the tranny. I just learnt today that the tranny's for these cars were made by GM.
Thks in advance for helping me out..
A few months down the line I sensed that the gear was getting stuck at Reverse or Drive occassionally. Also the gear transition when in Drive wasn't smooth. So I took it to a shop that specializes in transmissions and had them look at it. I got a shock of my life when the mechanic said that the transmission has to be re-built (around $6500) or replaced with a new BMW remanufactured tranny ($4200 parts + labor - 2yrs unlimited miles parts + labor warranty) and said that replacing with a new one would be cheaper than rebuilding. I got a shock of my life.. Initially I couldn't completely believe him..I went to the shop and he showed me many metal pieces that have worn out and come out of the transmission..like the pulleys, clutch etc (not very familiar with this stuff anyway..). He said that this wear and tear has reached other parts of the transmission and they have been affected badly..I saw quite a few metal pieces and a worn-out pulley and others..still I find it hard to believe the complete tranny has to be replaced insted of just replacing the wornout parts....
I spoke about this to my wife and she got really furious. She was kind of against the idea of me buying a Bimmer (esp. this old) in the first place. I had to do quite a bit of convincing before buying it. Now I am in a dilemma, very confused and kind of upset. Answers to these q's would help me get out of this big mess I am in right now...
1. Should I try and sell the car as is w/o fixing the tranny. Not sure if this a possible.
2. Fix the tranny and then sell it to make sure I dont land up in such a big mess again. (doesn't make too much financial sense to me..)
3. Fix it and keep it. I dont mind keeping it and I certainly do enjoy driving it. Pretty fun to drive motor... But will always be worried what other big $$$ problem will arise...
4. What are the issues or big maintenance things that I need to be aware at 100K miles which would help me in making my decision. By that I mean which are the things that I need to inspect/check...anything big that can go wrong and burn my wallet again..i cannot take it anymore.
5. The most important of all - Is $4200 a lot to swap the old tranny with a new one. When I called the a BMW dealership they told me that a re-manufactured E36 tranny would cost $2750 (with taxes) if I give them the old tranny. Then the mechanic would be charging me almost $1400 for diagnosizing this problem and swapping the tranny. Isin't this too high? What can I expect to pay. I would be paying almost 75% of what I paid for the car to replace this tranny..
6. [May be a dumb question] Isin't it possible to replace/re-build the worn out parts rather than replacing the whole tranny..A problem this extensive is it common at 100K miles with a auto-tranny. Can this happen because of tranny abuse, bad maintenance or as such poor quality of the tranny. I just learnt today that the tranny's for these cars were made by GM.
Thks in advance for helping me out..
