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Transfer case chain?

24K views 13 replies 8 participants last post by  milanorsx 
#1 ·
Have a question for you.

My 01 x5 with 160k is clicking when I accelerate. I thought it was my axles at first but took it to a shop and after they replaced them they came back with I need a new front transfer case. 2k installed for a reman. The mech said I could remove the front drive shaft and make it a 2 wheel drive. I tried that and turns out the shaft I removed was the main shat because now the car rolls in park so I put that back on. So I went to the forums and found a great thread for replacing the bike chain in the transfer case. http://www.xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-forums/x5-e53-forum/63004-transfer-case-removal-pictures.html

I have looked at the pics but is this the front transfer case? I read thru the really long thread and some ppl said you don't have to remove it from the vehicle. Any clarity you can provide or experience would be helpful as now the car clicks all the time and the spouse is ready to jump ship to the L brand.
 
#3 ·
You may need to find a new mechanic. There is no such thing as a 'front' transfer case. The only transfer case you have, is mounted on the rear of the transmission, and it provides power to both the front and rear driveshafts. Because the 4wd system in your vehicle is an AWD (all wheel drive) system, it does not have the capability of providing power to just the front or rear axle alone. Both driveshafts must be in place for the system to work.
 
#4 ·
You may need to find a new mechanic. There is no such thing as a 'front' transfer case.
Thanks for the info! What would you call the drive train device that the front drive shaft connects to between the front tires? I ordered a chain from cobra transmissions but if that is for the transfer case behind the transmission then that won't help me in fixing my issue.
 
#6 ·
Decided this may be a bit much for me to fix so I took it to AAMCO and they pulled the transfer case and said I needed a new chain and planetary gear. They called BMW and they wouldn't sell the individual parts. Thankfully, AAMCO let me supply the parts ordered from cobra transmission and they arrived 2 days later for the fraction of the cost of a new transfer case. Thank you forum for being here I saved quite a bit on this repair!
 
#8 ·
The book labor was 4.2 hours to remove the case and they charged another hour to replace the 2 parts, a bit much for parts that were already out but oh well. Labor was 470 and parts was about 450. Problem is 1 of the 3 seals is leaking and they had me sign no warranty since I supplied the parts so I might have to fight them a little. But it drives great again and I don't have to cringe when I press the accelerator.
 
#10 ·
Good day,

The easiest way to determine if it is the chain or something else is to just drive the vehicle... IF you take off slowly, with very little power going to the wheels, you will not notice any issues at all... HOWEVER, if you were to give it moderate to full power from a stand still, you will hear AND FEEL thumping through the whole vehicle... That is the sprocket in the transfer case jumping due to the stretched chain...

I did this in my 01 a few years back... Only took a couple hours due to the exhaust needing to come out...

Good luck!!

Cheers!!

RACHAELSX5... The 4.2 hours was for T-case removal and install... The other hour was for them to open up the T-case and replace the chain and planetary gear... I would have liked to see that planetary gear... Mine was nearly perfect despite the chain in mine slipping for some time before I got the vehicle... It was the reason i got the vehicle for such a good deal...

Anyway! Glad you got it working!!

Cheers!!
 
#11 ·
Finally!!!!

Thank you for describing the problem I've been having with my 2007 328xi. I've been looking on the internet for months and couldn't find anyone having the same symptoms with their BMW xDrive vehicle. I was told it was the transfer case. A friend who is a mechanic unplugged the connector to disable the transfer case, essentially making it a 2 wheel, rear wheel drive car. I'm trying to find a rebuild kit for the transfer case, but no one seems to make one. If anyone knows where to buy the parts, the chain, bearings and seals for a good price, please let me know and reply to this post.

Thanks again!
 
#14 ·
Heavy vibration Finally Fixed!

So I swapped out the transfer case on my 2008 328xi because the BMW dealer said that was the cause of the massive vibration at highway speeds. And the problem was still there. Thankfully I didn't let them do it and sent it to a friend's shop. So after lots of research, I thought it might be CV shaft. My friends mechanic also suggested that it sounded like a CV shaft and not the transfer case. So after 2 new CV shafts were installed, the vibration is gone! I feel so good that the car runs smooth again. And I gave the BMW dealer crap that the car was there for 3 days and they came up with the wrong diagnosis. So it looks like the inner CV joint failed, but the rubber boot didn't leak grease. But when you played around with the inner boot, you could here the clacking sound and that's barely under any load. So the symptoms were the following...

At highway speeds the car was vibrating a lot. But when you let off the gas pedal and the car was just coasting, there was no vibration. Only under engine load, especially when you hit a hill where the engine has to work harder, there was massive vibration. Cruising around the city at low speeds, the vibration was not noticeable. There were no CELs or error codes recorded. That was the confusing part and led me to believe it was something along the lines of the CV shaft. I found something on Youtube that explains the symptoms and the guy actually does a teardown of the CV axel and shows you the internal bearings and where they were rubbing and the heat damage that they caused.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7lTncDBfkE

Hope this helps someone save some cash and keep the car away from the dealer!

Good luck guys!
 
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