Why is my car jumping into "TRANS PROGRAM"

Hello guys,,,I own a 94 BMW 530i and recently my car has been jumping into trans mode when I drive. It wasn't that bad until one evening I arrived home from work and I started to here this loud angry squeaking noise coming from underneath my hood when in drive or reverse and the shifting was very hard. I was told by my neighbor that its my transmission. The next day I went to get my car looked at. The mechanic hooked my car up to the scanner and it read no signs of transmission failure. He although still recommended that my trans was going bad. I went to another mechanic to get the fluid check. I had no leaks and the fluid was full, It was dirty but not that dirty. He recommended for me to purchase TRANS X. He drained a quart of fluid to put the quart of TRANS X in. He told me to just drive my car so the fluid can do its job. So I drove the car all day back and even went to school and back,,30 minute drive there and back with no problems,,no loud squeaking noises or anything and no hard shifting.Later I jumped back into my car to go to the store and I had hard shifting and little squeaking noises but no as much ,,it came and went and when I started to pull of the TRANS PROGRAM came on again...I don't want to get ripped off by some lousy mechanic,,i really need help getting my car back on the right track,,I have school and work to tend to..please help,,the car is at 195,000 miles,

Welcome, I moved your thread to the E34 forum.

Thanks

Welcome!

I would have the fluid drained and refilled again by either a mechanic or you. The reason I say this is because the noise you describe is typical of dirty trans fluid clogging passages in the transmission.
Make sure your mechanic follows the proper procedure for draining and refilling, it must be done using the proper procedure for trannys with no dipstick (remove fill plug, fluid should spill out)

Autos:


Looks like you have the A5S 310Z Transmission. Search here and bimmerforums for problems associated with your model tranny.



To temporarily get rid of the trans program message and mode disconnect the battery cables and touch them together (with the battery out of the way) for at least 10 mins.

Also:
scroll down for your model transmission service (including filter change):
https://wiki.bentleypublishers.com/d...+transmissions

I'm afraid if I drain the fluid and refill it again my trans may not ever work ...........

Seafoam sells a transmission tune product that is rated very highly as being effective in removing gunk. You might wish to add that to your transmission and see if it helps.

The symptoms you describe are not typical of a failing transmission (from what I've read over the years). Usually, there's slippage, a trans prog message, and the car's lock in 3rd gear or something. Squeaking noises, no.

If the oil wasn't that dirty, it should not lead to this issue.

You might wish to check with a few more transmission shops. And yes, please do check if the oil levels are correct. You'll need to download a soft copy of the bentley manual for E34s to check on this. If you do elect to change your oil entirely, please make sure that you change the filter as well. As far as possible, use semi or fully synthetic transmission oil, although it would be more expensive, and you may not wish to invest that in your car when you're not sure about the transmission.

Don't panic. This sounds like a fixable issue and its not going to cost as much as you fear.

Clear the error codes on your car via the stomp test or by unplugging the ecu and key2 the ignition for 5 minutes. No need to remove the battery leads and touch them together. I used to do that many moons ago until a mechanic I met told me that just unplugging the ecu erases everything too and its soo much easier.

Before you go dumping allot of additives in your transmission please do some home work. There is a yellow tag on the bottom of your transmission pan, this is the key to what is in your car from the factory. Your vin number does not tell what kind of transmission you have. Second go to your dealer and find out what kind of fluid is suppose to go in it. You cannot buy transmission fluid from your local auto store for a BMW. There are many warnings sent out that BMW has posted for their mechanics saying that the mixture of fluids causes jelling and sticking of the shift switches in the training. I even went the extent to call up Mobil-1 for their advice because they have the best synthetic trans fluid and refused to tell me if it was compatible with what BMW was running. In the end I changed the filter and flushed the torque converter with new Texaco: ETL-7045 fluid. I had to take my own containers into the dealer for them to fill because it comes to them by the drum. With a price of 15.00 a quart and a new filter all my problems went away. I hope yours do too and it doesn't cost 4,000 or so for a new transmission that a 20.00 bottle of trans additive cost you.