Service Advisories - autobox leak? new guy :xmastongue:

[JimmySpeed]

[quote="GermanWhip"]
New I should of spent more and got the range sport  :'(
[/quote]

Quote... of... the... year  ) ) )

Anything an X5 can do, a RR does bigger and better - such as going wrong and costing big bucks to fix. If X5 ownership is tough, RR ownership would make Chuck Norris cry its so painful.

Seriously though, you have a £50k car there. It cost you £9k but the car doesn't know that. In its head, its a £50k diva that needs big money to be thrown at it once in a while. Took me a long time to come to terms with that fact but once I did, life became easier and £1k bills were a little easier to swallow.

Only luck will get you through a year of ownership with low maintenance costs. Unlike with many smaller cars where you would have to be 'unlucky' to get a big bill.

[kjb1]

[quote="Smeeagain"]
[quote="mobilejo"]
[quote="GermanWhip"]
Thanks all, well the gearbox seems fine. Nice smooth changes, all works as it should. I wasn't even due a service either but wanted it done.

They've quoted £150 to do the oil on the box which will solve the leak. Seems reasonable but I'm not worried after what I've read? but don't see what other option I have if it's leaking..?
[/quote]

dont worry - a box in good condition will not suddenly pop its cogs because of an oil change. Do it now before its too late is what i say
[/quote]

Yes but ..... with the small caveat that a box that appears to be in good condition isnt necessarily so. I have seen them just pack up, badaboom out of nowhere. So you take the box "in good condition" you take out all the old oil which 'can' but not necessarily 'will' flush pout all the crap between everything and taking up the tolerances - it doesn't then go boom overnight but it can do so in a matter of weeks or a couple of months. But I'm not saying it definitely will.

All Im saying is , be prepared for the worst - can you afford a gearbox rebuild circa £1600 or more?

I haven't changed mine but if I had a leak then I probably would do so as you will at some point leak enough not to have enough oil in there and then you will definitely have a problem.

It has to be your own individual call and don't let me or others with the opposite view to me sway you - read the posts, weigh up the pros and cons for your own personal situation and then take the plunge one way or the other.

Good luck and let us know how it goes

Smee
[/quote]

Hi Smee, when you say you " have seen the go kaboom" are you a mechanic? or in the industry as such? ( genuine question). 

[Smeeagain]

Im with you on this. The one and only time I ever bought a new car was with my company car allowance and I got a VW Golf 150bhp Turbo Diesel.
Broke down within the first minute of ownership (that is not an exaggeration - I had had it delivered to me, the guy drove off, and it packed up before I had got 100 yards)
I then spent the next two years in and out of the garage for various repairs which cost in excess of £9k albeit covered by warranty - but thats not the point you don't really expect that on a new car.

My point is that cars are buggers, its sh1t, these things happen, and it has to be your own call. Someone once said, rather harshly, but true nevertheless, if you cant afford to repair an X5 you shouldn't own one!

Whilst I personally did not go down the oil change route (and I'm now on 175k and know I'm on borrowed tome but I know who is going to do the job, where rtc and I have the money set aside for when it happens), I think in your case I'd be doing it. There is a big difference between changing oil for changing's sake and fixing a leak ie stopping all the oil draining away or at least below the minimum level.
But it must be your call.

All the best.
 

[X5Sport]

There are notes on X5 (and others with the same gearbox and other autos) forums all over the world who have reported these sort of failures.  It is an issue with automatics.  They are very complicated systems with fine tolerances both mechanically, electronically and hydraulically.  You change the oil and there is a risk that the flush removes debris which has built up in all sorts of places and kept things running.

The place I had my transmission rebuilt was full of examples just about every manufacturer's cars with auto transmissions.  The largest numbers were BMW and Landrover.  Some like mine had a genuine failure (torque converter part broke at 38k) that caused a failure, others were the result of age, wear and bad luck.  BMW walked away!

A friend of mine with a Citroen Picasso had his auto transmission go in less than 45,000 miles - and replaced under warranty.

BMW themselves will tell you that sealed for life is defined as the 'life' of the vehicle, and they say that is three years or 60,000 miles which is the same as the guarantee period.  If they don't have the confidence to extend that distance then that should tell you something.  Most will last well beyond, but as they say, you are on your own.

That does not mean to say that as soon as you change the oil, things WILL fail, just that bit adds a small factor to the 'chance' of a fail.  But there are thousands of gearboxes that never get touched at all and they run just fine, others break.  Similarly there are thousands that run fine after a change, yet others break.  It is just one of those things which you cannot predict one way or the other.  From an engineering standpoint, replacing the lubricants etc is normally a good idea.  A box going bad will be going bad anyway, regardless of the oil in the system.

Forums often tend to only record those who have had a problem, not those who don't.

And unfortunately Smee is right.  If you cannot afford to run it, don't buy it, or buy an extended warranty.  If buying second hand research the car type beforehand and decide if you have the funds to cover it when it breaks.  Even a Vauxhall ECU can cost the best part of a grand!

Richard

[Smeeagain]

[quote="kjb1"]

[quote="Smeeagain"]
[quote="mobilejo"]
[quote="GermanWhip"]
Thanks all, well the gearbox seems fine. Nice smooth changes, all works as it should. I wasn't even due a service either but wanted it done.

They've quoted £150 to do the oil on the box which will solve the leak. Seems reasonable but I'm not worried after what I've read? but don't see what other option I have if it's leaking..?
[/quote]

dont worry - a box in good condition will not suddenly pop its cogs because of an oil change. Do it now before its too late is what i say
[/quote]

Yes but ..... with the small caveat that a box that appears to be in good condition isnt necessarily so. I have seen them just pack up, badaboom out of nowhere. So you take the box "in good condition" you take out all the old oil which 'can' but not necessarily 'will' flush pout all the crap between everything and taking up the tolerances - it doesn't then go boom overnight but it can do so in a matter of weeks or a couple of months. But I'm not saying it definitely will.

All Im saying is , be prepared for the worst - can you afford a gearbox rebuild circa £1600 or more?

I haven't changed mine but if I had a leak then I probably would do so as you will at some point leak enough not to have enough oil in there and then you will definitely have a problem.

It has to be your own individual call and don't let me or others with the opposite view to me sway you - read the posts, weigh up the pros and cons for your own personal situation and then take the plunge one way or the other.

Good luck and let us know how it goes

Smee
[/quote]

Hi Smee, when you say you " have seen the go kaboom" are you a mechanic? or in the industry as such? ( genuine question).
[/quote]

No not at all and sorry if It read like I was (should be able to tell from some of my posts!!) - just have watched from the sidelines with mates cars going terminal .....

[Smeeagain]

[quote="X5Sport"]
There are notes on X5 (and others with the same gearbox and other autos) forums all over the world who have reported these sort of failures.  It is an issue with automatics.  They are very complicated systems with fine tolerances both mechanically, electronically and hydraulically.  You change the oil and there is a risk that the flush removes debris which has built up in all sorts of places and kept things running.

The place I had my transmission rebuilt was full of examples just about every manufacturer's cars with auto transmissions.  The largest numbers were BMW and Landrover.  Some like mine had a genuine failure (torque converter part broke at 38k) that caused a failure, others were the result of age, wear and bad luck.  BMW walked away!

A friend of mine with a Citroen Picasso had his auto transmission go in less than 45,000 miles - and replaced under warranty.

BMW themselves will tell you that sealed for life is defined as the 'life' of the vehicle, and they say that is three years or 60,000 miles which is the same as the guarantee period.  If they don't have the confidence to extend that distance then that should tell you something.  Most will last well beyond, but as they say, you are on your own.

That does not mean to say that as soon as you change the oil, things WILL fail, just that bit adds a small factor to the 'chance' of a fail.  But there are thousands of gearboxes that never get touched at all and they run just fine, others break.  Similarly there are thousands that run fine after a change, yet others break.  It is just one of those things which you cannot predict one way or the other.  From an engineering standpoint, replacing the lubricants etc is normally a good idea.  A box going bad will be going bad anyway, regardless of the oil in the system.

Forums often tend to only record those who have had a problem, not those who don't.

And unfortunately Smee is right.  If you cannot afford to run it, don't buy it, or buy an extended warranty.  If buying second hand research the car type beforehand and decide if you have the funds to cover it when it breaks.  Even a Vauxhall ECU can cost the best part of a grand!

Richard
[/quote]

totally agree. It's the added 'chance' that is the risk. As you say some are fine - me for example at 175k

[GermanWhip]

Thanks for all the information, it's booked in for the oil change and a few other little things.

It's not about the money, I can afford a new box if needed. I just find it a bit irritating at this mileage, I have had around 6 BMW's now. The last was a 330ci 55 plate, pic below. It had 62k miles with FBSH. I had endless problems, starter motor randomly died, clutch went, steering pump, all kinds of things.

This may beat my last land rover quote, and be the worst place to say it. But I don't think I'm that keen on BMW's - that said, I am really looking hard at the 08/09 plate M3's

I'm not a troll, honest. Or, am I? wait.. I can't confirm that

[JimmySpeed]

We all hate bmw sometimes. They've done some pretty daft things let's face it.

Still, we keep coming back don't we like an abused spouse. Gluttons for punishment.

Sent from my SM-N9005 using Tapatalk

[shadrack]

I would just like to point out that 'if it has tits or an engine it will cost you a fortune' age doesnt come into it, its all covered in that statement

[Reusch]

[quote="shadrack"]
I would just like to point out that 'if it has tits or an engine it will cost you a fortune' age doesnt come into it, its all covered in that statement
[/quote]

) ) )

[X5Sport]

Never a truer statement Smee........

Richard

[GermanWhip]

) ) )

Guys, it's booked in for next Monday. I'll update, hopefully the gearbox won't explode on the way home  :xmaskiss:

[ITBarbie]

[quote="shadrack"]
I would just like to point out that 'if it has tits or an engine it will cost you a fortune' age doesnt come into it, its all covered in that statement
[/quote]

Ok I can provide the tits but not the engine.  Im glad you said age doesn't come into it though!

I hear countless things about the sealed for life box but let's face it, it's their interpretation of life which translates to when their departure of responsibility ends .  Mine was on 109k miles when I part ex'd it and it was showing deterioration via my scanner for 3 years and the gear box had no apparent issues.  The local BMW dealer wouldn't consider changing it but other dealerships would.  I probably would have changed it.  The point is it's all a risk and we just have to enter  into with our eyes open to the risks.  All the best and keep us informed

[shadrack]

[quote="ITBarbie"]


[quote="shadrack"]
I would just like to point out that 'if it has tits or an engine it will cost you a fortune' age doesnt come into it, its all covered in that statement
[/quote]

Ok I can provide the tits but not the engine.  Im glad you said age doesn't come into it though!

I hear countless things about the sealed for life box but let's face it, it's their interpretation of life which translates to when their departure of responsibility ends .  Mine was on 109k miles when I part ex'd it and it was showing deterioration via my scanner for 3 years and the gear box had no apparent issues.  The local BMW dealer wouldn't consider changing it but other dealerships would.  I probably would have changed it.  The point is it's all a risk and we just have to enter  into with our eyes open to the risks.  All the best and keep us informed
[/quote]

if your pic is you, age most certainly doesn't come into it!  however that would lead back to my statement!

[kjb1]

Penny when you say deterioration signs via Scanner, what exactly were you looking at?