E60 Automatic Transmission Problem

[ess530i]

hi to all E60 owners...just wondering if anyone have face any issue with your auto transmission before? hope i'm not the first...but i'm getting mis-shift from 4th to 5th gear when the car is hot (after some hard drivin). i still feel that the transmission is strong as the other gears shift well just the damn 4th gear. called a couple of auto tranny specialist like hi-tech recond & mscope both said it has something to do with the valve body and replacing it would cost close to RM10k. i replaced the auto tranny oil (after 20k km) and felt improvements but problem still persist when engine is hot.additional question:1. has anyone installed an external transmission oil cooler on their e60? and recommendation or comment on this?2. could the mis-shift problem be caused by wrong ratio of air/fuel? i've read somewhere in the forums that it its possible. what is the explanation to this?i can still live with the problem but cant think of my ride as a UDM until it is resolved. thanks...

 

[pussy]

maybe the gearbox can't cope with the power of the SC.. i believe it's call slipping caused by too much torque output..

but all auto boxes are prone to a certain torque slippage over time..

regards.

 

[owen]

Try this

Turn the ignition to 3rd position (don't start engine)
Fully press down the accel pedal
Keep holding up to 35 secs or until you hear a couple of soft "click" sounds

Hope it does something.

 

[ess530i]

Try this

Turn the ignition to 3rd position (don't start engine)
Fully press down the accel pedal
Keep holding up to 35 secs or until you hear a couple of soft "click" sounds

Hope it does something.

hi owen i tried the throttle reset procedure but i didn't feel any difference at all contrary to other's claims that it works...perhaps nuthin wrong with my throttle? for now i think i'll live with the problem and when it gets worse i'll bring my car to mscope...heard they're very professional and performs upgrade to your auto transmission during an overhaul so it will be stronger than stock. problem is they only perform major jobs (as i was told) so will have to wait til it gets worse...or shouldnt i?

 

[owen]

It's meant to reset the transmission shifts.

Anyway, don't you have the engine and gear 1-year warranty for reconds?

 

[ess530i]

It's meant to reset the transmission shifts.

Anyway, don't you have the engine and gear 1-year warranty for reconds?

hi owen i did have a 6-months engine & gear warranty but its expired. anyway the car is modified so i dont think they will warrant that. thx for the tip though

ok i changed to primax from v-power 2 days ago and since then have not face any issue after about 20mins of hard drivin under hot sun...guess i can say that it has improved but i wanna understand the logic behind. some forumers have said that the auto tranny may mis-shift or have problems if the air/fuel ratio is too rich. so then will switching to a lower octane fuel reduce the air/fuel ratio? and why does air/fuel ratio has got anything to do with the auto tranny? or doesn't it?

 

[chookleng]

u mean ur problem cause by shell v-power? and the problem gone after u stop using v-power shell? do share wit me on tis plz...if is so....i'm gonna stop topping v-power on my 525i for good

 

[ess530i]

hi chookleng i dont think v-power will affect your car in anyway if it is stock. perhaps i should've mentioned that my car is supercharged and the ECU is custom tuned by ESS and they are known to keep the air/fuel ratio rich to prevent engine damage. on the other hand i dont think u should waste your money on v-power anymore because the gain in power/fuel economy is negligible. even in my car whereby i'm supposed to have theoretically higher gains from v-power cause its supercharged but i still dont feel it.

 

[chookleng]

i get u. but people used to told me that v-power gave u quietness and protect ur engine. well i think they used to told me tat v-power protect engine from rusting. correct me if im wrong. if not wit v-power, any better fuel brand to switch for E60?

 

[ess530i]

i get u. but people used to told me that v-power gave u quietness and protect ur engine. well i think they used to told me tat v-power protect engine from rusting. correct me if im wrong. if not wit v-power, any better fuel brand to switch for E60?

leforte (forumer) has done some lab test on various fuel in malaysia and found that primax & caltex fuel to be closest to v-power if not the same in term of performance. you can try searching the forum for this info & others which may help your decision.

 

[ess530i]

my mistake guys...shouldn't have made the conclusion so soon that v-power equals primax. now i remember that when i switched from v-power to primax 2 days ago, i still had 1/5 tank of v-power so it was actually a blend. today i filled up with primax neat and actually noticed some loss of power. my engine did take advantage of the slight increase in octane from the 1/5 tank of v-power which is why i felt no difference when i 'switched'. guess the conclusion is that e60 530i transmission can only take up to about 340hp/420NM of torque and anything more will probably damage it. sad part is that i cant modify my car anymore until i change to a 6-speed manual!

 

[supergripen]

my mistake guys...shouldn't have made the conclusion so soon that v-power equals primax. now i remember that when i switched from v-power to primax 2 days ago, i still had 1/5 tank of v-power so it was actually a blend. today i filled up with primax neat and actually noticed some loss of power. my engine did take advantage of the slight increase in octane from the 1/5 tank of v-power which is why i felt no difference when i 'switched'. guess the conclusion is that e60 530i transmission can only take up to about 340hp/420NM of torque and anything more will probably damage it. sad part is that i cant modify my car anymore until i change to a 6-speed manual!

i guess if u stick to ESS's standard output claim for automatic cars the tranny should be within it's limits.. well,unless u convert to manual la:wink: tho i've been told converting from an auto to a manual will involve a lot of work and cost.

maybe u should try upgrading the steptronic to the latest one which is claimed to shift 50% faster(the one with the plastic joystick thingy).not too sure if its even possible to just change the Electronic Control Unit and shifter without actually changing the whole unit.. this has sure crossed my mind,personally.just wondering if its possible..

 

[ess530i]

i guess if u stick to ESS's standard output claim for automatic cars the tranny should be within it's limits.. well,unless u convert to manual la:wink: tho i've been told converting from an auto to a manual will involve a lot of work and cost.

maybe u should try upgrading the steptronic to the latest one which is claimed to shift 50% faster(the one with the plastic joystick thingy).not too sure if its even possible to just change the Electronic Control Unit and shifter without actually changing the whole unit.. this has sure crossed my mind,personally.just wondering if its possible..

bro if anything ever happen to my autobox i will definately change it to a manual...since the ZF6HP is so 'strong' i guess it'll last me at least for another 2-3 yrs which should be just in time for our local mechanics to pick up the technology for the transplant. the joystick thing could be nice but i think would cost a bomb...

 

[supergripen]

when i do eventually get my kit,i'll probably keep everything else standard..these autoboxes seems quite fragile la,its scaring me already.wondering if AJ@ESS will be doing a steptronic ECU upgrade for our e60s..thy've actually got such an upgrade for the ZF 5sp steptronic..

 

[ess530i]

when i do eventually get my kit,i'll probably keep everything else standard..these autoboxes seems quite fragile la,its scaring me already.wondering if AJ@ESS will be doing a steptronic ECU upgrade for our e60s..thy've actually got such an upgrade for the ZF 5sp steptronic..

super i didn't even bother asking them coz to do an ESS tuning would require me to remove my ECU and courier to Europe/US and back in all would take 7 - 10 working days. cant afford to do that unless i REALLY need to. suggest that you check with them before your upgrade, tell them bout my issue and get them to program your ECU & tranny to suit our weather n your drivin style (if dat's even possible) then perhaps u can share ur ESS experience with us too...eh isn't it about time??

 

[bozo]

Bro, why don't you try updating you software. I had mine done recently, made a lot of difference to transmission. Car used to jeck and shudder on idle after upgrade no more problem. Also up and down shift on step mode much much quicker.

 

[ess530i]

Bro, why don't you try updating you software. I had mine done recently, made a lot of difference to transmission. Car used to jeck and shudder on idle after upgrade no more problem. Also up and down shift on step mode much much quicker.

hi bozo mind telling me where ya did the software upgrade? was it an ECU, idrive or solely tranny ECU upgrade? my ECU has been reflashed by ESS and i dont want any upgrade which may affect the reflash. BTW congrats on being a proud owner of a 535d...have u done the reflash? heard u can eat an M3 for breakfast after that...

 

[bozo]

hi bozo mind telling me where ya did the software upgrade? was it an ECU, idrive or solely tranny ECU upgrade? my ECU has been reflashed by ESS and i dont want any upgrade which may affect the reflash. BTW congrats on being a proud owner of a 535d...have u done the reflash? heard u can eat an M3 for breakfast after that...

I had my software upgraded to module 28, latest is 29 actually. It was originally on 23, so upgrade was for everything. I pm u where I did software upgrade, but mines a uk model.

Upgrade sure to affect ur reflash, DMS gone after that. But ok becos they will redo for free.

The DMS is great, bhp improve to 344 and torque up to 600nm. Now that I lost it after upgrade, can really feel the difference it makes. Eat M3, I doubt it, its a much heavier car.