matic trany w/ longlife or lifetime ATF oil

[e36bmw]

does anybody heard about this matic trany w/ longlife or lifetime ATF oil. totoo b to na di na kailangan magpalit na ATF oil, sa bmw ko nakita to, mababasa sa tranny oil pan na LIFETIME ATF OIL NO NEED TO CHANGE

[vinj]

I know about that thing on the E36... my advice: change it if you can.

We had an E36 320i before which we purchased second hand; SOP with us when we get 2nd hand cars is to change all the fluids but with this the SA at BMW Libis said no need as it's lifetime nga daw so we took his advice. A few months later our tranny warning light turned on and the tranny went into safe mode. The culprit, water contamination in the tranny apparently (as there was rust). My best bet was the former owner got the car flooded at one point and the tranny got some water into it.. had the ATF been changed the problem may have probably been avoided.

my .02, CMIIW.

[theveed]

Just remember that oil is cheaper than tranny hehe... rather change oil often than risk it being damaged...

[alwayz_yummy]

TAMA! 1000% agree

[momoyster]

my bmw e46 also has this lifetime atf. when we got it brand new, i familiarized myself with the owner's manual and the lifetime atf got my attention. during its inspection 1, i inquired with the service advisor regarding this lifetime atf. according to them, di daw talaga pinapalitan. the car is turning 4 years old this april with no atf changes

[theveed]

Atty Mike, I don't think may provision for ATF change ang E46.. Sealed type ata yan eh.

Basically it'll last the life of the tranny... No indication of how long that "life" will be...

[theveed]

Atty Mike, I don't think may provision for ATF change ang E46.. Sealed type ata yan eh.

Basically it'll last the life of the tranny... No indication of how long that "life" will be...

What some people say about the issue:

Automatic Transmission Fluid (ATF) and Filter

For older automatics using Red Line or other synthetic ATF, drain interval 30,000 miles. Old fashioned petroleum ATF, drain interval 15,000 miles

At various production dates in the mid-1990s, which vary according to model, BMW switched to their so-called “lifetime fill” ATF in automatic transmissions, as well as manual gearbox lubricant and differential oil. The reason for this, as far as anyone can tell, is marketing and not engineering – the idea being to foster the notion of the low-maintenance BMW.

There was no explanation of what “lifetime” meant, i.e., lifetime of the car, the component, or for that matter the driver. If it was the component, then obviously anything could be “lifetime fill”. The factory’s initial position is that these lubricants never need to be changed. Then, some time later, it came out that “lifetime” means 100,000 miles. Many dealerships are now recommending manual gearbox and differential oil changes be done at customer expense every 60,000 miles. Every independent BMW technician I know recommends a 30,000-mile interval, and many recommend Red Line synthetic oils (www.redlineoil.com), but not for automatics with “lifetime fill.”

Older automatic transmission models, which do not have “lifetime fill” should have ATF and filter services every 15,000 miles if using petroleum ATF; every 30,000 miles with synthetic.

However, the modern automatic transmissions are different. No one knows exactly what BMW’s proprietary ATF is, so no one knows if there are viable alternatives. We do know that BMW dealerships charge about $500 for an ATF and filter service, due to the price of the ATF. And that’s assuming you can get them to do the job, which is not often the case.

Under no circumstances would I recommend draining any previously unmaintained automatic transmission with much more than 50,000 miles. I have seen it happen too many times, where a well-meaning owner or technician performs an ATF and filter service on a neglected but well-shifting automatic, and then all of the sudden it starts slipping. I can’t explain it, but my feeling is the fresh ATF flushes a bit of sludge from a place where it was doing no harm to a place where it does do harm. Overfilling, underfilling, and cleanliness are also issues in ATF and filter servicing, but these should not be problematic for a professional BMW technician, dealer or independent.

BMW has “backed off” their lifetime fill mantra for automatic transmissions, currently recommending an ATF and filter change every 100,000 miles.

My inclination is to tell people to change “lifetime” ATF and filter every 30,000 miles. However the fact is, I've seen BMW automatic transmissions that were maintained break anyway. In that event, say it happens at 90,000 miles, you would like to have that $1,500 you spent on ATF and filter changes to put toward your new automatic transmission. And if I told you to spend it on maintenance you’re probably not going to be very happy with me. On the other hand, I have seen maintained automatics last 200,000 miles. I have also seen unmaintained automatics last 200,000 miles, although both are very rare. There's just no predicting with these transmissions. When you choose to buy an automatic transmission, you also buy into the vagaries of the darn things, which is one reason technicians hate them.

Whether to maintain a modern BMW automatic is up to you. I am washing my hands of automatic transmissions – I don’t like them, I don’t buy them, and I don’t mess around with them under the car. At the end of the day, for long-term durability, order the car with a manual gearbox.

[momoyster]

theveed:

musta pare? nice info