Quote Originally Posted by BlueBimmer
too bad bimmers dont have the usual drain plug for the atf..it is a PITA to change the atf on the e36. stupid bmw and their lifetime(daw) atf fluid!

Hell Yeh! That's one thing that killed our E36 BMW 320i's tranny before. When we got the car (2nd hand), i asked the dealer to change the ATF (standard practice of ours)... dehins daw at lifetime na siya ("sealed" ika' nga ng SA) so we took his word for it, being supposedly the guy with the knowledge on that. A few months later the tranny went into safe mode and the warning light went on. When they brought it down, we were told there was corrosion inside caused by water contamination. SOmething i feel could have been avoided if the tranny oil was changed.

When driving normally, just keep the car in "D" with the o/d on. If you want to have more engine braking control (i.e. mountain roads, two lane highways, overtaking, etc), then shift manually between the gears. Nothing beats practicing and trying it out yourself.

AVOID:
- shifting to R while the car is moving forward
- shifting from N to D while revving the engine at stop

Typical change period is every 40,000km but i prefer to do it every 20,000km given our drving and weather conditions. MAsakit sa bulsa ang magka a/t problems.