Catastophic Drivetrain Failure

[zonefive]

I'm the original owner of a 2001 3.0 E53, auto trans, and for the first time ever, my car left me stranded. I was going over the Coronado Bay Bridge of all places and out of nowhere I heard a really loud screeching sound, worse with power application, and the car went from full power to absolute zero.

Park didn't even hold the car on the slope -- I had to engage the parking brake. The only thing I noticed before this happened was twice the morning of the failure, when I put the car in reverse, I felt a clunking sound once the car started moving, as though I had run over something. I even got out of the car to see what it was -- and there was nothing there.

I have absolutely no warning lights at all, and no leaks underneath the car which makes me wonder if it is a transmission problem -- usually when the tranny goes, there are warning lights and you can get home in limp mode, right?

Having my car towed to the mechanic on Monday. He says it is likely either the tranny or the transfer case. If it is the tranny, he recommends finding a good used one, but I'd like opinions on that -- the youngest of these cars is about 8 years old and I'd rather fix it right and not have to face this issue again in 30-50k miles (if the typical trans is good for 100-150k).

FWIW I have been changing the tranny fluid and the differential fluids every 30-40k, hoping this would extend the life indefinitely.....

Thanks for any thoughts on this matter.

[electricalserv x5]

I know that bridge.
How many miles on the tranny,did look under the vehicle to see if any thing came lose like a bolt of UV ?

[Ricky Bobby]

I bet the transfer case splines stripped the driveshaft.

[zonefive]

Ricky Bobby -- looked at other threads about that and it seems like that fits the symptoms.

I spoke to another mechanic who said that it could also be the link fork -- don't know what that is. Guess I'll look it up.

The trans is GM and original to the car. Nothing visible underneath.

[X5Flyboy]

error message???

ref "trans.failsafe.prog" for my woes' new tranny $6200 + est parts, labor, tax will put you back at least $8000.

For me it was the transfer case, so I'm getting away "cheap??" at $4400.

[crystalworks]

What happens to these when a CSB or a guibo/flex disk dies? On the 3's and 5's I'm familiar with... that can be pretty catastrophic.

[Sarek]

Splines or tcase chain

[srmmmm]

Front driveshaft splines and transfer case - no doubt in my mind at all.\

2002 X5 3.0 263,000 miles
2004 325i 116,000 miles

[LeiZ]

Sounds scary!!!

[zonefive]

Update -- it was the driveshaft splines and transfer case.

Getting the car back today. $2850 including a brand-new driveshaft from BMW ($900). The shop pulled the transfer case and rebuilt it there.

The car has had a lot of work lately, and it's taken a lot of time, which is more of a hassle than the money. I handed the shop owner the list below of all the unscheduled maintenance I've done (because every time something breaks the mechanic says "Oh, we replace those all the time!") and I wanted to get an idea of what I haven't done yet -- what else is on the "breaks all the time" list -- but he says other than the transmission, I've done pretty much everything so fingers crossed!

Non-Routine Service: (in service 4/6/01)
1. 8/17/01 6,657 mi Engine Aux Cooling Fan -- Recall
2. 8/17/01 6,657 mi Thermostat
3. 8/17/01 6,657 mi L Front window regulator
4. 8/17/01 6,657 mi R Cargo Lamp
5. 6/6/02 15,716 mi DME Reprogramming -- Recall
6. 6/6/02 15,716 mi Engine Aux Cooling Fan -- 2nd Recall
7. 6/6/02 15,716 mi Nav Housing Lubed
8. 5/28/03 27,780 mi Front Inner Door Handles
9. 5/28/06 27,780 mi Driver's Door Seal
10. 8/28/03 32,440 mi Driver's Seat Bottom Frame
11. 8/28/03 32,440 mi Nav System Software Overwrite
12. 8/28/03 32,440 mi Rear Washer Jet Hose
13. 9/25/03 33,537 mi Steering Column add'l Rubber Stop added
14. 9/25/03 33,537 mi L Rear Door Sunshade Hangers
15. 9/25/03 33,537 mi Final Stage Unit of Climate Control
16. 1/9/04 37,872 mi R Fog Light & L Turn Signal bulb
17. 10/18/04 46,182 mi Cargo Cover Blind
18. 10/18/04 46,182 mi Instrument Cluster
19. 10/18/04 46,182 mi R Rear Seat Bolster Cover
20. 10/18/04 46,182 mi R A-Pillar Cover
21. 11/10/04 46,916 mi R Headlight Assembly
22. 12/13/04 47,813 mi Center Console Cupholder
23. 1/12/05 49,112 mi Driver's Seat Control Cover
24. 1/12/05 49,112 mi Both Rear Seat Belts
25. 12/12/05 59,515 mi Both Rear Seat Belts 2nd time
26. 12/12/05 59,515 mi R A-Pillar Cover 2nd Time
27. 8/14/06 66,499 mi R Rear Window Regulator
28. 10/8/07 77,785 mi Camshaft Position Sensor
29. 10/8/07 77,785 mi Thermostat
30. 10/8/07 77,785 mi Right Tail Light Assembly
31. 10/8/07 77,785 mi Left Turn Signal Bulb & Socket
32. 10/8/07 77,785 mi Left Outer CV Boot
33. 1/12/08 R Cargo Lamp 2nd time
34. 5/6/08 81,718 mi L Front Window Regulator
35. 5/6/08 81,718 mi L Rear Window Regulator
36. 5/9/08 Clips for Rear Hatch Seal
37. 9/26/08 86,503 mi Engine Aux Fan (3rd one)
38. 10/1/08 86,756 mi R Outer CV Boot
39. 1/16/09 90,040 mi L Front Lwr Control Arm
40. 1/16/09 90,040 mi Power Steering Suction & Pressure Hoses
41. 4/23/09 92,588 mi Replace Oil Hose to Oil Separator
42. 5/05/09 93,000 mi L Front Door Handle Carrier
43. 7/14/09 95,712 mi Oil Separator
44. 8/29/09 97,500 mi LCD replacement MID
45. 8/29/09 97,500 mi License Plate Holder
46. 9/15/09 98,081 mi Coolant Reservoir and Cap
47. 10/12/09 99,122 mi Rear Main Seal
48. 10/12/09 99,122 mi Torque Convertor Seal
49. 10/12/09 99,122 mi Oil Filter Housing Gasket
50. 10/24/09 PDC covering rear bumper 511 282 683 67
51. 1/18/10 New Rear Wiper
52. 4/27/10 104,734 mi L Front Window Regulator (under warranty)
53. 5/28/10 105,966 mi Valve Cover Gasket
54. 9/14/10 109,352 mi Both Rear Upper Control Arms
55. 9/21/10 109,662 mi L outer CV boot 2nd time
56. 2/1/11 113,518 mi L Tail Light Assembly
57. 2/1/11 113,518 mi Alternator bearing/Drive Belt Tensioner
58. 2/11/11 113,518 mi Hood Shocks
59. 7/8/11 118,500 mi Final Stage Resistor (2nd time)
60. 11/30/11 122, 284 mi Secondary air injection valve
61. 3/26/13 134,244 mi Oil Pan Gasket
62. 3/26/13 134,244 mi R Outer CV Boot (2nd time)
63. 3/26/13 134,244 mi L Front ABS wheel sensor
64. 3/28/13 New Hood Emblem
65. 3/29/13 New mats
66. 5/4/13 135,991 mi New Windshield
67. 10/23/13 140,080 mi Alternator Bearing/Drive Belt Tensioner 2nd time
68. 3/11/14 143,745 mi A/C Compressor Bearing/Drive Belt Tensioner
69. 6/2/14 146,308 mi New Front Suspension Install
70. 8/25/14 149,661 mi Hydro-steering Vibration Damper
71. 8/26/14 149,983 mi Inner Manifold Boot
72. 8/26/14 149,983 mi DISA Valve