Clink when Shifting into reverse / Vibrate / Squeaky Sunroof

[dandog96]

I've had my X5 for about half a year. Throughout this time I've had some issues that kind of pester me. The car drives great but all these minor noises are starting to drive me crazy.

1). Shifting the car into reverse there is a loud metal on metal clink and a slight jerk. The car goes into reverse successfully, however the shift itself is unpleasant. The noise is like that of a hammer hitting a crowbar.

Furthermore if I leave the car in reverse with my foot on the brake there is a very loud rattling / vibrating noise under the car like a heat shield. (My theory is the transfer case but I hope this is not the case).

2). The car has a very tangible vibration. When the car is warmed up the rpms dip to around 600 and the vibration makes the steering wheel shake a little and the side panels of the doors vibrate making a loud noise. (I do not believe that this is due to bad motor mounts though. The engine doesn't seem to shift around or anything.

3). The sunroof squeaks quite a bit. Hitting a bump in the road it will obnoxiously squeak. The sunroof itself works fine. (It is the non-pano sunroof).

4). Idle Tensioner pulley noise in the engine. When I replaced the voltage regulator on the alternator recently I made sure to replace this pulley. The part was not genuine BMW but was from a good German made company. For a week the noise went away but it came right back. It is a chirping type noise.


If anybody could point me to what steps I should take to remedy these issues I would be very thankful. My car is a 01 3.0 E53.

[StephenVA]

Problem on clanking:
Take a look at the flex rubber joint on the drive shaft. It sound like it is cracked and allowing metal to metal. See Universal Flex Disc Also known as a "Guibo" on this site for images
https://www.ecstuning.com/BMW-E53-X5...n/Driveshafts/

Chirping noise
Check and replace belts, idler and the tensioner as any of the three can cause the noise. My personal bet is on the idler as the shaft wears out and makes a bushing going bad sound like your describing.

Another thought is this part conversion if you still have a mechanical tensioner
Hydraulic Alternator Belt Tensioner Conversion Kit https://www.ecstuning.com/BMW-E53-X5...elts/ES517967/

Sunroof
There is a German made lube that is designed for the seals. I will look it up and report back.

[StephenVA]

Found it
Wurth USA | Automotive Chemicals | Lubricants
PTFE DRY LUBRICANT

[dandog96]

Originally Posted by StephenVA

Problem on clanking:
Take a look at the flex rubber joint on the drive shaft. It sound like it is cracked and allowing metal to metal. See Universal Flex Disc Also known as a "Guibo" on this site for images
https://www.ecstuning.com/BMW-E53-X5...n/Driveshafts/

Chirping noise
Check and replace belts, idler and the tensioner as any of the three can cause the noise. My personal bet is on the idler as the shaft wears out and makes a bushing going bad sound like your describing.

Another thought is this part conversion if you still have a mechanical tensioner
Hydraulic Alternator Belt Tensioner Conversion Kit https://www.ecstuning.com/BMW-E53-X5...elts/ES517967/

Sunroof
There is a German made lube that is designed for the seals. I will look it up and report back.

Thank you so much for the prompt reply. I took a cursory glance at the area where the transfer case meets the drive shaft and the guibo looks alright (but what do I know I'm 19). Interestingly there was a sticker on the drive shaft that look fairly fresh so I'm guessing the drive shaft was replaced before I purchased it.

Anyways, I made a video of me shifting from P to D to R and you can hear the noise if that helps diagnose. I will include it shortly when it uploads to youtube.

Any thoughts on the vibration? I was thinking of changing the coil packs and spark plugs to make the engine run more evenly. Besides the car has 108k miles so replacing them shouldn't hurt...

Here is that video I mentioned. The noise can be best heard at 1:34.
https://youtu.be/pUjOxw-46W8

[David.X5]

Sounds a lot like the splines on the front drive shaft (opposite end to the guibo). If the driveshaft was replaced because the splines let go to sell it quickly, they may not have replaced the female spline section in the transfer case, which probably damaged the new driveshaft.

Mine was at the "clink" stage when changing direction when I replaced it. One option is an extended spline length front driveshaft. Have someone watch under the car (from a safe place) and see if you can notice the splines slipping on the front driveshaft. The transfer case chain also can stretch and get noisy. There are some posts explaining how to inspect it through the fluid fill plug.

[David.X5]

Just watched your video. Noise does sound like mine. The video is showing the rear driveshaft. Do the same sort of thing for the front, and check out the front guibo.

[andrewwynn]

You may be able to track it down by lifting one wheel at a time off the ground and manually rotating the wheel (with a good deal of effort: have a friend help. Good reason car engines have 100s of ft•lb of torque. I would definitely follow up on the female side of the spline as mentioned.


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[dandog96]

Once again, thanks guy for the help. I must have read that elsewhere a while ago because the notion of an extended drive shaft is something I had definitely heard before. Makes sense though.

David, as someone who has replaced this female section in the transfer case, can you tell me how much labor this is (about). Also, how do I check if the front driveshaft section is slipping? Is this something I will see if I just get the car on the lift?

Interesting suggestion about turning the wheel manually too. I will try to check it out when I get the chance.

[David.X5]

I dropped the transfer case to do the work. Probably a full day's work for someone comfortable DIY. You have to support the transmission, then remove the rear transmission crossmember. Then unbolt the front and rear guibos. Then unbolt the transfer case from the transmission.

Once it is out of the car, the work is pretty easy. Plan on replacing the chain while you have it apart. I also did all the seals on the transfer case as I didn't want to go back. The rear output seal is hard to get access to (you have to release a big mama-jama nut).

The main output seal of the transmission is also exposed during this process, so I replaced that as it was weeping slightly on me.

There are several versions of the transfer case - look for the metal plate on it (or numbers stamped directly into the case). Don't assume you have one version or the other - some of the parts are the same and some aren't...

Cobra Transmission sells individual parts for the transfer case (all versions) and will answer questions if you call/email them. Not the absolutely cheapest place, but you are getting a lot of expertise for the few extra bucks.

You can order the transmission seals (I have a ZF tranny - don't know what is in a 3.0L) directly from ZF. Write down the exact model and serial number and the distributor will help you look up the parts if you decide to do this.

There are some threads here on transfer case chain replacement and some youtube videos - those show you how to open the case, which is what you need to do to replace the front output spline part. The one part that is not documented is what sealant to use when you reassemble it - it is a gasketless metal to metal seal. I used loctite 518 - it is used by BMW for similar gasketless metal-metal flanges (like R53 Mini Cooper S). Other people have used a ATF-resistant version of RTV.



The question about how to inspect it - the front driveshaft comes out without a lot of work - just unbolt the front guibo and wiggle the driveshaft out (unless you have an aftermarket version with the extended length spline). You can then inspect the male spline on the front driveshaft and the female spline in the front output of the transfer case. Mine were clearly 75% gone.