All gears work fine, but will not shift into overdrive?

Boston01X5 · #1 08-19-2018, 10:31 AM

Hey guys,

Transmission has been running good, no problems lately. A few days ago I noticed when I was doing about 70 on the highway the RPMs stayed around 2600 or so.

All other gears are working and shifting fine, the only problem is when I am on highway it does not go into overdrive. Prior to this the overdrive worked fine and I forget what the RPMs were at 70, but I know they were lower than 2600.

If I put in manual shift mode I can shift through all 5 gears, but it does not show overdrive. There is no trans fail safe or check engine light on etc.

Any suggestions where I should start?

Thanks very much for any input,

Erick

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Fifty150hs · #2 08-19-2018, 01:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Boston01X5

Hey guys,

Transmission has been running good, no problems lately. A few days ago I noticed when I was doing about 70 on the highway the RPMs stayed around 2600 or so.

All other gears are working and shifting fine, the only problem is when I am on highway it does not go into overdrive. Prior to this the overdrive worked fine and I forget what the RPMs were at 70, but I know they were lower than 2600.

If I put in manual shift mode I can shift through all 5 gears, but it does not show overdrive. There is no trans fail safe or check engine light on etc.

Any suggestions where I should start?

Thanks very much for any input,

Erick

What year and what engine? Different engines, different transmissions.

Boston01X5 · #3 08-19-2018, 02:35 PM

Apologies, I am new to this forum I will put the details in my signature right now.

It is a 2001 X5 with 4.4 150k miles.

Will update signature now to include info thanks

upallnight · #4 08-19-2018, 06:24 PM

You have a 5HP24 trans. I don't think there is an overdrive, maybe a lockup torque converter.

Boston01X5 · #5 08-19-2018, 06:30 PM

Ok, so what would explain higher RPMs on highway? At 70 it used to not be at 2600 RPM I think it was much lower. I know the redline on this is almost 6k but when I have to drive for a couple hours on highway I worry about a V8 running at over 2500 RPM for hours.

Thanks for your reply looking for a place to start investigating

andrewwynn · #6 08-20-2018, 08:58 AM

2600@70 sounds like exactly what our two cars run. We have the 3.0 and I thought there is a different differential in the v8s so that would mean no lock up is the option that would cause higher rpm. I can feel when my transmission comes out of lock which also is apparent with the rpm snapping out of being locked to speed.

i've seen people refer to lock up as overdrive but I don't think I've seen BMW do that.

Boston01X5 · #7 08-20-2018, 09:13 AM

Hey Andrew,

Thanks for the reply, I am hoping someone with a 4.4 can let me know if 2600 is normal, seems high but maybe that is just how this car is. When I am doing 80 it is even higher I think like 2800 or so, and just feels high to be revving a V8 at almost 3k for long periods of time.

I'm trying to find info about this lockup, not familiar with it - most cars I've owned just call it overdrive. I thought my car had a 5 speed with overdrive but I could be mistaken.

Any suggestions how I can find out what transmission my vehicle has by using VIN?

Thanks again for your help.

andrewwynn · #8 08-20-2018, 10:36 AM

It's easy enough to determine if you are getting lock up: when cruising level ground, watch the tach and give it slow additional throttle: the tach should barely move. The rate of change should match the speedo.

If the tach needle moves without the speedo moving the torque converter isn't locked up

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wpoll · #9 08-20-2018, 05:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Boston01X5

... I'm trying to find info about this lockup, not familiar with it - most cars I've owned just call it overdrive. I thought my car had a 5 speed with overdrive but I could be mistaken. ...

Lockup and overdrive are very different things...

From Wikipedia...

"...impelling losses within the torque converter reduce efficiency and generate waste heat. In modern automotive applications, this problem is commonly avoided by use of a lock-up clutch that physically links the impeller and turbine, effectively changing the converter into a purely mechanical coupling. The result is no slippage, and virtually no power loss."

and then...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Overdrive_(mechanics)

Fifty150hs · #10 08-20-2018, 05:49 PM

I'm not sure if you have a 5 speed or a 6 speed. In either case they don't have an "overdrive" per se. 5th and 6th are overdrive gears. You won't see any kind of "overdrive" indication. It will just be in the highest gear. Our transmissions use converter lock up. As adrewwynn noted you can see when the converter locks up and if it is properly locked up. In my 3.0 with a 5 speed, when I run the car up to 80 mph, initially it will be showing about 3200 rpm. When the converter locks up it drops to 2950. Small changes in speed when locked up will show small changes in rpm's.

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