2005 E53 3.0D Transmission Issues
 

Hi there

I have a 2005 e53 3.0d that has a couple of quirks with the 6 speed ZF transmission.

1. The car has the lurch when coming to a stop, kind of feels like being slightly nudged from behind when coming to a stop. It has 177 000km on it and always had it since I bought it 5000km ago. It isn't a huge problem as it seems to be common on other cars but the interesting thing I discovered recently was that the lurch is completely gone with using the sport mode of the transmission so I'm thinking it maybe a software issue. The car hasn't been serviced at a dealership since 2007/2008 so I doubt it would have had any updates applied to it as the other services with independents.
2. When cold the transmission feels like it is slipping out of first gear for a split second which results in a decent clunk and a jerking feeling. It is only brief and completely disappears once the car is up to temp. It doesn't happen all the time but it happens 99% when you are taking off on an incline and then turning (either left or right). It only seems to happen once then the car will drive fine from there until it is allowed to fully cool down over a number of hours.

The second issue is probably more concern for me at the moment but if you have any ideas on what might be causing either feel free to let me know.


Cheers
Nial

I had exactly the same issue as your point 1 after I purchased mine a number of years ago. I learnt to adapt my driving style to minimise the effect however; if you do some research on this it is a reasonably common problem. A simple search on Google of the words "ZF lurch" will reveal 100's of results mostly related to various BMW and Jag models that have the ZF 6HP26 auto.
A while back I bit the bullet and had the transmission serviced and the problem has thankfully disappeared. It is a hotly debated topic about whether transmission services on high mileage cars cause more problems than they solve.
I would recommend you take it to a reputable transmission specialist and let them diagnose the issue. BTW, the 6 speed Falcon also uses this same transmission so that may help you decide where to take it.

Edit: Mine now has just turned over 220,000 km and the transmission is still operating perfectly.
Edit2: As the transmission doesn't have a dipstick it is possible it is low in fluid as it is common for these to leak from where the wiring loom goes into the transmission. Not usually a large enough leak to drop anything onto the ground as it collects on the plastic stone guard under the tranny. I had a new style loom & seal fitted to mine at the last service which has stopped this leak. I believe this same leak issue is also common on the Falcons too.
Finally, note that this transmission requires a special fluid which is not readily available (ZF lifeguard 6), and consequently it is rather expensive.

Thanks for the reply. I did some research on the lurch issue and does seem to be quite common. At the moment the second issue is causing me more concern as it might be the torque converter, interesting the issue goes away fully once the car is properly warmed up. I did have the fluid changed about 6 months ago as it developed a small leak. The mechanic who did the atf change had an xr8 which had the same 6 speed zf gearbox so I'm guessing he had done it at least once before.

I've got the same issue too and it's driving nuts! Funny how mine also lurches more on incline and turning. Can't figure out what that is. I had a small gasket leak for a while and the issue started happening around the same time, coincidence or not?
I too was told not to service it as it may cause more problems but I eventually did. They replaced the gasket and filter and flushed the oil. The problem immediately got better but it's soon creeping back again. I've been quoted $6-9k to have it replaced or if I take it out myself and send it to ZF in Ingleburn they'll refurb it for $4.5k, still a lot of money.
Considering buying one from a wreckers but could be buying another dud as they're not tested let alone refurbed.
Has anyone attempted removing a gearbox?

There's good info here - trans specific from post #119...

http://www.xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-foru...roject-12.html

And here's a full teardown of the ZF 6HP26...

http://www.xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-foru...-teardown.html

There's another good thread about removing the gearbox from the car on here somewhere too - I'll post it up if I can find it. :D

You're awesome! Thanks dude!