BMW really needs to get a gasket in there. Mine is leaking at thats the reason why.

Yeah, because gaskets never leak.....
Geez - doesnt' matter if it's a sealant gasket or a paper gasket, or a metal head gasket, at some point, they all fail.

Dville - awesome write up. Hope I don't have to tackle this, but if I do - this was an excellent thread. Great work.

absolutely fantastic post 'dville'!!! I applaud your patients and diligence for documenting everything so clearly! When I did my transmission rebuild the picture taking became second priority and almost entirely forgotten. I had to struggle taking the xfer case off when i had the transmission on the ground! You're a man among scollars my friend =)

PS

I burst out laughing when I saw the pic of the newly broken bolt captions "Damn you..." hahaha What an entertainingly fun thread to follow :)

Update:
113K miles on the odometer now.
Here is a pic of the transfer case...
http://i356.photobucket.com/albums/o...IMG_9361-1.jpg

http://i356.photobucket.com/albums/o...IMG_9362-1.jpg



I posted the truck for sale on craigslist last week....shopping for a Honda Odyssey minivan 2005+, so I got it detailed for $80. The truck looks nicer than the day I bought it....

http://i356.photobucket.com/albums/o...1/IMG_9355.jpg

http://i356.photobucket.com/albums/o...1/IMG_9342.jpg

Thanks! :)

This may be a dumb question...but are the facelift X5s transfer cases the same? If ever I need to do this job myself, I'd love to save these instructions!

Dville - Excellent write-up by the way! All that hard work and you're selling it???

I think the newer transfer cases have an electronic clutch. If yours has any wires going to it then it's different.

I am trying to justify keeping it, but whatever. It is paid for, and we need a minivan, so we'll see.

What are the symptoms to look at with a loose chain?

You have a different transfer case than the one in this post. This one is pre x-drive, yours is x-drive. This case has a chain over some planetary gears where you have electrically actuated clutch packs.

What are the pros / cons of one vs the other? Is the older more reliable being a mechanical system?