Newb w/infamous trans fail issues, 03 3.0L
 

Symptoms:
Trans fail safe mode enacted although no code on cluster readout. Vehicle transmission has entered ‘limp mode’ starting from a high gear (maybe 4th?)

NO VOLTAGE ISSUES

Dsc, abs, brake light all lit yellow.

Had the wife take it into an independent and they pulled code 58 on their auto-logic diagnostic equipment, or ‘no message from EGS computer’. Service guy called and said the transmission module would more than likely need replacing since the transmission module was not communicating w/the engine’s computer. Did a quick search and learned it is very rare for the TCM to fail. Anybody ever have this fault code that could lend some insight? We’ve only had the car for 3 weeks and it’s got 60k on it. Total drag.

The car starts from third gear, I know cause I have already had it when it was something about 63k miles on it. In my case concern about disc/shield they are burn 'cause membrane did not transfer torque and when I cross the 2700 rotary/min the Trans fail safe mode on.
I have 3.0L engine too :)
Here where I live in Poland repair cost me about 1200$ everything

I hope that you understand what I am trying to tell you :)

so what'd you do to fix it?

I gave my car to mechanic, and he change all disc's, membrane, oil and filter, basket in trans for new.

was your trans showing signs of deterioration prior to finally 'giving up'?

mine was running just fine 2 days ago then quit. i hope it's not a mechanical issue rather just a module or sensor that needs replacing.

My trans was good, when I get pedal to the metal :D when trans change gear from 3 to 4 I feel wrench, then about 10-15k miles later on a highway about 190-210km/h (120-130 mph) when I try to accelerate rotary grown up, but my X was slowing down, and I hear only engine sound that it try to accelerate but it could not.

yes, that condition sounds like the tranny is on it's way out.

this is my wife's car and we pussy foot this thing around.

Before spending tons of money on modules/transmission rebuild, etc. I'd have the dealer diagnose it as I just fixed a 7 series today that was in limp mode. They were expecting to get an estimate on a whole transmission or control module, but when I told them a rat chewed through the can bus wires that go to the trans module. All I had to do was properly splice a couple wires together and clear the faults. I only knew to look at that circuit by the can faults stored and wiring schematics printed straight from the test plan in the GT1 tester.

Nothing is set in stone with vehicle troubles as there are an infinate amount of ways for systems to be faulted, and nothing beats the amount of information and diagnostic capabilities you get from the BMW diagnostic equpiment.

thanks for posting Weasel.

i will take it to the dealer now that the independent has failed to give me a definitive answer.

would it be worth my time crawling around under the car to look for loose connectors or bare wires or are they pretty well concealed under a maze of covers and brackets?

Pretty well concealed, and the wiring problem I mentioned is very uncommon... but there are so many things that can cause train failsafe, just like there are many things that can cause a check engine light. Although it can be more common for transmissions or trans control modules at higher mileages, you can't fix anything without knowing exactly what your dealing with. Hopefully it's something cheap and easy for ya, fingers crossed!

i hear ya. it's just disconcerting when you've read posts about mis-diagnosis even from the dealer but i guess ya gotta start somewheres. disconnected the battery yesterday and have yet to plug it back in hoping it will reset the codes. wishful thinking, i know. will prob have to pay the dealer to have the radio code given to me now too :)

the day that all this happened, i did pack about 200lbs of water in the rear cargo area and shortly thereafter, i parked on a pretty steep driveway. think these issues might be related to the electrical parade now going on in my instrument cluster?

[QUOTE=Weasel;655401]Before spending tons of money on modules/transmission rebuild, etc. I'd have the dealer diagnose it as I just fixed a 7 series today that was in limp mode. They were expecting to get an estimate on a whole transmission or control module, but when I told them a rat chewed through the can bus wires that go to the trans module. All I had to do was properly splice a couple wires together and clear the faults. I only knew to look at that circuit by the can faults stored and wiring schematics printed straight from the test plan in the GT1 tester.

I'm having the same issue with my X5-2001-4.4i ( Tran failsafe prog, lights for ABS , Brake and DCS all yellow, and service engine soon). I have an OBD II diagnostic tool ( bought recently from costco for $35) it's showing me 3 errors:
1- P0171 ( System too lean, Bank 1).
2- P0600 ( CAN data Bus Malfunction).
3- P1747 ( Undefined Code)...

I was wondering if my problem is with some wiring according to these codes? Please advise..
Thanx

The lean mixture code can be one of two things... if it is adaptive values too lean(set at idle) it would be unmetered air (vacuum leak). If it is multiplicative values too lean (off idle under load) it would be a mass air problem. That would be the needed information to know where to look.

The can bus malfunction would need proper diagnosis by equipment that can communicate with and read faults from all the modules that communicate on that bus. Nothing you can do unfortunately...

Undefined code, most likely a BMW specific code that is not a generic OBD code... yet again nothing you can diagnose with your current setup.

In your case it is best to either go to the dealer, or find a really good BMW specializing independent equipped with BMW's GT1 tester.

Same problem here...
 

except mine has only happened when it's raining out.

I just received a call from the dealer and they're telling me the EGS module is fried. There is wear from the cover and water has been getting in? Does that make sense? I was under the impression that the module is hidden behind the firewall? Can anyone provide more color?

Thanks,

I had the exact same thing happen on Monday night. the trans went into limp mode after the engine rpm fluctuated wildly between 1000 and 4000 all by itself, the trans failsafe warning cmae on. I parked the car for a few minutes, shut it off. When I restarted the warning cleared and the car ran fine. I have put about 200 miles on it since that episode. The local dealer says sometimes the computers give false or spuradic readings. It could be a sign of a lot of things from wire shorting to the beginning of a major trans failure. I'm gona run til it won't.

Ghost

you may want to take preventative action. this is the 2nd time it's happened to me. 1st time i let it sit over night and the next morning it was fine; similiarly this time around it happened again but b/c it rained so hard, it kept coming back as i was driving to the dealer and by the time i got there - it was off again.
Again, they told me water was getting into the box holding the EGS unit was getting shorted along with some of the wires getting fried. As of current, the failsafe light is off (i'm assuming b/c the car has had time to dry off since). The dealer quoted me 1800 to fix everything and prevent the leak from happening again.
Has this happened to anyone else? I'm assuming if the light is off then i should be able to just fix the leak portion and hold off on the egs unit? the car seems to be running fine. Thoughts??