I just bought an X5 from an auction! It has a few issues.
 

I just bought a 2002 X5 4.4i, at an auction, I got a good deal so I am ok that it is having some issues.

It has 147k Miles on it.

I got a P0720 Output Speed Sensor code as I drove it home (frustrating because I scanned for codes before I bid on it, they cleared the codes). I noticed that when taking off from a stop it revs quickly, moves slowly, and then slams into gear. This feels like you are being rear-ended, not cool. I only drove it home, and a few short times very close just to diagnose it. Once it is over 10-15 MPH it runs fine, and the shifts are smooth, I can even use the Manual shifting mode. However if I floor it and it downshifts, it will rev up and slam into gear even when going 40 MPH. Then it goes into Failsafe mode and the Manual shifting is no longer available.

I just changed the Rear output sensor, filter and fluid, no difference.

It is parked until I can find something else to try. I may have to pull it and rebuild it, I see there is some good info on how to do that. I would like some confirmation that it is required, and not just something else electronic causing it to fail.

One interesting thing is that when I changed the fluid, I dropped the pan, and I noticed there were no magnets, there was a lot of black I believe is clutch residue. I did note that the fluid looked and smelled really good, as in recently changed, and it must have been a complete change, because there was no sign of the original fluid, all red.

https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8601/...754b5cdd_c.jpgTrans Pan by UNLIMTD13, on Flickr


Looking around, I found the magnets:

https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8591/...3d9479e5_c.jpgRogue Magnets by UNLIMTD13, on Flickr

I can only assume some sabotage was in play here, I can't think of any other reason that the two magnets would be removed from the pan and placed up here together. They were of course covered with black clutch material, I cleaned them off, and put them back up there just for a picture. It could be argued that the tech who did the filter change last, cleaned them and thought he would store them there while he cleaned the pan, just seems unlikely.

Then again he must not have been a very bright soul, I found these wires pinched in with the pan gasket.

https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8650/...1a0730d5_c.jpgPinched wires by UNLIMTD13, on Flickr

https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8660/...e8304c1d_c.jpgPinched wires2 by UNLIMTD13, on Flickr

This is the filter I removed, is that a date code of November of 2014? Note a dark layer of clutch material, I wiped part off to find the numbers.

https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8620/...6e01f046_c.jpgOld Trans Filter by UNLIMTD13, on Flickr

Trans Tag for reference ZF 5HP24
https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8668/...9fc41f38_c.jpgTrans Tag by UNLIMTD13, on Flickr

Our new X5:
https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8675/...543fa49d_c.jpgX5 Side by UNLIMTD13, on Flickr

So what's next? The wrong fluid on these trannies can really play a big and bad role. I'd say you will probably need a new TC

It is the right fluid as far as I can tell, it looks feels, and smalls exactly like the Red LineD4 I put back in it. Lame testing criteria, I know, but that is what I know so far. I do not expect the fluid is any issue.

I did also find the large round connector in front of the pan was only about a quarter of the way connected. I found this before dropping the pan, I unhooked it, flicked some dirt and dust out of it, and connected it properly. I excitedly took it for another spin around the block, It was perfect in my subdivision. When I got to the main road I came to a complete stop, it down shifted into first, and when I drove away it went back into transafe mode.

It may have the Dinan tuning. They offered several levels to match up to what Dinan mods are installed. If it has the Dinan cold air box it should also have a Dinan MAF and throttle body. With all those mods the HP goes from 340 to 369. Torque increases also.

Time to check for error codes again.

Maybe on a 4.6 it would do that, but this is just a 4.4, so it started life as 290HP, but hopefully it has a little more now. It only has the axle back portion of the Dinan exhaust, everything else looks stock. I can't find much info on it as Dinan has discontinued it, but man does it sound good!

I cleared the codes before I drove it, after changing the Output Speed Sensor.

No codes have come back, but a grey (pending) fault was displayed about being the wrong gear ratio.

Oopsie, I was just posting on a 4.6 thread. I have the 2002 catalog that lists HP and Torque improvements by mod for the 4.4. Everything that is Dinan will either have the Dinan D on it or Dinan on it. Is Dinan on the airbox or MAF? The improvement with just exhaust would be hard to measure.

Dinan Exhaust
https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8655/...a3312d0b_c.jpgDinan Exhaust by UNLIMTD13, on Flickr

Dinan CAI
https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8577/...6e8e446c_c.jpgDinan CAI by UNLIMTD13, on Flickr

Dinan Sticker
https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8643/...1a6b8e54_c.jpgDinan Sticker by UNLIMTD13, on Flickr

Probably stock Throttle Body
https://farm9.staticflickr.com/8652/...c3589dbb_c.jpgThrottle Body by UNLIMTD13, on Flickr

The 2002 4.4 stock was 282 HP with 335 ft/lbs of torque. With your Dinan mods you are at 310 HP and 351 ft/lbs of torque. If Dinan still offers the transmission software I would suggest adding it though you may have it already. If you do--- when you are in manual mode the transmission will not shift until you shift it, max shift points are at higher RPMs and shifts are faster.

At risk of stating the obvious, those wires that were pinched in the pan might be the problem. Clean them up and be sure to not pinch them again, OR find out what they are for and if they are not for the transmission then move on. But if they are for the trans, and they are pinched, then it can't be good.

I welcome all questions basic or advanced.

I looked the wire over and I do not see any open wires, I may need to remove it and try to disassemble and test those wires.

I made sure to not close those wires in the pan when I closed it up.

I believe it is the Shift Selector.

Selector Switch BMW 540/740/X5

Nice 4.4 good luck with,but with that many miles the tranny might have to be rebuilt.

I do not have an issue pulling the trans and rebuilding it if necessary. I will need help, and I have bookmarked a dozen or more rebuild write-ups.

My issue is that I have also seen quite a few posts about people paying for full trans rebuilds just to have the same issue, and it was something else causing it.

I would like to eliminate as many of those as possible, so that I can confidently pull the trans knowing it needed rebuilt.

Thank you all for your input.

When you pulled the speed sensor, was there any metal shaving at the tip? If there was metal shaving one of the clutch drums have cracked or disintegrated. The other common problem with a ZF 5hp24 is the o-rings that goes bad which will allow leakage of ATF from building up the fluid pressure and the speed sensor will note that the difference in the trans speed versus engine speed and slam the trans to engage to prevent the trans from destroying itself.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hwlDjEVcIx4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UpG91-ZzYY8

You are correct. Symptoms can be misleading. I suggest you take it to a well recommended transmission specialist that has experience with BMW transmissions for diagnosis. If there are two in your area I would do both. Dealer only does replacement.

Just in case. The process to refill the transmission is to have the vehicle level, fill to level fluid starts to run out the fill hole. Start it up and go though the gears slowly. Top off as needed. Drive it until fluid gets near operating temperature, check level again and top off as needed. Since you have already driven your X, I would check the level and top off if needed.

I have attached a thread of a partial summary of transmission issues and causes. I haven't seen it challenged but it is not complete.

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

The Output Speed Sensor looked clean, and I could not tell it from the new one, I expect it had been replaced before the auction. I am guessing they were at their wits ends and just ended up giving up and that is why it was taken to the auction.

Thank you for the links to the videos and the troubleshooting posts.

I believe it sounds like the A drum issue, any maybe there are not any shavings because it was flushed before I bought it.

No metal pieces/shavings in the trans at all.

One confusing point is the trans is so clean inside, it even looks to have a new gasket between the trans and I think it was the bell-housing. I can also see scrape marks where a ratchet was recently used on a bell-housing bolt. Like it had recently been pulled and maybe rebuilt...

I pulled it up on ramps, and I had to get a little bit of a running start (controlled) or it would not climb up the ramp. So I will not be taking it anywhere until it is fixed.

It does not make any strange sounds. I did follow the fill procedure, up, level, and then shift through the gears, and then filled until it poured out. I know I needed to verify the temp, I was hoping I could read that through Torque(Android App) and a Bluetooth ODBII reader, but BMW does not supply that info in ODBII. It needs to be about 100 Deg F, well that is close to body temp, I felt the bottom of the pan until it was close to forehead temp, and I knew that was +/- 5 Deg.

If the level was too low, it sounds like I would feel harsh 2-1 downshifts, and I do not feel that.

Hows the battery? Since the only issues you are receiving after you cleaned off that plug and connected it all the way are the message popping up, it could be related to low voltage from a failing battery. Since this came from an auction and was likely sitting for a while in probable cold weather it could be the culprit.

Looks like I need to clarify the symptoms that are occurring at this point.

I did fully charge the battery, no difference, I did that on Saturday before I took it on the first test drive.

I started to write this up, and I decided I needed to go out and drive it again to verify.

Well it seemed to shift just fine! I even stopped and pulled it into M 1 and floored it, I shifted up into M 2 and it was nice and smooth. I put it into D and drove it around for about 10 more min, no issues whatsoever.

About 15 min into the drive I slowed down turned into a subdivision, and as I lightly accelerated again, it went into Transafe mode.

I am going to go do some more research on the solenoid cable with the temp probe failures.

Sounds like it's temp related. When the ATF is cold there's no problem, but once the trans warms up you get the trans failure. Could be the temp sensor that kicks it into trans failure mode, or could be an internal leak because the ATF has thin out once it get hot.

The cheap fix would be the trans temp sensor, and that can be verify with a scan of the EGS module when the trans is hot. The expensive fix will be a complete rebuild.

Anyone know if the Trans Temp can be read with ODBII? I am wondering if it is not showing any value because it is bad, or just not available through that method.

Looks like the 'Transmission Sump Temp Sensor' will throw a code, probably not what my issue is.

BMW X5 Transmission Problems - Bimmerfest - BMW Forums

Nope generic OBD II scanner will not work.

You need BMW specific software that can read real time data. There's a thread here about replacing the temp sensor because the trans was going into trans failure mode.

Is the INPA NCS DIS package the only option? I don't find it easy to use, not intuitive to me. I use it so seldom I have to start at the beginning of the learning curve every time.

I have AutoEnginuity and it does read tranny temp through OBD.

FWIW - the original fluid is not red. Sort of dark gray to brown. Hard to know what is in there other than its red. A couple of fill and drain cycles may help with some fresh & known fluid. The cooler and torque converter holds ~3 quarts. You usually get ~6 quarts out when you drain it and drop the pan. (roughly 2/3 total fluid). Repeat twice and you are up to 8/9. The third time gets you to 26/27... I use Pentosin ATF1. 5-liter jugs are available for $50 or so. Be suspicious of shops offering to flush the transmission for you. It is unlikely they are throwing away 15 to 20 liters of good synthetic fluid in the flush (especially if they haven't priced in $200-$400 for fluid). Most likely to be some generic stuff unrelated to the ZF/BMW spec.

The selector switch (that crushed wire) is known to go bad over time. I wouldn't work too hard trying to fix an old one. The switch comes as an assembly and includes the hard plastic sleeve and the circular plastic connector you mentioned was loose.

The temperature sensor is an easy repair once you have the pan off - cheaper even than that selector switch.

The Lifeguard 5 fluid I got is kind of like honey, sort of golden, I still have 6 quarts :P.