E70 4.8 Transmission Issues
 

I just wanted to post to see if anyone is sharing the transmission oddities that I am experiencing. I have about 1700mi on the car and the transmission seems to do odd things. I can feel downshifts when coming to a stop and sometimes when I am pulling into a parking spot the downshift makes the car jump. The most frustrating part is that the transmission seems to get confused and not respond very quickly and sometimes takes a bit long to upshift. I have taken the car to the dealership and they said it passed all the tests, but that does not mean the programming is the best. I drove an E53 and the transmission seems flawless. I love my X5 though. Just an early production issue I imagine.

I experience the same issues on a 3.0...if you search "hesitation" in this forum you will find others with similar issues. What is your build date?

I think the issue is the trans is downshifting to 1st gear way too early or at odd times...I hope this can be fixed w/ a software update. I am witing to bring mine in when a hitch I have on order comes in. I'll report my experience.

Is there any way to see on the display what gear we are in while in automatic, I cant find an option to display this. This would help diagnose the issue.

btw- did you ask them to ride with you and experience the issues?

man you would think that during testing the bmw engineers would discover this problem, grr...

Just an update. My car has been at the dealership since Thursday and they have been going back and forth with BMW support and trying to get to the bottom of this. They have another round of tests to run tomorrow morning per BMW's suggestion. I have great confidence in the technicians at my dealership. If they can solve the issue, they will. I am guessing we will see a remap of the transmission software.

4.8 also has transmission issue
 

My 4.8 also has the same issue. I got it back from the shop about a week ago and they claimed that it was all within spec. Service guy said several complaints of same issue. They were telling most folks that the adaptive transmission takes a while to learn driving habbits but mine has over 2000 miles and is still doing it. Particularly notcable on steady inclines. Will not shift t the next gear at the appropriate times.

They told me that the first time too, but when I persisted a bit they moved forward and got BMW corporate involved. I have a feeling this issue may be moved up in priority as more people complain.

transmission issues
 

i had similar problems with my x5 4.4 2006. the issue was when i was slowing down and going from 4th to 3rd gear, the car would suddenly accelerate. another issue was that there was a delay from the start and very slow transmission up shift.they were trying to fix it...software but could not. two months later, the car started making weird rambling noises that authorized dealer tried to repair three times. after long discusssion with the dealer and BMW of North America, they are replacing my x5 4.4 2006 (7 month old 10, 000 miles) with a 2007 x5 4.8i. i just hope that this new car will be "bug free" and i will not have any more problems with the transmission. my wife and my daughter both have an x3 (2005) and the transmission is absolutely flawless.

thank you,
alex

ps iam glad to become a new member of this fascinating forum

My 4.8 has about 3200 miles and i used to experience this issue. It resolved at about 2000 miles. Shifts are nice and smooth, consistent and more predictible to my driving habits.

After sending some additional data to BMW they have determined that my "shift module" has been resetting quite frequently (something the dealer's tests could not detect without BMW reviewing the detailed data). Anyhow, They ordered a new one and I will post an update when that is replaced.

Hmm....when I'm cruising at a relitavely low RPM, and then push the gear lever into "sport" it dropps a gear, and "jumps" and literally pins me to my seat. In a 3.0si. So I like it! :thumbup:

:xoutpost:
You'll love this place!

E70 4.8 Transmission Issue
 

I also have a brand new E70 (4.8-about 700 miles) and I am experiencing the same issue. I'm going to see the service rep tomorrow-anybody come up with a satisfactory solution to this problem yet. My shifting problem seems to be getting worse (more intense "jerking" with downshifting on hills).

Replacing the shift module made no difference on mine. I am still unsatisfied with the shifting, but I am going to give it some more miles to see if it learns my driving. I am at about 2.5k miles, but the computer was reset when the module was replaced. I hope I do not have to wait for an updated tranny program. Keep us posted.

Sounds like the horrible shifting patterns from the '04-'06 models was never corrected... sorry to hear BMW is ignoring this issue. The old E53 3.0 auto was butter smooth all the time, seems like the V8's they just can't get right... and now aparently they messed up the 6 cylinders!

I talked to the service guy at the dealership. He was well aware of the problem. He states that the late 06/early07 models do experince this problem. According to him, this is a software problem related to the "hill shifting function" of the adaptive transmission. Apparently the software needs some "fine tuning"-whatever that means. I scheduled an appointment later this month to have the problem fixed. We'll see what happens. Anybody else come up with anything good yet?

You can add me to the list for this problem. Now at 2000 miles still not shifting at right times. I see it most going up steep hills. I have the 3.0.

I have an appt scheduled... Any updates on this?

I thought that the software update or the parking/transmission recall (both of which have been done to my 4.8 X5) would fix this issue. I have 4,000 miles and still have the same problem as the rest of you.

I am a bit disappointed because when my dealership contacted BMW with this issue they made it seem as if it was some special case, but I had a feeling it was more global. I bet some people do not realize their shifts are improper, but when I hop out of my X5 into my X3 there is a night/day difference.

Just got my car back last Saturday. They did a "software upgrade" and test drove the car. Result: It's still not shifting smoothly on hills. The car still hesitates and then slams into gear. Feels like you're driving with someone who's learning to drive stick. The customer rep was trying to tell me that this is normal. That's not what I wanted to hear.

you know, perhaps all the people that aren't happy with the e70 could file a joint lawsuit against bmw na about this ?

!ouch:
Yea, thats a great idea, lets get together and make a group of lawyers a bunch of cash so we can each collect $35.

Similar E70 Transmission Issues
 

I think that many people are experiencing the same issues. I have had all the software upgrades and given plenty of time to "re-learn" driving patterns and this morning the car lunged violently as I was pulling out of my driveway in front of my neighbor in his Lexus LS. The other things you will likely notice is high reving and late shifts on any steady incline if you have the same issue. I have said before I also think this is having an impact on gas mileage. My current problem is that I cannot get my service guy at Tom Williams BMW to call me back.

I think a collective letter signed by as many of you as possible, with a copy of the complaint to DOT and NHTSA (pointing out that accelerating while slowing down is a safety issue) would help greatly. If DOT or NHTSA gets involved to any degree I have no doubts BMW will begin doing some serious work on the issue. If the trans is acting the way many of you are saying I suspect this could become a mandatory recall. This isn't a piece of trim falling off or waxy doors.

And why not copy CBS/60 minutes while you're at it? They nearly ruined Audi over a transmission non-issue. I bet BMW and dealer service advisors would start returning calls real quick once the word was out.

I just took delivery of my X5 4.8 on Monday and the tranny seems ok. I can feel the downshifts as you slow to a stop but it's not terribly jerky. I don't have any of the lunging issues. I think the tranny holds gears longer going up hills so you'll have power which you wouldn't have if it upshifts going up a hill. My Audi A8 does the same thing on hills.
When I first test drove the X5 in December it definetely lunged starting from a stop. I was told it will "learn" it's way out of it. Obviously they fixed that since mine does not do it. My wife noted how much smother the tranny is on our X5 than it was on the demo car in Dec.
Either the software needs to be updated or the tranny is no good, lunging has nothing to do with a tranny that's learning your driving style nor does very jerky downshifts.

Update on Transmission
 

Brought my E70 3.0SI in for a brake light out Tuesday. Dealer performed transmission update and performed complete car encoding with new software when they went to do QC check the "check engine" light came on (it has never been on before). Tech could not resolve check engine light issue so they called BMWNA engineer. It turns out that when they do the transmission update and then the complete car encoding they need to deselect the transmission portion of the encoding otherwise the software gets overwritten with the old code and causes the check engine issue. Picked up the car today and so far so good. No issues and no lights will keep you posted...

Hmmmm. Guys, here's the thing. BMW have a deliberate market strategy to minimise the fuel consumption ratings for their V8's in their biggest market (USA) The downside is that they have over engineered the trans software to do it and it's particularly obvious on the V8's and diesels.

Check out the E53 forums and do a search on trans, and you'll see a lot of posts from some of us who have learned that this is VERY deliberate. (See also info about economy settings and gear selections in roundabouts and why it changes to 1st instead of 2nd)

Alternatively, go check out the E60 forums and do a search on transmission slam

With respect, talk of legal action is pointless. I'm currently going through the corporate 'get stuffed' for my trans/suspension/detonation and I have gone all the way up to the BMW board in Germany. Despite the evidence, eg denying it detonates then I find that 550 owners are also complaining........they deliberately take the line of denying there is a problem until you give up. (So because I'm a tenacious SOB I will keep my lawyers at them until they take responsibility for the junk they pass off as $165k premium performance)

If you want to get anywhere, I've learned that you need to document EVERY episode inc time, speed, location eg hill etc of the issue and get an independent expert witness to document the examples, then be prepared to spend the $$$$$$$$$$$$$ to get the legal eagles to go them.......... ASSUMING it is actually a fault

For what I've also learned, is that despite the evidence, you still lose. You either keep/trade (lose $$$ in changeover) or sue them. Either way it costs.

So if you want action, be prepared to stump up.

Or, you check out your local laws and if you're lucky enough to have 'lemon laws' you use the documented evidence you have to get a replacement. Don't make the same mistake I have and follow all the suggestions/promises/software fixes etc until you have time against you.......... Get in early

Anybody here who had the transmission software upgrade? Can you please share your views/comments on the latest tranny update?

I had one software update, but it did not help. I think I will just wait for a solid TSB on this or just trade it for a 535xi.

I have had my 4.8 for a week now and I must say it has the best gearbox I have driven, this is my 6th BMW and my wife has a lexus. This box is by far the smoothest and most intuitive.

Maybe the mapping "down under" is different?

Go to love the first run model years.

I've had my X5 for a week and so far the tranny is good.

Why is BMW having such a hard time with transmission programming? First its this, and the X3 3.0si is having a rather widespread hesistation issue.

I am SO happy with my 5-speed auto now, even if it has laziest sport mode ever. :woot: