Tight Gearstick When Cold.. E30

Hi mate it's one of those BMW things, every BM ive had has been like this. 1st & 2nd are usually the gears that are notchy. It can help a little to blip the throttle slightly and then try to engage. My car is on 104k at the moment, and 1st & 2nd are a real pain when cold. You could also try saying please! Works with mine sometimes!

I have just had the gearbox rebuilt out of my 325i(s) and it slips into gear beautifully.

Usually when a box gets 'sticky' when it's cold can be attributed to general wear on the box's syncromesh or selectors, oil that hasn't been drained and changed in long enough and becomes gummed up until warm enough to flow freely or not enough oil in the box to start with.

This was the way my box was before the rebuild. It is usual for older BMW boxes that have had a few miles under their belts to get sticky or for the idler gear to rattle (box rattles in neutral, disappears when clutch is depressed) though. So I suppose it is a 'normal issue'

Only thing you need to watch for is that if you force it too much or too often at startup you have the potential for bending, breaking, excessively wearing the linkeage and bushes of the gearshift mechanism and selectors. This won't get better.

Maybe let it warm up before you use it?

Try Redline MTF gear oil, it does help.

Mine is difficult to get into 1st (the rest are fine) when cold but after a couple of miles it does get better. It did have a new clutch with the prev. owner as it was quite bad, now I'm wondering whether the linkages maybe a bit buggered as it shouldn't really do it!!!

Also what I have noticed is if with no brakes applied and try to select 1st when its playing up esp. when selecting it for the first time in the morning is when trying to push it into 1st it actual nudges the car forward very slightly - can't be right!! Seems like dodgy syncros or clutch-again!

Anyone know which bit to check (linkages), best to tackle it from underneath or the top inside the car?

Yes,

Gotta agree with DC as far as the (hydraulic ) clutch is concerned, if you aren't geting the correct travel then it can mean the clutch isn't fully depressed this can cause a problem with gear selection, master cylinder would need to be checked for bad seals/jams/bled properly. Also if it has a dodgy release bearing as it may not travel up and down the input shaft on the box properly. This is usually felt through a really stiff/slack pedal though.

Rob

Yes, I have a 318Ti which is a bit tight to get in to first on a morning. I think the oil is due for a change which I have planned for this weekend, weather permitting. I will let you know if there is any difference.

Can anybody recommend oil for the box and diff?

Cheers Paul

Paul,

How easy is it to change the gearbox oil? Do you need a ramp? Cheers in advance. I've only 1 service light left so might wait until service, inspection 1.

Baz

Remember that even though the oil is 'clean' it all comes down to viscosity. Mineral oil ( + even synthetic) tends to break down/ gum up over time so even though it looks clean it may not be doing the job it needs to .

To change the oil it is relatively straightforward.

2 ways to do it, warm the car up for say 10 mins to bring the box oil up to temp, raise the front of the car as high as you can and loosen the centre prop bearing this should allow the prop to be drawn out the tail shaft of the box, the oil should then 'leak' out from there, you may need to gently jack the front of the engine to help gravity. The other option is to use the filler hole and use a plastic bottle with 2 rubber hoses and a good pair of lungs to 'suck' the oil out of the box. Remember to make sure the shaft end of the prop is very clean and slides in straight to avoid killing the tail shaft seal if you take the prop out.

Sailorbaz, it cost me about £300 + parts but that was through the pal act, a specialist would probably take more.

Dbandery, I had the same whining from 2nd and I had to replace 2nd gear, bearings, shims and the syncros. All down to wear unfortunately!!

As a foot note, don't forget the diff, this needs done as often as the box especialy if you have a LSD

Rob

A freind of mine has a 94 320. He started exp notchiness when cold in first and second. After 6 months it got worse and he ended up having to get the box rebuilt.

when you were talking about taking out driveshaft was that on e30? because mine actually has two plugs, one on the side that checks the level and puts the oil in, and the other that drains it. its piss easy to change all you have to do is drain it completely and then replace the plug on the bottom, and then fill the box up using the other hole. it should take about 2 1/2 litres of oil... i can check out what oil to use as well.... its all in your haynes manual. i have never done anything to my box apart from replace oil....

The E36 box oil is in for 'life' and doesn't need changing. The final drive diff does need changing every so often.

I used Mobil1 in the box but the synchros weren't getting engough friction to work properly making difficult changes, so I used Redline MTF (as 75W 80 but also compare to a 10W engine oil) (Demon Tweeks) this eased it, but still difficult when cold getting into 1st in the morning. Does feel like the clutch isn't depressing properly - might try and renew/bleed the clutch fluid.

But I used Mobil 1 75W 90 in the final drive.