[CA330i]

Anybody else have occasional trouble with this? The actual movement of the stick, nothing else. I dont have any of the other reported problems that people seem to relate to the CDV, but get grief trying to move the shifter into 4th. Only have 300 miles on her so I figured i'd ask around before bringing it up with the dealer...

[Tierfreund]

I have the same problem. Only on the shifter movement from 3 to 4. With exact upshift timing (not to fast, not to slow) it flutches right in. But miss the timing and it´s difficult to engage 4th. On downshifts from 5th it´s often a bit difficult too. But double declutching helps.

I now have 6000mls on my 330 and it has gotten a bit better, but still quite notchy. From my understanding of the operations of a MT, that problem is either
1. Not quite optimal adjustment of the shift linkage
or
2. Bad synchromesh (bad at synchronizing while good at preventing engangement while not synchronized - otherwise it would engage easily but crunch the gears)

The Getrag unit in the 330 does not have the best shifting action per se, so it doesn´t really come as a surprise. I´ve gotten somewhat used to the difficult shift and learnt to match my shift timing.
But I might take the issue up with the dealer on the first inspection (But that still is at least 12000mls away)

[mreloc]

Originally Posted by Tierfreund

I have the same problem. Only on the shifter movement from 3 to 4. With exact upshift timing (not to fast, not to slow) it flutches right in. But miss the timing and it´s difficult to engage 4th. On downshifts from 5th it´s often a bit difficult too. But double declutching helps.

I now have 6000mls on my 330 and it has gotten a bit better, but still quite notchy. From my understanding of the operations of a MT, that problem is either
1. Not quite optimal adjustment of the shift linkage
or
2. Bad synchromesh (bad at synchronizing while good at preventing engangement while not synchronized - otherwise it would engage easily but crunch the gears)

The Getrag unit in the 330 does not have the best shifting action per se, so it doesn´t really come as a surprise. I´ve gotten somewhat used to the difficult shift and learnt to match my shift timing.
But I might take the issue up with the dealer on the first inspection (But that still is at least 12000mls away)

Does the 325 and 330 share the same transmission and clutch? I would think the clutch, at least, would be heavier due to having to handle the addl torque.

[David328M-Sport]

Oh oh, I'm going to get imto BIG BIG BIG trouble from some of you but I can't resist the temptation.

No such issues with my wonderful Steptronic automatic (yuck to some of you) transmission. Silky smooth and lots of get up and GO!!!

I dunno, those stick shift people ( I was a stick shifter for 13 years in e36 & e46)
Seriously though, hope you sort out your problems. I had the CDV issue from 1st to 2nd gears.

Now not to harsh a reply please.

[CA330i]

Thanks Tierfreund - you described the experience exactly. I may mention it at first service, but I'm afraid they might do more harm than good, as it is not that bothersome as is.

[Oz]

Originally Posted by David325Australia

Oh oh, I'm going to get imto BIG BIG BIG trouble from some of you but I can't resist the temptation.

No such issues with my wonderful Steptronic automatic (yuck to some of you) transmission. Silky smooth and lots of get up and GO!!!

I dunno, those stick shift people ( I was a stick shifter for 13 years in e36 & e46)
Seriously though, hope you sort out your problems. I had the CDV issue from 1st to 2nd gears.

Now not to harsh a reply please.

Yeah, no problems with my wonderful Steptronic automatic transmission either

[Tierfreund]

Originally Posted by mreloc

Does the 325 and 330 share the same transmission and clutch? I would think the clutch, at least, would be heavier due to having to handle the addl torque.

Clutch and tranny are different. i believe the tranny is even by a different supplier (but I´m not quite shure, I only know, the 330 tranny is by Getrag and the boxes have different names and part nos.)

[Scott Carpenter]

The trans are different, The 330 is a Heavy Duty one, I'm not to sure about Getrag I was told there both GM trannys

[Tierfreund]

Originally Posted by David325Australia

Oh oh, I'm going to get imto BIG BIG BIG trouble from some of you but I can't resist the temptation.

No such issues with my wonderful Steptronic automatic (yuck to some of you) transmission. Silky smooth and lots of get up and GO!!!

I dunno, those stick shift people ( I was a stick shifter for 13 years in e36 & e46)
Seriously though, hope you sort out your problems. I had the CDV issue from 1st to 2nd gears.

Now not to harsh a reply please.

Don´t worry, none of it calls for harshness. I see and appreciate your point (but prepare for some spite when your step really goes wrong). Suffice to say that I had a E46 328CI with step and enjoyed it for 3 years. A very fine automobile and a fine transmission. But I wouldn´t go back to it. Auto just has to many compromises when you get down to some seriously fast driving. You just can´t drive a slush box really precisely. After the 328 I had an E46 330Ci with SMG. And that was just the ticket. Misunderstood by most, SMG is the perfect manual tranny. Unfortunately that wonderfull car was stolen in April and I had to get a replacment. And to my dismay SMG is simply not available on the E90

So it´s back to stick. Oh well, there´s some fun to be had from a stick as well. And btw, I have absolutely no problem with the CDV. At least with my shifting style, I don´t notice it at all and I get ultra smooth shifts in all gears (as far as clutching is concerned). The only anoying thing is the notchiness of the shifter on some shifts. To some degree most manual shift cars with plenty of torque have that heavyness/notchiness and all manual BMW´s I´ve driven (quite a few) had it. I´ts just that on the 4th gear of my current car, it´s worse than usual.

But as somebody posted before, relying on the dealer to fix it might only make matters worse. On anything other than routine repairs and maintenance, dealers are often not the best source of help.
Oh well, I guess I´ll have to read up on the gearbox in the latest TIS and check the oil level and maybe go through the linkage adjustment procedure myself. Unless special tools are required, that might be the most promising.

I once had the readjust my gear linkage on my 1988 VW Golf MKII on the roadside in Normandy (France) with no more than the cars stock toolset after driving through Paris on a Friday afternoon with only third and fourth gear after the linkage lost its´allignment.

A notchy 3-4shift on a Bimmer should at least be somewhat less of a problem then...