DIY: 6MT Transmission Oil Change

XKxRome0ox wrote

drained and refilled transmission fluid

totally forgot about the strainer /facepalm
oh well

Did you activate the transmission pump when you did yours or did you just do a straight up drain/fill? I want to change my fluid soon, but I'm not sure if it will be bad if I'm not able to activate the pump. I was thinking about just doing a drain/fill and then doing it again in like 5k miles or so.

skyrider1977 wrote

Did you activate the transmission pump when you did yours or did you just do a straight up drain/fill? I want to change my fluid soon, but I'm not sure if it will be bad if I'm not able to activate the pump. I was thinking about just doing a drain/fill and then doing it again in like 5k miles or so.

just drained and filled (using a pump+bottle action)
i think it's good enough for me

XKxRome0ox wrote

just drained and filled (using a pump+bottle action)
i think it's good enough for me

Ok, I think I'm just gonna do the same. At least the majority of the fluid would be fresh. Did you refill with BMW fluid or go with an aftermarket? I'm leaning towards the OEM recommended fluid which ECS sells for $102 for 3 liters, which from all my research will be enough fluid to get the job done.

skyrider1977 wrote

Ok, I think I'm just gonna do the same. At least the majority of the fluid would be fresh. Did you refill with BMW fluid or go with an aftermarket? I'm leaning towards the OEM recommended fluid which ECS sells for $102 for 3 liters, which from all my research will be enough fluid to get the job done.

https://www.fcpeuro.com/products/bmw-manual-trans-service-kit-e9xm3servkit

i get almost all of my maintenance items from FCP Euro
this is the 2nd time ordering the transmission service kit
so my 2nd order will be "free" after shipping back the old fluid and plugs

skyrider1977 wrote

Did you activate the transmission pump when you did yours or did you just do a straight up drain/fill? I want to change my fluid soon, but I'm not sure if it will be bad if I'm not able to activate the pump. I was thinking about just doing a drain/fill and then doing it again in like 5k miles or so.

I just did this. I activated the pump via ISTA+ (Rheingold). It was great, it comes on for 30 seconds and dumps a good amount of oil.

I also activated the pump after I filled it. I was doing this after turning the engine on which was silly now that I think about it - I just needed to activate the pump. Anyway after running the pump for 30 seconds and then giving it a chance to cool down, and then repeating that, I was able to get what seemed like a good amount more of oil into the transmission.

I suggest we're underfilling the transmission by using the method that doesn't use the transmission pump to fill.

To activate the transmission oil pump there's no need for ISTA, or to cut the wire loom, or to remove the plug from the wire. I was able to find the 2-pin plug on Amazon for around $10-15 which is better than possibly ruining the wire/plug that's on the car imho. (If you have ISTA obviously that's the best course.)

Then you just connect the wires to a 12v battery, and cycle the pump for 30 seconds after you drain the old oil, and again 30 seconds after you refill. Highly recommend doing this because a lot of old fluid came out from the pump. Also highly recommend you test your battery with a multimeter to make sure its 12v (I used my Milwaukee 12v drill battery)

The plug and wire can be found by searching for "COOLANT THERMOSTAT CONNECTOR SOCKET PLUG BMW e90 e92" or sometimes as "turn signal connector plug." Link and pictures below.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09ZKMY2W2?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title

S65govroom wrote

To activate the transmission oil pump there's no need for ISTA, or to cut the wire loom, or to remove the plug from the wire. I was able to find the 2-pin plug on Amazon for around $10-15 which is better than possibly ruining the wire/plug that's on the car imho. (If you have ISTA obviously that's the best course.)

Then you just connect the wires to a 12v battery, and cycle the pump for 30 seconds after you drain the old oil, and again 30 seconds after you refill. Highly recommend doing this because a lot of old fluid came out from the pump. Also highly recommend you test your battery with a multimeter to make sure its 12v (I used my Milwaukee 12v drill battery)

The plug and wire can be found by searching for "COOLANT THERMOSTAT CONNECTOR SOCKET PLUG BMW e90 e92" or sometimes as "turn signal connector plug." Link and pictures below.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09ZKMY2W2?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title

Wow. Interesting idea. Thanks for posting!

S65govroom wrote

To activate the transmission oil pump there's no need for ISTA, or to cut the wire loom, or to remove the plug from the wire. I was able to find the 2-pin plug on Amazon for around $10-15 which is better than possibly ruining the wire/plug that's on the car imho. (If you have ISTA obviously that's the best course.)

Then you just connect the wires to a 12v battery, and cycle the pump for 30 seconds after you drain the old oil, and again 30 seconds after you refill. Highly recommend doing this because a lot of old fluid came out from the pump. Also highly recommend you test your battery with a multimeter to make sure its 12v (I used my Milwaukee 12v drill battery)

The plug and wire can be found by searching for "COOLANT THERMOSTAT CONNECTOR SOCKET PLUG BMW e90 e92" or sometimes as "turn signal connector plug." Link and pictures below.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09ZKMY2W2?ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_fed_asin_title

This is great info. Thanks for sharing!

for the benefit for future DIY'ers another way to activate the pump is open up the electronic box and disconnect the upper right hand plug X6011 and just jump the only fat pin on the bottom the your battery terminal (which is right there) and you'll hear the pump run. that pin goes directly to the pump, does not pass go does not collect 200 dollars. its right there by the battery and you can use any old wire you have handy. super easy to do

Does anyone know what the normal operating temperature for the (manual, not DCT) transmission fluid is? I have checked it a few times recently using Bimmerlink and it has gone >210F after 30-40 min in slow traffic.