DCT Overheat

jayscoobs · 09-27-2018, 01:15 PM

I know there is a couple of threads on this but has anyone had it overheat only with 4 people in the car?

First time I had 4 people in the car last night since i've had it. Drove for 15 mins and got overheat yellow warning. Can tell with the 4 people in the car the clutches were struggling to grab or there was just too much load on it as I went on steep on-ramps for about 3 mins of the journey.

Really reminded me of my manual car going up SF hills and kind of burning them afterwards with the load. On the DCT I didn't smell anything burnt after.

Took car out next morning and drove it everywhere for an hour in stop and go around the city and had no issues. Opened it up when I had room and it's back to it's snappy grabbing.

Miss the manual now!

kyippee · 09-27-2018, 01:41 PM

Pull codes. Is it actually overheating, or is it low oil pressure? Hills may make DCT oil tilt to one side. With a leaking OEM pan, that could cause problems.

If you don't have a tool, I live in downtown SF and can pull codes for you.

jayscoobs · 09-27-2018, 02:09 PM

I live in Berkeley, Yea I don't have a code reader. would be great to pull the codes. After I dropped everyone off I was driving on no hills and it did come back on so I think it actually was overheating. All seals were replaced 30k ago and I had rod bearings done 4 weeks ago and the shop said everything is bone dry. Fluid I don't think has ever been replaced unless the fluid was changed when the leak was being fixed.

jayscoobs · 10-07-2018, 04:24 PM

This has gotten worse. Drove the car 35 mins to my friends and overheated on the freeway just cruising the whole way. Going have to limp it home and limp it to the shop which is 50 mins away.

nycplumber · 10-07-2018, 04:50 PM

Have you checked your fluid level?

jayscoobs · 10-07-2018, 05:14 PM

Yeah that's what I was thinking. Wish it was easier to check level. I had rod bearings done 1500 miles ago and asked shop to check dct for leaks while it was in the air. They said it was dry. Unless it warped badly recently or maybe they didn't pull off the covers to check. Car is at 90k so I'm going to for flush and both filters and hope that fixes it.

Hopefully it's not the sensor or the thermostat. I did read the code and just 53a3 came up (temp red). Got no pressure codes or anything.

Rainer M · 10-07-2018, 07:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jayscoobs

Yeah that's what I was thinking. Wish it was easier to check level. I had rod bearings done 1500 miles ago and asked shop to check dct for leaks while it was in the air. They said it was dry. Unless it warped badly recently or maybe they didn't pull off the covers to check. Car is at 90k so I'm going to for flush and both filters and hope that fixes it.

Hopefully it's not the sensor or the thermostat. I did read the code and just 53a3 came up (temp red). Got no pressure codes or anything.

Might sound stupid but did you check the air intake in the passenger side for the oil cooler of the trans?
If there is something large stuck like a plastic bag I will get hot quickly.
I would also check this oil cooler when the error comes up to see if the cooler is hot or cold.
If it's cold then there is no or not enough oil going Into the cooler.
That's something simple to quickly check.

jayscoobs · 10-07-2018, 08:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Rainer M

Might sound stupid but did you check the air intake in the passenger side for the oil cooler of the trans?
If there is something large stuck like a plastic bag I will get hot quickly.
I would also check this oil cooler when the error comes up to see if the cooler is hot or cold.
If it's cold then there is no or not enough oil going Into the cooler.
That's something simple to quickly check.

I already looked at the cooler and it's not obstructed. A little dirty and fins aren't perfect. Great idea on checking if cooler is hot or cold. But I wonder where the pressure sensor is. I imagine if not enough fluid is going to the cooler I'd get a low pressure warning on the dct?

jayscoobs · 10-08-2018, 01:24 PM

Luckily made it home and it threw the warming when I pulled in. Felt the cooler and it isn't very hot, just warm.

jayscoobs · 10-09-2018, 01:34 PM

Looks like it's the temp sensor. Had a local shop diagnose it before I take it to my mechanic that is far away.

"it's output oscillated quickly between 80 degree and 160 degree outputs during a long test drive"

semperfi1776 · 10-09-2018, 07:33 PM

I have couple code readers and I live in SF(Excelsior area). if you want to pull code, pm me. My M3 have also experienced DCT overheat. The symptom is different. when it over heats and I try to out the car in neutral or reverse from Drive, the car shakes violently. after letting it cool off then everything works fine.

jayscoobs · 10-11-2018, 05:44 PM

Do you know if any of your readers monitor transmission temp in real time? Want to monitor it and see how it is behaving. Sounds like I will be replacing a lot of items and reading other threads kind of scares me that after people replaced everything it didn't solve issue.

dogbone · 10-11-2018, 07:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jayscoobs

Do you know if any of your readers monitor transmission temp in real time?

To measure live DCT temps, you would buy this attachment. Put it on the inlet/outlet of the DCT cooler:

https://europeanautosource.com/macht...mw-e9x-m3.html

Then you buy a temp gauge (like a Stack or AEM Gauge) and plug it into the gauge boss. You have to decide if you want to see hot temps going into the cooler, or cooled temps coming out of the cooler. (Or you could buy two gauges and measure both.)

I did this on my track car to compare the performance of different DCT coolers.

jayscoobs · 10-12-2018, 06:13 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dogbone

To measure live DCT temps, you would buy this attachment. Put it on the inlet/outlet of the DCT cooler:

https://europeanautosource.com/macht...mw-e9x-m3.html

Then you buy a temp gauge (like a Stack or AEM Gauge) and plug it into the gauge boss. You have to decide if you want to see hot temps going into the cooler, or cooled temps coming out of the cooler. (Or you could buy two gauges and measure both.)

I did this on my track car to compare the performance of different DCT coolers.

Thanks dogbone! I think I will order this as I am planning track days once I get DCT issues resolved. What cooler did you find performed the best?

Didn't know this existed. Once I know the temps I can cross reference it with the temp sensor and see if the transmission is actually overheating or not. If it actually is I think it could be the thermostat.

dogbone · 10-12-2018, 07:23 AM

I was comparing the stock DCT cooler to the do88 DCT cooler. The do88 did a better job at cooling than the stock unit. I talked about it in my build thread in the track section on page 18: https://www.m3post.com/forums/showth...158445&page=18

(We hooked up the gauge boss in a different place which ultimately was a mistake. The proper place for it is at the cooler.)

SSPKris · 10-12-2018, 09:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jayscoobs

Looks like it's the temp sensor. Had a local shop diagnose it before I take it to my mechanic that is far away.

"it's output oscillated quickly between 80 degree and 160 degree outputs during a long test drive"

I read thru all this thread and come to a conclusion for you:
Having 90K miles on a DCT clutch, it may be at its life's end. I am not sure if you are the original owner or not, but knowing the history of the car would help for a diagnosis. Almost anytime you are getting a clutch temp warning light, the temp of the clutch has climbed beyond a safe point in a short amount of time. This code is thrown when the temp sensors go out of their safety ranges. If I had to give you my diagnosis, I am going to say that the clutch is done. When you said that the clutch temps rose very fast during a short drive, this is usually the cause of the clutch slipping excessively which creates a lot of heat in the clutch assembly.

SSP

jayscoobs · 10-12-2018, 10:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by SSPKris

I read thru all this thread and come to a conclusion for you:
Having 90K miles on a DCT clutch, it may be at its life's end. I am not sure if you are the original owner or not, but knowing the history of the car would help for a diagnosis. Almost anytime you are getting a clutch temp warning light, the temp of the clutch has climbed beyond a safe point in a short amount of time. This code is thrown when the temp sensors go out of their safety ranges. If I had to give you my diagnosis, I am going to say that the clutch is done. When you said that the clutch temps rose very fast during a short drive, this is usually the cause of the clutch slipping excessively which creates a lot of heat in the clutch assembly.

SSP

Thanks Kris,

Definitely considering just buying a used box that has much lower mileage since hunting down what it could be could add up. All theories make sense.

Previous owner just used the car back and fourth to work in LA. I'd say 80% of it's life is in traffic. The only time that it felt like it might be slipping is when 4 people were in the car.

But it's weird because once the engine is warm I can shift high rpm and get no slipping, but it will hit overheat after 30 mins. Wouldn't it slip constantly all the time if it is going out?

09-27-2018, 01:15 PM	#1
jayscoobs New Member 6 Rep 27 Posts Drives: E92 M3 Join Date: Jun 2018 Location: Bay Area, CA iTrader: (0)	DCT Overheat I know there is a couple of threads on this but has anyone had it overheat only with 4 people in the car? First time I had 4 people in the car last night since i've had it. Drove for 15 mins and got overheat yellow warning. Can tell with the 4 people in the car the clutches were struggling to grab or there was just too much load on it as I went on steep on-ramps for about 3 mins of the journey. Really reminded me of my manual car going up SF hills and kind of burning them afterwards with the load. On the DCT I didn't smell anything burnt after. Took car out next morning and drove it everywhere for an hour in stop and go around the city and had no issues. Opened it up when I had room and it's back to it's snappy grabbing. Miss the manual now!
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09-27-2018, 01:41 PM	#2
kyippee Lieutenant Colonel 1072 Rep 1,617 Posts Drives: E92 M3, Supra MK5, F44 235GC Join Date: Feb 2017 Location: SF Bay Area iTrader: (0)	Pull codes. Is it actually overheating, or is it low oil pressure? Hills may make DCT oil tilt to one side. With a leaking OEM pan, that could cause problems. If you don't have a tool, I live in downtown SF and can pull codes for you.
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09-27-2018, 02:09 PM	#3
jayscoobs New Member 6 Rep 27 Posts Drives: E92 M3 Join Date: Jun 2018 Location: Bay Area, CA iTrader: (0)	I live in Berkeley, Yea I don't have a code reader. would be great to pull the codes. After I dropped everyone off I was driving on no hills and it did come back on so I think it actually was overheating. All seals were replaced 30k ago and I had rod bearings done 4 weeks ago and the shop said everything is bone dry. Fluid I don't think has ever been replaced unless the fluid was changed when the leak was being fixed.
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10-07-2018, 04:24 PM	#4
jayscoobs New Member 6 Rep 27 Posts Drives: E92 M3 Join Date: Jun 2018 Location: Bay Area, CA iTrader: (0)	This has gotten worse. Drove the car 35 mins to my friends and overheated on the freeway just cruising the whole way. Going have to limp it home and limp it to the shop which is 50 mins away.
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10-07-2018, 04:50 PM	#5
nycplumber Major 682 Rep 1,226 Posts Drives: slow Join Date: Apr 2016 Location: nyc iTrader: (0)	Have you checked your fluid level?
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10-07-2018, 05:14 PM	#6
jayscoobs New Member 6 Rep 27 Posts Drives: E92 M3 Join Date: Jun 2018 Location: Bay Area, CA iTrader: (0)	Yeah that's what I was thinking. Wish it was easier to check level. I had rod bearings done 1500 miles ago and asked shop to check dct for leaks while it was in the air. They said it was dry. Unless it warped badly recently or maybe they didn't pull off the covers to check. Car is at 90k so I'm going to for flush and both filters and hope that fixes it. Hopefully it's not the sensor or the thermostat. I did read the code and just 53a3 came up (temp red). Got no pressure codes or anything.
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10-08-2018, 01:24 PM	#9
jayscoobs New Member 6 Rep 27 Posts Drives: E92 M3 Join Date: Jun 2018 Location: Bay Area, CA iTrader: (0)	Luckily made it home and it threw the warming when I pulled in. Felt the cooler and it isn't very hot, just warm.
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10-09-2018, 01:34 PM	#10
jayscoobs New Member 6 Rep 27 Posts Drives: E92 M3 Join Date: Jun 2018 Location: Bay Area, CA iTrader: (0)	Looks like it's the temp sensor. Had a local shop diagnose it before I take it to my mechanic that is far away. "it's output oscillated quickly between 80 degree and 160 degree outputs during a long test drive"
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10-09-2018, 07:33 PM	#11
semperfi1776 Private 6 Rep 77 Posts Drives: 2009 M3 Coupe Silverstone Join Date: Nov 2009 Location: San Francisco iTrader: (0)	I have couple code readers and I live in SF(Excelsior area). if you want to pull code, pm me. My M3 have also experienced DCT overheat. The symptom is different. when it over heats and I try to out the car in neutral or reverse from Drive, the car shakes violently. after letting it cool off then everything works fine.
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10-11-2018, 05:44 PM	#12
jayscoobs New Member 6 Rep 27 Posts Drives: E92 M3 Join Date: Jun 2018 Location: Bay Area, CA iTrader: (0)	Do you know if any of your readers monitor transmission temp in real time? Want to monitor it and see how it is behaving. Sounds like I will be replacing a lot of items and reading other threads kind of scares me that after people replaced everything it didn't solve issue.
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10-12-2018, 07:23 AM	#15
dogbone Colonel 5332 Rep 2,804 Posts Drives: '09 E90 M3 - IB Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: 93 million miles from the Sun iTrader: (1) Garage List 2009 BMW E92 M3 [0.00] 2009 BMW E90 M3 [0.00]	I was comparing the stock DCT cooler to the do88 DCT cooler. The do88 did a better job at cooling than the stock unit. I talked about it in my build thread in the track section on page 18: https://www.m3post.com/forums/showth...158445&page=18 (We hooked up the gauge boss in a different place which ultimately was a mistake. The proper place for it is at the cooler.)
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