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I'm in a bit of a dilemma, not sure what to do.
My daily e34 BMW diesel has had gearbox trouble (it's why it was given to me), and we (thanks to the RR members) managed to diagnose the fault as a broken thrust washer.
I've since dropped the gearbox out and dismantled the bits I needed to, and was met with a "worst case scenario" kinda thing - the oil pump surface is very badly scored (as I expected it might be) but also the clutch overrun assembly facing is also badly chewed up. Arseburgers.
I could get the oil pump surface machined, but how much does this cost? Plus I'd need to remove the overrun clutch assembly to get that surface machined too. And that's going much further into the black box of mysteries than I would like.
If I just put the new thrust washer back in I reckon it'd last about an hour before the rough surfaces destroy it and I'm back to square one. Plus I don't like doing half-arsed jobs.
I can't find a replacement gearbox, and in any case I can't guarantee that it hasn't got the same problem or will have in the near future. Plus any breaker with a BMW part seems to want stupid money.
So I suppose my choices are: break it, sell it as it is, or somehow fix it...
What would you do?
Sorry for the whiney thread, I'm just a bit miffed the gearbox is so screwed up.
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mk14dr
Yorkshire and The Humber
Posts: 4,472
Club RR Member Number: 85
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Can B&D shed some light over proceedings? I'd have throught it'd be easier and cheaper to get a good s/hand box from a breaker than chasing faults round a possibly fudged box, but then I don't know the price of used BMW spares Hope you get it sorted though
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Straight swap another box sounds like the simplest option... the cost is a different matter? How much do they fetch?
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Thanks chaps. I haven't managed to find a replacement box yet, but the ZF type (mine's a GM box) seem to be priced at £200 - £250, and to be honest I can neither justify nor afford paying that much for a gearbox that's been ripped from a scrapper. The thrust washers go on these boxes all the time, so if I did get one from a breaker and it's got the same problem, that's a lot of money down the pan. There's one from an Omega on eBay (it's the same box) but I've looked close and they do differ very slightly... enough to cause me headaches anyway! ;D I'm tempted to break it and buy something else cheap, but I always feel guilty about breaking a car unless it's totally wrecked!
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bin it and buy another car, cut your loses now before it start to cost you money, if its only cheap transport don't get sentimental about it, break it, scrap it, give it away, whatever.
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Volvo back as my main squeeze, more boost and some interior goodies on the way.
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mk14dr
Yorkshire and The Humber
Posts: 4,472
Club RR Member Number: 85
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Unfortunately you can't save 'em all. If the boxes are a know weakspot, you don't want to be back to square one as you say. Its sounds to me that the easiest plan is to break/scrap the e34 and start looking for something else that takes your fancy. There seems to be plenty of interesting dailies out there to be had
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I know the square root of eff all about BMWs but assuming an E34 is modern I'd suggest you put washer in, tow to motor auctions and let some spivvy dealer buy it. Jobbed.
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Corsa Apology Champion 2014.
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beejay
Part of things
Posts: 207
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How easy would it be to drop a manual box in there?
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I think I'm leaning towards breaking it to be honest. I considered a manual conversion but I really need to concentrate on the Merc, as I still have plenty to do on that. Sticking it through the auctions is an option, but... I dunno, even if some trader bought it I think my conscience would be unsettled! I'm sort of consoling myself by thinking that I've given it my best shot to repair it, but it's just not looking like a cost effective repair any more. If it was my Merc then no amount of money would stop me from fixing it, as long as I could get hold of it. But as a daily hack it just isn't making sense. Coupled with the fact that the tax and test is up at the end of May, the death knell is sounding... There are a lot of parts worth a decent amount on the car, and hey, I get to go car shopping afterwards too! ;D Thanks for your advice people. I'll not wield a spanner til morning, I'll sleep on it, and if I still feel the same then it's time to tear it down.
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NIGHTMARE DEAN !! sometimes its better to throw in the towel and start again ,buy something cheap and cheerful and concentrate on the merc , i am currently having to put a few quid into the ,ced' which is ok , the other week i had to spend a heap on my kangoo daily ,the answer to that was get rid , i know somewhere there is a lovely little runaround for ya [maybe within the fold? ] good luck matey
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yes ,it started badly ,petered off in the middle and the least said about the end the better!!!
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Don't let your conscience get the better of you at motor auctions. I worked at one for about three years and made friends with a lot of traders. I can say without a single doubt that 99% of them would have turned me over without thinking about it. That's why cars are cheap at auctions, it's a gamble and if anyone comes unstuck they'll just farm it off to someone else at another auction. You get your cheque, there's no comebacks and someone will end up earning a drink out of it along the way.
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Corsa Apology Champion 2014.
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2001 HONDA CT110 (NOT RCV)
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I missed that one! But yeah, £145 for an untested 'box from a junked Bimmer. Maybe I've been spoilt by my local scrappy as they're usually fifty notes or there abouts. Trouble is I'd wager a kenked gearbox or diesel pump would be what put them there in the first place! Not that they have any dizzle bimmers in... Thanks for looking though mate.
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seriously, for all the money these are worth, just junk it. put it in the local rag for £200, and watch the driftor kids squeal. if you do break, i wants headlights
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whoa there!!! easy cheapish fix here!!! go on Omega owners and find someone breaking a 3 litre v6(not a 2.5) buy a good box for around 100 beer vouchers or less, stand box on end and remove bellhousing and torque converter from 3 litre box, use you td bellhousing and torque converter on the 3 litre box and bolt it back in the car job done!!! this is what i do to all omega td with auto boxes as vauxhall tightwads only fitted ar 25 to the td as a cheap way of saving money, thats why they detuned the engine!!once done on a td it can be chipped easily without fear of melting the autobox!! which happens within a week of chipping a standard ar25, done around 4 or 5 now and never had a problem !!
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Break it for parts.It's worth more in parts than selling it with a fault.Put it on Ebay,pistonheads etc that your breaking it and you will soon have cash to buy a new toy.
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2001 HONDA CT110 (NOT RCV)
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whoa there!!! easy cheapish fix here!!! go on Omega owners and find someone breaking a 3 litre v6(not a 2.5) buy a good box for around 100 beer vouchers or less, stand box on end and remove bellhousing and torque converter from 3 litre box, use you td bellhousing and torque converter on the 3 litre box and bolt it back in the car job done!!! this is what I do to all omega td with auto boxes as vauxhall tightwads only fitted ar 25 to the td as a cheap way of saving money, thats why they detuned the engine!!once done on a td it can be chipped easily without fear of melting the autobox!! which happens within a week of chipping a standard ar25, done around 4 or 5 now and never had a problem !! This sounds promising! I looked at an Omega TD box, and found the oil cooler lines are on the wrong side, and it looked like the plug for the speedo was different too. There looked to be an electrical plug next to the selector arm which isn't on the Bimmer box too. Would I have this problem with the Omega V6 gearbox? And is AR25 Vauxhall-speak for the 4L30E or A4S 270R / 310R in BMW-speak?
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umm 4l30e i believe without going to look it up!! same box as fitted to the senator 24v but uprated electronics however its the same box bmw use I'm pretty sure!!
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umm 4l30e I believe without going to look it up!! same box as fitted to the senator 24v but uprated electronics however its the same box bmw use I'm pretty sure!! That's the one! I've looked at photos of the Omega gearboxes and whilst they're the same box, I can see differences. Much more plentiful than Bimmer boxes (and cheaper) but I think the electrics and oil cooler lines are going to cause me headaches to hook up. The oil lines would be next to the exhaust, and I'm seeing different electrical connectors...
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