[JimD]

What is the cover made out of? Do you think it is possible to add a drain opening when you remove the cover? If it is steel, I could just drill a hole and weld on a nut. Seems kind of bad thing to do to a brand new and very nice car but it makes changing the fluid a lot easier. With the right threads on the nut, you could use an aftermarket plug with a magnet in it.

I have not had to remove the cover previously but I completely agree that his is a do it yourself opportunity. I've never paid to have it done. Removing the cover does not change the situation much as long as you have a gasket. You want a fluid transfer pump, however, even if you remove the cover to drain the fluid. You need it for filling. I have one for bottom end lube on my outboard that is new and never used that I might try. It screws onto a quart container.

I think 1,300 miles is very early for transmission and rear end. My Suzuki SUV recommends 7,500 miles which is the shortest I've seen. The red line synthetic I added improved the shifting. An opportunity to switch to synthetic or maybe add a drain plug or at least a magnet might be a reason to do it this early. I will probably only do the magnet and only then if the cover or housing is magnetic. I could epoxy it to an aluminum housing but I'm not sure I would trust the epoxy to hold up as long as I plan to keep my BMW.

Jim