Quote:
Originally Posted by Stubbie Blue
Thanks for this DIY. I bought my 2012 135i used with 33k miles on it, and after about 1 hr of city driving it seemed like the fluid got too hot and thin that I had difficulty engaging 1st from a standstill. Also I usually heel and toe into 3rd every time I slow down, and it was very notchy.
The Red Line website says to use D4 ATF but I decided to try MTL which is a bit thicker due to my high temp issues in Florida.
The procedure was pretty much the same as the 128i. 8mm hex sockets for both the fill and drain plugs, and there were no washers. I used a 3/8" drive breaker bar with no adapters so did not need low profile hex sockets. I only needed about 1.5 qts of Red Line MTL, and drained about 1.25 qts of the original fluid.
I could immediately feel an improvement in the shifts. The notchiness was pretty much gone and all gears engage like butter now. Don't pay attention to BMW's 'lifetime fluid' recommendation. It's just $32 for 2 qts of Red Line MTL and the transmission feels amazing now.
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I will have to try this again next weekend because I couldn't get the filler plug off with the small tool I was using. I will use the breaker bar method.
I don't feel comfortable getting the car on jackstands, because I don't have the right ones to hold the car in the air.
I will run a hose from the top of the engine into the transmission filler hole instead.