[NTHUSIAST]

I took my '04 MCS (Sept '03 build) to the dealer on Wednesday. Wanted them to sort out the Harmonic Balancer ticking and the thrust bearing rattle.

So my service advisor calls me yesterday and tells me that they are replacing the whole transmission! He said that "something came loose in the transmission and was rattling around, so we need to just replace the whole thing." When I asked what the hell he was talking about and wanted details, he said he didn't know. But he did offer up that a BMW North American Rep had driven the vehicle and agreed. WTF?

They said there were no signs that the car had been driven hard/abused. Assured me it was all under warranty. When I asked about the clicking from the harmonic balancer, he said replacing the transmission would fix that too???? Needless to say I am very aprehensive that I'm going to get my car back and have the same problems. Plus I'll get to worry about the dealer installed tranny (was installed correctly, is it as strong of a gearbox, etc)

My car has about 17,000 miles on it, and has never been abused. I am VERY particular about my MCS. I never drive it hard until fully warmed, I change the oil on my own in between the 15K scheduled. I enjoy the car, but do not drive it in a way that would damage it. I am fairly mechanical, and am confident I can tell when a gear box has started to go bad.

Has anyone else had an entire tranny replaced on an MCS after 1 year?

Just looking for a little support from my fellow neurotic MINI owners.

NTHUSIAST

[MINIAC]

If I was having the tranny in my 2002 MCS replaced, I'd ask them to put in one with the 2005 gear ratios

[KatanaPilot]

I have a 04 MCS, also Sept 03 built. At 2500 miles, I took my car in for service. The dealer technician noticed some unusual noise about my transmission, and in the end BMW Tech hotline authorized a transmission swap.

I decided not to get it replaced at that time, as I didn't want to swap my new transmission with a reman one. However I definitely keep a close eye on my transmission.

[JoeDentist]

Transmissions are a pretty sturdy lot, especially manual transmissions. What usually fails are the tiny and inexpensive things like retaining clips. I had a retaining clip fail in my Land Rover transmission, and it would lodge in various places and cause intermittant problems. They rebuilt it under warranty, and I have not had any problems since. One thing you might do is have them check the clutch disk really closely when they have the tranny out. It is a cheap thing to replace if the transmission is alredy pulled, so thats the time to do it if there is any sign of a problem. I'd much rather have a rebuild than one with a time bomb floating around in it.

[apexer]

Boy, If you could get them to install the 05 gearbox with the new ratios that would fantastic. Really doubt they would do it but, worth a try

[NTHUSIAST]

So I got the call (at 8:30 am on a Saturday ), and they said I could come get my car. I was there by 9:00.

Going through the paperwork, I noticed a very unfortunate abbreviation next to my transmission service - "RMFD". I immediately asked why I was given a remanufactured trannsmission, since I was told on the phone that I was "getting a new transmission."

They claim that all BMW gearbox swaps are given remanned trannies, but the only part that's not brand new is the actual casing. They said it's very expensive, and so they keep the casings, and just put all new parts in it. Anybody else buying this story, cause I sure don't. Anyone know how I can use the serial number on the transmission to track down the history? Ideas? My tranny only had 17K miles on it.

And perhaps the most frustrating thing of all: I still have both the harmonic balancer tick (when under load) as well as the throwout/thrust/clutch release bearing rattle (when in neutral and the clutch isn't engaged). In fact, I think they somehow found a way to make the thrust bearing even louder. I am going to go back this week and ask to have mechanic go for ride with me.

I went in there knowing exactly what the problems were, they ignored me, and installed a used transmission. And the didn't even fix the original problems. I'm getting really frustrated. Anyone have advice on getting them to listen to me? I know I'm not a licensed mechanic, but I grew up on a farm working on engines and transmissions frequently. I hate the fact that when I go in, I get filtered through a service advisor. What I really want is to have 5 minutes with the mechanic who will be diagnosing/working on my car.

Looking for any ideas that would help . . . . .

Thanks

NTHUSIAST

[KatanaPilot]

My car was also authorized for the transmission replacement, but I declined it. I only had 4000 miles at the time, and did not want to trade an almost-new transmission with a transmission of unknown origin......