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All Non M SMG/SSG Owners Chime In

40K views 46 replies 26 participants last post by  -Pirate- 
#1 ·
Okay firstly this is to see how many non-M SMG/SSG owners we have here. :hi: Second is to compile a list of all the problems experienced with the system, if any. :banghead:

I'll Start 2003 325i SMG Individual 5sp 55k miles.

4 Clutches
3 Flywheels
5 Gearboxes
 
#3 ·
Sounds like there's something wrong there. I work at a dealership, and we see very few SMG problems. An occasional hydraulic unit failure, but that's it. We've never seen repeat clutch or gearbox failures. Are you doing anything "abusive"? Hard launches, trips to the drag strip, drifting?
 
#5 · (Edited)
Sounds like there's something wrong there. I work at a dealership, and we see very few SMG problems. An occasional hydraulic unit failure, but that's it. We've never seen repeat clutch or gearbox failures. Are you doing anything "abusive"? Hard launches, trips to the drag strip, drifting?
Nope I drive the car well, hard sometimes. No drifting, no drag strips and I have used the launch control feature maybe 7 times. Could you describe the hydraulic unit failure? Cause it always seems to be related to bad traffic conditions and a hot day. What basically happens is that it starts out manifesting as a what would seem to be the clutch slipping. For example when changing up the revs would climb; where as normally regardless of your foot position the revs would remain static for a moment when you select the next gear and then it seems to release the clutch slowly. The higher you climb through the gears the less apparent it becomes. A few miles down the road the car wont move. You would be in first gear you try to pull away, the revs build sometimes to 5k then all of a sudden the clutch engages then releases violently. This makes the car impossible to drive. :cry:

For example if it was the hydraulic unit would replacing the gearbox fix it? Cause now its just been towed again for the third time in 8k. The remedy for the other two times was a complete box replacement, which fixes the problem for about 3k miles then it starts again same symptoms same conditions.
 
#7 ·
just bought a 2004 330i sport (25K miles) with smg. starting to get the hang of it, but am having to constantly watch the tach and gear display to know when to shift. have driven manuals for 20 years, but never drove an inline six so smooth and quiet that i can barely hear the rpms build up.

btw, i appreciate having the auto mode, though i've read many people say it's useless.
 
#8 ·
Hi, I have a 330ci SMG I (2003) and it has 75000 km so far. No complaints at all regarding the SMG, save for the slowness of going from 1st to 2nd, which I prefer to do manually. All the rest is sheer fun. From now onwards, I want SMG on all my cars, BMWs or others.
 
#10 · (Edited)
problems on this end too

My 325 started with a hiccup about a year ago. The dealer could not figure out what the problem was. They changed the MAF a while before and the problem went away for a while. They changed the ICV and no fix. Eventually at 45k miles they said I had worn the clutch and that the flywheel had burn marks on it. I argued with them that the problem started way before 45K miles. Finally spoke with the service manager who said they would fix it under warranty. 2 weeks later. New ICV, new clutch, new flywheel. Problem still there. Back to the dealer where they changed a harness from the ssg. The ssg was losing voltage every once in a while causing the car to hesitate, jump out of the auto mode, or jerk violently. They told me there was a service bulletin for the issue. Problem fixed.

Nowadays the only slight problem is the throttle adaptation which I need to reset every once in a while. The car is a dream to drive and I don't know what my next car will be since an m3 with double clutch will be out of my reach for a long while.
:hi:
 
#15 ·
I have an 05 330i w/smg. Been driving it for 6 months and put 10k miles on it already. Had a few issues with the smg. When shifting from 1st to 2nd (in manual mode), there is some slippage. Not sure if I am phrasing the phenomenon correctly, in other words after the shift, the wheels very briefly appear to speed up as the gear is engaging. This occurs just about every time the 1st to 2nd shift is made. In a manual it would be like releasing the clutch too soon while shifting. The only time it doesn't happen is when I'm shifting under the most benign situations (coasting downhill or very little acceleration).
The other thing that happened once is: got in the car after being parked for about an hour, turned on the car the "smg way", then shifted into reverse but the gear did not engage. The "R" was displayed but the engine just revved up and car didn't move. I turned off the car and tried again, but the same thing happened. Had to ask the guy parked in front of me to move so I could get out of the parking lot. So I drove home (about 10 miles) and it worked fine when I go there. Only happened that one time.
 
#16 ·
I have a 325i with SMG as well...6 speed. No problems at all...the 1 to 2 is a bit slower than other gears...but that is fine. In sport mode and full throttle, it seems to be fine. Starting to feel clutch slip on full throttle gear shifts.

How is the shift adaptation thing done? Maybe its just that...only have 25t on the car...but do drive it in stop/go traffic...seems too early for worn clutch?
 
#17 ·
Hi reporting in ...Year 2002 330i SMG M-Sport2 Euro Spec 8k miles with a few mods since.
Early when in Sports mode from 2nd gear going into 3rd the SMG would kickback into 'N' as if the ECU gearbox unable to match the engine speed at high rpm's. Well sent it to dealership and they updated the engine and gearbox software ... voila!!! problem solved :)

Plus later i did a clutch adaptation whereby my indie mechanic adjusted the hydraulic pump pressure to match to the thickness of d clutch plate, fyi it is more for 'C' mode whereby before it didnt upshift consistently and was very jerky. Now whenever i put into 'C' mode the gear consistently upshift at 2k rpm and downshift is a lot more smoother affair. Even the wife was impress and now she drives my car no problemo in 'C' mode.
 
#18 ·
Chiming in...

2004 325 Non-M SMG...

I love my car, its a blast to drive.

No problems at all...purchased at 55k in May 08, and now have 67k.
 
#19 · (Edited)
Well after owning this car for 2+ years, I think I'm sick of the SMG transmission. Just to refresh, I bought a CPO 2004 E46 330ci Convertible with 26K miles with one previous owner, in Jan. 2008 from Crevier BMW in the OC. This car still had a factory warranty (that expired in May 2008) and was also a CPO. I also bought an extended warranty through Autoland to provide additional coverage for the electronics and such, like the Nav, powered convertible top, heated seats, backup sensors, etc. I know most people don't recommend buying an extended warranty, but trust me...the extended warranty from Autoland is one of the best, having used it already on things that the CPO warranty didn't cover. It's already paid for itself and I still have 2+years and about 30K more before it expires. Anyways, here's my story:

Spring 2008 (Shortly after my original reply on this post): The car started experiencing stalling problems at a stop or at slow speeds between 0-15mph (as in if you didn't regulate the clutch and the throttle correctly). The car would stall and completely die (though not as violent as some manual-transmission stalls). Anyways, I would have to shift back to neutral and restart the car. This would occur intermittently whether I'm in manual mode or auto-drive mode (sport or non-sport). By this time I had about 30K+ miles. There didn't seem to be a pattern to it as this would happen whether it was a sunny, rainy, cloudy, or foggy day, or whether the car was cold or warm. I didn't think much of it as it felt more of an annoyance than a real problem as this would only occur once every few months. It finally got worse towards the Fall 2008 where the car would stall pulling away from intersections and driveways, multiple times per day. So I finally brought it in to the dealership where I purchased it in Dec. 2008 with 42K miles on the clock (I like to drive, and I drive a lot). They couldn't replicate the problem but they did end up fixing a faulty DISA valve, lower control arm bushings and brackets on this visit. Go figure. This is visit #1 and everything was covered under CPO warranty. Dealership I took the car to on this visit is Crevier BMW in the OC.

Feb. 2009: Two months after initially bringing it in to resolve the stalling problem, the SMG error (red) light turns on after I start the car one evening while I was away from home (the car had been sitting for several hours). I could not shift out of neutral into drive or reverse. I turn off the car, let it sit for about 5mins, tried again with no luck. It finally worked after the 3rd try (15mins sitting in my car) and was able to get into gear and drive to a friend's house that was *luckily* near a BMW dealership. The next morning I go to the dealership and explain what's going with the car. On this visit, they were able to replicate the problem (stalling and SMG light) and ended up replacing the hydraulic pump, oil, and cycle relay. This is visit #2 for the stalling problem and again, the parts and labor were covered under CPO warranty. I took the car back to Crevier BMW in the OC.

Rest of 2009: I still experienced the intermittent stalling problem.

Nov. 2009: I take it for an unscheduled oil change and the stalling problem. (I like to change my oil every 7500 miles.) Again, they can't replicate the problem so they state they don't see a problem and do nothing. I'm at 60K miles at this point and this is visit #3. Dealership I took it to this time was Beverly Hills BMW in LA.

Dec. 2009: I started hearing a grinding/electric shock noise when I shift into reverse, neutral and gear. This didn't really cause any shifting or driving problems yet but I still had my stalling problem as well, so I wanted to take it in again.

Jan. 07, 2010: I finally take it in for the grinding/electric shock noise issue and stalling problem, to my local BMW dealership. They keep my car for about a week while they tried to replicate and resolve the issue. Sure enough after a week, they can't replicate any of it stating on the invoice, "Gearbox noise heard is normal as compared to another vehicle for mileage accrued." (Which I thought was BS since I'm only at 60K miles at this point.) I get my car back on Jan. 11th, 2010, very frustrated. This is another visit to Beverly Hills BMW in LA, which is visit #4 (visit #2 for this dealer).

Jan. 25th, 2010: The SMG warning (orange) light turns on. The owner's manual states that the warning light has forced the car into "fail-safe" mode, and only certain gears are available to use. This is definitely a MAJOR problem as this light would stay lit or would turned on and off multiple times throughout the day.

Jan. 26th, 2010: Without an appointment, I drive an hour to Crevier BMW, (the dealership where I know they actually fix things) to have the SMG warning light looked at. On the freeway, on my way to the dealership, I tried to pass several cars by downshifting from 6th to 4th and the car shifted into neutral instead of 4th. I ended up revving the engine instead of accelerating. I shifted back into 6th and left it there instead of passing. I thought this was kind of odd. So as I near my exit, I tried to downshift again to pass a semi-truck and sure enough, it shifted into neutral again instead of the correct gear. This was pretty terrifying since I went nowhere and cruised in the semi's blindspot until I shifted back into 6th. At this point, I was pretty pissed since I had to take the car back to the dealer 2 weeks after I just got the car back from another dealer.

Feb. 02, 2010: After a week at the dealer, I get my car back and they found/fixed the problem with the the grinding/electric shock noise which ended up being the clutch slave cylinder. It was leaking severely so they replaced it and everything else associated with it. This fixed the grinding/electric shock noise and hoped this also fixed the stalling problem...I was wrong. This was visit #5 and luckily, the parts and labor were again covered under CPO warranty.


I've spent a significant amount of time and money on warranty deductibles, car rentals, bringing the car to different dealers (4 total) for multiple drivetrain issues (along with other small issues) and researching SMG related issues on multiple websites and from other SMG owners (both M and NON-M owners). There seems to a small number of people that have issues with their SMG transmissions. To this day, I am still experiencing stalling problems with the car. All my previous cars were manuals so with this experience, no more automated-manuals for me...at least until I feel comfortable with them again (DCT or VW/AUdi's DSG anyone?)
 
#21 ·
So did they do SMG adaptation on the car when they change your clutch actuator aka clutch slave cylinder or have you checked your ICV for your stalling issues??? It Could be the culprit for your stalling issues.
 
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#24 ·
Our oil seal or the o-ring is considered a common size.
For what is worth this is the only pic i have of the oil seal that can be used in our clutch actuator.



in comparison the old oil seal:
 
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#25 ·
Like I told you before the bastard (the mechanic that sells it) refuse to sell me the O-ring instead he will only reconditioned the actuator and install the O-ring for a higher price which is RM650 (USD195). From what i gather tho it's not hard that hard to dismantle the actuator and get to the worn O-ring. From there you could just take it to an oil seal specialist for a custom made.

If you really want i'l pm you the guys number and you can call him personally but due bear in mind the time difference.
 
#27 · (Edited)
Not yet anyway :rofl:

I would like to share my recent experience on the flexible hydraulic pipe as found on our SSG unit.

It's the item No. 1 which is the hydraulic pipe unit which incidently is the only pipe that is flexible, the rest is made of brass pipe



Called local bmw parts shop and they quoted me RM1300 (Which is around USD400) and it'll take around 2-3 weeks to arrive ... Almost dropped my phone when heard that LOL

You can see the hydraulic fluid dripping at the end of the banjo clamp


Because of the angle of the hydraulic pipe is connected to the shift actuator causes the leak at the neck of the banjo fittings. Anyway a picture says a thousand word :-



Leakage occurs at the neck due to the angle where it is fixed.


so there you have it another weak link in our system that can cause leakage. We're trying to work out a solution to it and that means fabricating new parts and a slight lengthening of the hydraulic pipe. Hopefully it'll work lah

Bear in mind though I have not seen or heard anyone having this sort of problem except for me (lucky me huh!)
 
#28 ·
So called up a hydraulic specialist and they agreed to do a custom part for me:-

Finally picked up the custom hydraulic pipe kit :-

I'm extremely happy with the build quality ...


Comparison to the original




Fitted :4:


So far so good the new pipe works as it should but i will check again in a week or two just to be sure. Cost me RM280 not cheap but a whole lot cheaper than paying RM1300 from BMW.
 
#29 ·
Thanks B33M3R! I'm also following the SMG shared thread at bmwclubmalaysia.com. Thanks for all the postings. How many miles do you have on your car? Also, I had the fluid flushed recently and the indy told me there were no leaks. In order to flush the fluid, they just siphoned it from the plastic tank and replace with new fluid. Is there another procedure that you know of?

I'm in for the group buy too, and I can pay for shipping and handling as long as it is reasonable.

Thanks again,
Jim
 
#30 ·
had a 2004 325Ci built 01-2004

Clutch replaced at around 30,000 miles

at around 44,000mi (12-2007) hydraulic tank was empty so they replaced the tank, only problems

used launch control 3 or 4 times on each clutch and drove around in non-sport setting over 95% of the time...

09-2010 at 68,000mi I went in for complimentary service and just while chatting with the SA @ Braman BMW W Palm Beach, I asked him about how common pump failures were and if we can still buy a pump for it if needed. He said now BMW doesn't sell those separate parts and they only completely change out the whole unit, he said it's anywhere from $8,000 to $8,500.
Since trade-in value of car (offers i got from dealers) were just under $11,000. Sold the car 10-2010 while everything was working flawlessly for $16,000 and bought a 2005 Acura TL with 26,000 mi, and have been miserable that I bought the Acura ever since, the car would be great if it was rear wheel drive, but front heavy fwd really makes it a crappy handling car compared to the awesome handling of the 325Ci...
 
#32 ·
2004 330 CI convert. sports package.
bought in April 2013 at 86K miles. Now has 90K miles and I just ran into an issue where trying to start the car the shifter wont go into N when I move the shift knob. The light on the knob goes to N but the light on the dash stays at 1 and the car wont turn over.
I have replaced the relay but to no avail. also checked the hood switch.
Suggestions?
Id like to climb under the car to see what the level is in the Hydraulic tank but cant seem to find a place to look at the level. I have not used a mirror to check in the fill hole.
Also, the pump primes when opening the door. Actually the pump primes randomly throughout the day and night for no reason. Would like suggestions on that too.

Thanks,

Greg
 
#33 ·
My pump also does that winding sound even after fixing the seal. It's been more than 3 months btw, heat or traffic, no problems.

As for your issue, I don't have any knowledge of what could be causing that. My problem was getting the car into gear after starting. Have you tried disconnecting the battery? Maybe a computer issue?
 
#37 ·
I do not experience the clutch slip as you do. What I experience sometimes is a slight shudder at take off. Im wondering if either the clutch is starting to go or if im having an issue with the flex coupling (giubo). Have to investigate this.

Going into neutral I dont think is a clutch slip issue anyway. I think there are threads here somewhere with folks having a fix for the smg dropping out of gear.

I wonder though with the SMG if it is better for the system to run all the time in sport mode or normal. I do drive spirited most of the time.

Greg
 
#36 ·
Just realized I never responded to my own fix on the whole issue.
1) Hydraulic pump burned out due to all the cycling with the car off.
2) Partially my fault I think as I had resorted to pulling the "salmon" fuse while the car was off to prevent from happening but was told by the mechanic that fixed my car that that was a bad idea as it exaserbated the situation.
3)Had a local indy troubleshoot, replace, fluids, DME reflash-$1300. I think I got a good deal.
4)Battery drain was part of the problem and I found the parasitic drain. The owner before me installed an Ipod adapter connected to the fixed devices in the trunk panel. I had pulled fuses to find the drain with my son holding the fluke across the battery and monitoring current. I had to pull the panels under the steering column all the way back to the trunk to find all his cabling but once it was disconnected the drain went to normal. I noticed that everytime I pulled/installed one of the fuses to the device (phone, radio, etc) the SMG pump would prime due to current spike.
5)New interstate battery was part of the pump replacement costs too. Since then ive had zero issues.
 
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