BMW's "filled for life" policy can sometimes cause issues, and regular ATF flush and fill maintenance can be beneficial for smooth gear changes, especially in high-mileage vehicles. Service schedules are indeed influenced by various factors, including the preferences of fleet buyers.

 

Considering the relative low usage of Aisin boxes by BMW, the failure rate seems much higher than ZF. That's just my opinion but I'm willing to bet it's true.

 

thats because ZF's have been around for a very long time Aisin are relatively new in comparison, ZF's also have their faults, but their faults have been forgotten so that the complaining can go to something else, it's human nature to complain when things go wrong and it always gets more coverage than things going right, Aisin's have been fitted to Volvo's and others for many years and they are very solid, reliable and well proven as are ZF's. things move on, people moan. serviced correctly and all will be good.........most of the time.

 

I do see what you are saying and imagine that you are either a 'Specialist' or your best mate is one? I envy you!
With hindsight It may be that I should have got on this forum earlier following my disastrous phone call from my local dealer. They could not have cared less about my predicament or at least didn't after they realised I was not dumb or flush enough to shell out over £11k for them to 'replace' my gearbox. Having listened to your very useful advice I might well have tried a flush or two just to see what happened rather than put the job in the hands of a specialist to do God knows what!!

Yes, people who have had such an expense on a relatively low mileage BM are going to be moaners and very angry! Less so if BMW made a decent offer to remedy the problem of say half the cost. I don't think they can do that because the problem is bigger than you think. Ste42 above has a gd point.

Your point about 'serviced correctly' is obvious but very well made but if the BMW service schedule doesn't require any attention until 100k miles new owners will be unaware of the need to check, replace ATF after a lesser mileage.

 

to be fair, your specialist probably would have suggested flush if they thought it would work [ if they are honest ], BMW dont realy care because the amount of serious issues is small in the grand scheme of things and angry customers are just classed as acceptable losses, no different than other big buisness, doesn't do you any good though sadly. IMO BMW are amongst the small amount of excellent makes and if treated correctly from new they would prove that IE a gearbox run in service at around 1000 MILES/KM's, but they dont as they pander to the fleet buyers, usualy by the time issues arise the vehicle has passed to the next owner with either no warranty or a non BMW aftermarket warranty both of which works to the benefit of BMW, all the manufacturers work like this to a greater or lesser extent, it's just the Motor trade where the end user comes last and always will, it really means all new owners new or second hand need to be "on the ball" when it comes to their vehicles, but that would mean education so that will never happen 😉 i dont like gossip about vehicle faults though as they cause more Red Herrings than anything as major faults usualy are a tiny minority, i remember when Ford first started using single point fuel injection across their range, the public were used to Carburettors and pumping throttle pedals and as a result the new cars were flooding right left and center even though starting instructions stated dont touch the throttle while cranking, the gossip started and Ford were slagged off as never starting in the cold or wet, but the reality at the time was for every ford that didnt start 2000 always did...the negative news won as it always does, People [me included ] love to rant and rave and blame anyone and anything, it's just human nature, life is frustrating and cars realy realy dont help, we could all buy horses, but then some of us would end up being kicked in the nuts and the seller would get the blame for selling a dodgy horse

 

Hi, are there AT aisin transmission issues also on 6/2019+?

 

there will be as there are with any other auto transmission, despite the BMW "filled for life" nonsense keep the transmission serviced and all should be good.

 

Welcome Johnny hope you’re sorted

 

X1 2.0D xdrive 2018 owner here. I had a gearbox issue back in the summer where it was slow to engage reverse and hesitant to change from 2nd gear upwards. Check transmission error displayed and “C3 clutch or B2” error on the diagnostic from my local mechanic. After various garage trips to independents and being told a new transmission was required, finally took to BMW dealership. They confirmed new transmission needed and long story short, they negotiated with BMW UK and was supplied new transmission with me paying 50% labour and BMW paying the remaining labour and parts (£10000+). Car 4 years old, 29000miles, independent service history and no warranty. Dealership were great, said this has happened before and would be pushing for 100% contribution from BMW. Apparently known issue on these transmissions.
Hope this helps if anyone else is going through this.

 

X1 2.0D xdrive 2018 owner here. I had a gearbox issue back in the summer where it was slow to engage reverse and hesitant to change from 2nd gear upwards. Check transmission error displayed and “C3 clutch or B2” error on the diagnostic from my local mechanic. After various garage trips to independents and being told a new transmission was required, finally took to BMW dealership. They confirmed new transmission needed and long story short, they negotiated with BMW UK and was supplied new transmission with me paying 50% labour and BMW paying the remaining labour and parts (£10000+). Car 4 years old, 29000miles, independent service history and no warranty. Dealership were great, said this has happened before and would be pushing for 100% contribution from BMW. Apparently known issue on these transmissions.
Hope this helps if anyone else is going through this.

how many cases though? just wondering as is common for the negative to out shine the positive, things go wrong with all makes and models, but rarely is it common....just talked about more than the good stuff.

 

Same problem here 2019 with 47k miles. Is anything being organised for collective complaint?

 

Hi all, I have been keeping an eye on this thread as I have also had transmission problems (Drivetrain error, limp mode etc.) on the wifes 2018 X2 sDrive that has this Aisin 8 speed gearbox. BMW Dealer quoted me 11k for a new transmission, I escalated to BMW UK who offered 50% goodwill towards the unit but still meant a £6-7k repair on top of the £2500 I'd spent up to that point. I decided to look around and get a second opinion and the consensus is this is a common, known issue with these Aisin gearboxes in X1, X2 and some Mini's - the internet is littered with people having issues. I have spoken to 3 gearbox specialists who all said the same thing - this is a common issue with these, it is fixable but you cannot get the parts so we won't risk stripping it to find we can't source the part(s). I also spoke to a performance specialist who has the BMW software and access to BMW Tech support and they are, to quote, 'seeing lots of customers with these error codes'. Those codes tend be the below or similar:

4204F1 - Gear Ratio monitoring gear 7: Clutch C2 or C3 incorrectly open
421841 - Electric pressure control valve C4: maximum pressure

BMW said the transmission cant take the pressure coming from the engine so puts it into Limp mode. Drives fine for 15 minutes with smooth gear changes and then Boing computer says no message pops up..

I have had a complaint running with BMW UK who wont budge or acknowledge they have an issue. During my research, and as mentioned on this thread a few times, Aisin documentation (which I got from their website) recommends the ATF be changed every 20,000km or 2 years to avoid damage and performance issues, they even directly contradict the 'lifetime maintenance free' assertion from BMW. So we have the car manufacturer directly contradicting the transmission unit manufacturers servicing recommendations. We all know what happens if you don't stick to the BMW service schedule and something goes wrong, the BMW computer says no! In fact their warranty exclusions are quite clear:

An authorised BMW Retailer reserves the right to reject any claim where the cause of the defect is due to non compliance with the service intervals recommended by BMW and or BMW's recommendations for care and maintenance of the vehicle

I am in the process of drafting an Exec level complaint to BMW (even tho I have been told he won't deal with it and it will be passed to to the team I have already spoken to) as the process needs to be followed. We consumers have a number of protections under various bits of Consumer legislation which I think this issue could come under and I am looking into with Citizens Advice and Trading Standards. The point being if we were told of the servicing requirement at the point of purchase or in the BMW service books we have a fighting chance of avoiding issues down the line with the transmission, but we are not. The problem we have is if you go and complain as an individual BMW don't care, a few disgruntled punters who have no choice but to stump up to sort their otherwise unusable car out is small change to a company that made 16.1 billion euros profit in FY22. But, to the man in the street, a repair of several thousand pounds is a massive problem if you need your car for work or taking kids to school etc. I believe we need to organise in order to try and make them listen.

 

i believe the issue is what you mention, service intervals! these gearboxes are used by multiple car makers without apparent issue, there is a school of thought That thinks these gb's should have run in period then a full fluid change followed by fluid changes every 25 to 30,000 miles, my gearbox had the same issues at 25,000 miles, a full fluid flush, correct refill procedure and gearbox reset cured it. i have said before that i think the "filled for life" nonsense is to suit fleet buyers, by the time the cars have been sold on warranties should cover the issue, clearly this doesnt work for all buyers. i really dont believe this is as widespread an issue as some believe, but that doesnt help you sadly, i dont know the answer unfortunately although as a widely used gearbox parts should be readily available from sources other than BMW, i have now done 5,000 miles on a "Faulty" needing repaired or replaced without any faults showing after a service and reset, another option for you would be a second hand replacement box, there is currently one for sale on ebay with just 958 miles for about a third of your repair quote, worth a thought IMO, regardless good luck i hope you get things sorted

 

dont flush, you need to do multiple drains and multiple refills as you can't drain the torque convertor without removing the gearbox, i found 4 drains and refills got the fluid spotless, it was black like diesel oil before! the final refill has to be done correctly though IE correct temp ETC, the reset is to tell the gearbox its had a fluid change and also reset the gearbox learning which adapts to the drivers style. i used: MANNOL 20L GM DEXRON VI 6 Automatic Transmission Fluid ATF Ford Mercon LV after many days of trying to find the correct spec, this is the same as Aisin recommended, you will use most of it if not all.
dont do a flush as the pressure could dislodge one or more O rings which would leave you needing a gearbox strip down, parts can be found [ believe it or not ! ] on many Chinese sites as most of the internals are Chinese so there are options not as scary as some would make you believe, it's just a shame you and others are in this situation, the Aisin gearbox IMO is excellent if treated right, many go for a lot of miles before having issues even without regular servicing, Volvo are also "filled for life " with the same gearbox......crazy !

 

I have got the same problem on a 2018 220d with 36k miles. where did you get the information for the correct procedure? could anyone recommend someone in the London area that could do it for me? my car is only displaying mild symptoms...

 

Well, BMW X1 xDrive - F48 (2019), 98.000km same described issues. Replaced Transmission oil (ATF) and issues gone. Now I have smooth speed change and works as a charm.

 

i believe the majority of issues can be solved like this, good to hear it worked for you too

 

I have a 2018 2.0D with the same issue at 37,000 miles. I'll try draining the fluid

 

make sure you do it right, there is a procedure that must be followed or you could cause damage, but good luck i hope it works for you

 

Sept 2018 f48 X1 xdrive 18d. Between 24k and 28k miles it developed the same symptoms as many here - v.bad changes especially at low speeds and bang going into reverse. Fortunately I bought the vehicle from BMW last Jan 23 (@ 19k miles but no symptoms at that point) so it was still under BMW warranty in Nov 23 when I took it in. They immediately diagnosed it and replaced the gearbox - no question or quibbles - this particular dealer seemed very familiar with the issue! Expensive repair - apparently new gearbox alone was £13k +vat

 

is this not the ZF box rather than the Aisin ?

 

That shape is built on same platform as the mini so has the aisin box, earlier x1 had zf

 

That's good split, maybe is out of your knowledge - X1 25d M Sport 2016 XDrive, what gearbox this car has? Just bought it recently...

 

it's pretty simple, just time consuming, you need to drain the gearbox then refill with the same amount of new fluid, do this at least 3 times [i did 4]until the fluid in the box is clean, you can't drain them fully without removing the gearbox because the torque converter holds a few litres, you have to run the engine and operate the gearbox in all positions to circulate the ATF, once done the correct level needs to be reached and this is done by running the gearbox to 40c to a max of 50c and removing the small level plug while the engine is running, if some fluid comes out the wait until it stops and replace the level plug, if nothing comes out then turn off engine and add a litre and try again etc, dont rely on the amount removed and replaced as this may have been wrong, you will need either a temp gun or diagnostics to get the temp measurements right and also will need to do a GB reset, sounds a lot but actually easy if you take your time

 

Many thanks. did you drive the car or run the engine between the refills? or just refill and drain again? would still be great if i knew there was someone competent to do it. the regular mechanics won't touch a gearbox and the gearbox specialists just tell you it needs a full rebuild

 

no the car should be stationery, level and up on stands/jacks, run the engine and operate the gearbox in all gears and neutral for a few minutes, all this does is mix the old ATF with the new, essentially watering down the old ATF with all the drains and refills, most recommend 3 refills but i felt better at 4. you will need 20l to do the job. your gearbox should have been done max 30,000.
look up images of your gearbox online and you will see the drain plug set up, also a sensor on the top of the box needs to be removed to refill
no idea why garages won't do this, as an ex breakdown patrol i have done this twice at the side of the road for Members,not easy but doable

 

Just had the fluid changed, used ISTA to reset the adaptations but cannot find an option to reset the oil service counter - does that matter? Assuming it will take a few trips for the box to 're-learn' and settle down. The guy in the gearbox place asked me if I knew I had a problem with it engaging Gear 7 (I do as i get code 4204F1 - Gear Ratio Monitoring, gear 7: Clutch C2 or C3 open incorrectly) - he said likely to be a control unit issue. not hopeful but lets see what the next few days hold!!

 

As mentioned by multiple users on the forum, it seems like there is a serious quality issue with these BMWs. I have a 220i Gran Tourer from 2016 with just over 110,000kms on it. Albeit a little more on the miles, I have followed BMW's exact guide on when to do maintenance (Oil change etc) and done most of the services with my local BMW dealership. However, the same issue with the AISIN 8 Speed Gearbox also occurred in my car. Out of nowhere the car started to drive in limp mode and all the gear shifts were messed up. It was so severe to a point where I was driving up a gentle slope of a parking garage and the car was unable to climb and rolled back until I slammed on the brakes. It nearly caused an accident as there were people walking near the slope when the car rolled back uncontrollably. Basically, the car is undrivable at this point as it can't even drive up a gentle slope without rolling back multiple times.

I had it checked with a 3rd party mechanic and its the same issue with the gearbox valve body control module that failed. An estimated cost to replace the entire gearbox assembly would cost over 10000 pounds! That's basically what the car is worth at the moment! Now I know that some might say a car with 110,000 kms is gonna have issues. Now I entirely agree on this point but a gearbox is basically one of the most crucial part of the car which in theory should't fail and need a complete replacement at just 7 years. That's just absurd in my opinion and it really speaks about the quality issues that BMWs have. Surely, a responsible user who followed BMW's exact guide on maintenance should have a car that is running perfectly fine at just 7 years. The thing that concerns me is the gearbox failed out of nowhere without warning which is a huge safety concern as I drive mostly around hilly areas, and I can't afford to have my car suddenly start rolling backwards and cause an accident!

If this issue with the gearbox was an isolated case, I would treat it as an unfortunate incident, but it does seem like its some sort of manufacturing defect or quality issue. I've read on another forum posted a few years back where 12-15 ppl also had the same issue with this exact AISIN gearbox. Their cars had a mileage ranging from 30K to 110K kms. They ended up sending a group exec complaint email to BMW AG citing each individual car's VIN number. What ended up happening is that each of the owners got a call from their respective local dealership whom offered to replace all their gearboxes completely for free. Corresponding to @PAS593's comment on drafting an exec level complaint email, I was wondering if you all would like to send a group email to BMW AG with all the infos about our cars and see what the HQ decides to do? I've contacted my local dealership and they also wouldn't budge, that's why I feel like if multiple people send an email citing the same issues with the gearbox, it could make the issue seem more like a manufacturing defect rather than an isolated case.

 

I feel your pain with this, and many others. I am off this morning to get the ATF changed in the BMW I am having issues with, I have also got a copy of the ISTA software to do the gearbox reset post fluid change. Some have had success with this so worth the few hundred quid to give it a try. Will report back. If you are handy Bruce has explained the process above which seems simple enough but I’d rather pay someone to do it and not have me balls it up!!! i have complained to BMW UK already and got nowhere, I now have a complaint in with the finance company, awaiting a response. I think a group complaint is the way forward if we can get enough of us.

 

@symze01 thanks for the prompt response. I absolutely agree with your point on the group complaint. I had a mechanic look at changing the ATF but he suggested that I would most likely be a temporary fix. There is a slim chance that getting the ATF flushed would resolve the problem but that probability is around 10-20%. Although the cost for flushing the ATF is significantly less than getting a new gearbox, I've already invested a lot into maintenance for this car and being a BMW owner for over 21 years, I'm just fed up with the constantly decreasing quality that these cars are getting. In hindsight, I probably shouldn't have bought this Gran Tourer when it first came out as it was a completely new platform and it was bound to have problems down the road. But hey, it is what it is and right now there's nothing I can do other than going forward with the group complaint.

 

you say the service have all been done, but do you realise this does not include transmission fluid change ? BMW and other Aisin users say they are filled for life and this IMO is the problem not the gearbox, it sounds like yours is way past help with a fluid change, but if it has been diagnosed as a valve body problem why not just get it changed? they are available, but i wont say where as i dont want the responsibility of telling everyone where incase it turns out not to be the issue or faulty ones are purchased etc, do a search and you will find them, the other alternative is a low mileage 2nd hand unit from the likes of ebay, they can be bought quite cheap, a couple of weeks ago one was on ebay UK with just 600+ miles for about 2000 pounds which is way better than BMW's quote, personally i would buy a valve body and try it, but thats just me and not advice, it's not good what you are going through and i feel for you, but it's not a general Gearbox issue, if it was BMW would do a recall, we have 3 BMW's in my household and 2 have just been recalled for EGR cooler replacement obviously free of charge, as said the issue in my opinion is the filled for life nonsense and it's not just Aisin gearboxes, it's also ZF's, manual gearboxes, differentials and transfer cases etc, usualy by the time there is a major issues the vehicles have changed hands and the warranty is out of date, but many many thousands go onto to do huge miles without apparent issues, if there was a major issues with Aisin, there would be more than a handful talking about it on forums, this does not help you i know and i think from BMW's perspective you are just cannon fodder for their dumb service requirements, to be honest even the engine oil service is twice what it should be, 10,000 miles or once a year is IMO what should happen, i do hope you get your car fixed, it would be good if you can let everyone know how you get on

 

Yeah, I've seen on multiple forums that the "Lifetime" ATF claimed by BMW is completely bogus. Unfortunately, I was mislead by the BMW reps as I am pretty sure I enquired upon this years ago. They also said that its lifetime and doesn't need to be changed unless if you fix the gearbox. Nonetheless, I think if there's enough people for a collective letter to BMW AG, it might work out. You never know but I guess its good to give it a try. And even if they decide to completely ignore the issue or give a generic reply, it would give us even clearer insight into how they operate as a business. It's just unfortunate that after 21 years of driving bimmers, I have sadly lost confidence in their brand. But thanks for your reply and ideas, I might just end up fixing the gearbox at a 3rd party for cheap and sell the car immediately if I can't gather enough people for the collective letter..

Cheers

 

You can count me in. I have a fairly lengthy complaint in with BMW Finance after I got rebuffed by BMW UK. I have found after sales documentation on the Aisin EU website that directly contradicts the lifetime fill assertion, they even say it should be swapped every 20km oe 2 years to 'prevent major repair' (in their words). I moved from Mercedes to BMW in 2020 and have had nothing but trouble - my 730d cost £6k in repairs to door lock mechanism, 2 replacement air suspension struts and compressor (bought extended warranty thankfully), the wifes X2 I've already spent £2500 on various problems and now this gear box issue, I bought a 745Le in August last year and now the charging port flap wont open or the charging cable gets stuck and I'm having intermittent issues with the fuel flap not opening - but at totally inconvenient times. It's all just hassle I can do without given we are pretty much down to 1 car. My E-Class Merc went forever with zero issues bar the usual sensors and bits and bobs. I am generally not happy with BMW so happy to join a group complaint.

 

Thanks all for your insightful response. So far, I have 3-4 people on forums with the same interest on a group complaint letter. I think we should aim for around 15-20 people with the exact same issue (Or pretty much similar). I also agree with @brucefraser12011962's point on media outlets. I understand it is extremely hard for BMW to budge but I guess this is the least we can do at the moment. I'll keep on posting on other forums to try to gather as much people as possible. It might take some time so please bear with me. I'll keep you updated as to how many people I've found. Thanks all

 

Hi all, silly question, I have a F48 X1 sDrive20i, how do I know if I have the Aisin gearbox? According to wikipedia there 3 different types of gearboxes in the F48, 6-speed, 7-speed and 8-speed and only the 8-speed is Aisin.

The other question is why some gearboxes last longer without maintenance. Is it due to driving style or what?

 

the sDrive is front wheel drive so its the Aisin gearbox you have, as for lasting longer without maintenance, probably driving style, luck and a good quality gearbox

 

Thanks. Recently I had this issue when I took my car for MOT. I now seem to remember that there was also a transmission error as well. Could this be the gearbox? After the reset the car has been working fine and no issues with the gearbox or other messages.

 

it is IMO unlikely that a fluid change will help, but it's worth a try, most likely a sticking solenoid