trans code: GROUND, SOLENOID VALVES - PIN 54 BREAK OR SHORT IN WIRING OR DEFECT?HELP!

[Young Pete]

hi, i just pulled the codes b/c i had a trans program on my m50a...

anyways, it gave this code:

ground, solenoid valves - pin 54 - possible causes: break or short in wiring, or defective valve winding.


:D

please help, is this something major and would eventually require transmission rebuild? please let me know...

thanks.

[joshua43214]

Get yourself a wiring diagram and check it out. Simply put, there is a fault in the ground circuit for the actuators in the valve body. Cause could be, bad wires, connectors, solenoid, or control unit.

This is something that could potentialy lead to ruining the trans if you continue to drive it. Limp mode is intended for exactly that, limping home. If you continue to drive a car that goes into limp mode, you are asking for trouble.

[winfred]

double check that the plug going to the tranny hasn't rubbed against something but it's probably a dead solenoid, drop the pan and check them with a ohm meter, the bad one should be obvious by it's reading compared to the others, they are held in with roll pins that are sometimes a pain to pull out, grip them with a good pair of vice grips and use a screwdriver to lever against the vice grips and pull the pin out

[Young Pete]

Anyone In The Bay Area Want To Help Me Fix This?
I Do Not Have That Kind Of Electrical Background To Handle It.
;)
Please Let Me Know.

[gale]

I had nearly the identical issue with a Nissan electronically controlled transmission. The codes said the solenoid pack was bad, so the shop replaced them. Didn't fix the problem. Next the codes said there was a short or break in the wiring harness which had no visible signs of damage. I had it towed from the indie to the Nissan dealer and they swapped a good used trans TCU in it & that solved the problem, so maybe score a used TCU on ebay or www.car-part.com before letting a shop open the trans up.

[Rustam]

Anyone In The Bay Area Want To Help Me Fix This?
I Do Not Have That Kind Of Electrical Background To Handle It.
;)
Please Let Me Know.

You may be afraid of the problem becasue of no knowledge of what one may have to deal with. Take a look at this picture, perhaps you can find it reassuring if that is the case:

http://realoem.com/bmw/diagrams/i/y/105.png

13 and 11 point to the harnesses, 5 and 6 and the like are solenoids...

You may find reasonable to pull out the harnesses and solenoids and simply visually inspect them for any raw wires or uncovered connections that can provide potential short circuit.

[tim]

I've also seen this problem trace to a bad TCU. Step 1 on these types of issues is to find a known good unit. Install it and run the car. Then if you still blow the code, you can drop the pan and check out the solenoid and replace the harness.

[winfred]

it takes some searching to find it but theres a pin test you can do at the plug on the tranny to ohm the solenoids without dropping the pan, i just had a zf with a nuked solenoid that was acting weird

[Young Pete]

anyone ever get the transmission code message like the one above?

please let me know your experiences.

[saj3n]

I have a used TCU if needed...

[Brazilianbimmer]

You can also test the resistance values of the solenoids without getting under the car. If you refer to the Bentley wiring diagram for transmission electronics you can easily track the pin numbers for the solenoids in the transmissions at the connector that goes into the TCU. All you need is an ohmmeter and the location of the TCU. (In my car it behind the passenger side kickpanel)