Restore Engine Performance

[hoodsstalker]

Hello everyone, I own a 95' 525i ATM(automatic transmission) with 140k miles

since i have owned my 5 , one question has haunted me: Am I getting the top performance out of my 5?

There are two issues in particular that have me scratching my head that i want to fix and would greatly appreciate if someone could point me in the right direction.

When i begin driving for the day and the engine is cold i encounter a problem. I get on the highway/freeway and accelerate to move at the speed of traffic, then my transmission stalls. i make it into 2nd gear and i stare at the RPM gauge. the arrow rises to about 3k rpm , then flutters up and down from 3k rpm back down to about 2.5k rpm. If i press all the way down on the acceleration , the transmission stops stalling and continues rising to 4krpm and on (but its a very rough transition). if instead i attempt to gradually accelerate , the rpms continue to flutter until i release my foot from pedal and sort of "pepper" the acceleration. is the fluttering or stalling of acceleration/rpms damaging my transmission?

the other issue i have with the 5 , is that from what i've read on the forums and seen on the freeway , the e34 is a fast car. my 5 , seems to be lacking power and acceleration but i'm not sure what could be the cause , i recently changed the spark plugs and put in Bosh platinums. for about a week i had better mpg and acceleration. i also did an oil change about two months ago , but still i feel as though i'm not tapping into the full potential of the engine.

any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated
thank you for your time guys and gals

[Randell]

your wording makes it a little hard to understand what's happening, but could the problem actually be in the transmission?

does the engine rev normally when in park or neutral when cold? i've driven a subaru liberty RS turbo with a slipping auto and it acted fine until i put my foot down, as soon as the power came on the auto started freaking out, slipping and clunking

[joshua43214]

Pull the Botch platinums, they suck, put in Bosch or NGK copper, I prefer NGK. Only buy Bosch platinums if they have the BMW logo on them, they suck at aftermarket parts.

What do you mean the trans stalls? do you mean it slips? Does the RPM flare up when it shifts? Or is it really an engine problem and the engine stops producing power in a certain RPM/load band? I can't really follow your description well.

[632 Regal]

found your problem...

i recently changed the spark plugs and put in Bosh platinums.

[Montreal525]

Pull the Botch platinums, they suck, put in Bosch or NGK copper, I prefer NGK. Only buy Bosch platinums if they have the BMW logo on them, they suck at aftermarket parts.

Really ?? I've I had two sets so far, worked O.K.. I'm due so what's good. NGK copper? How about those Iridiums?

Has per the engine problem, the fluttering, especially if it's around 50-60 mph, is a transmission problem, in my opinion. Had the same problem until the dreaded trans program came up and the tranny went the way of the Dodo. Since I changed it, it never came back. Start hunting for a used tranny or a shop that's willing to work on yours.

Jeff

[ssimms]

I concur with some of the other posters. I have always found the stock Bosch silber tipped plugs (sorry just found that the stock plugs for your car are Bosch coppers, none the less I would stick with stock) to be the best for my BMW's (12 cars in 26 years). The dealerships are reasonable on plugs for the most part. (the plugs for my new MINI are ridiculous) But, I also agree with others about your automatic transmission. I think you should start with a complete flush/change of the fluid and screen in this tranny. (least expensive things first) Others would be better with what fluid to use as I don't own any automatics. But, this forum can be searched for issues with these automatics and how they should be treated. Also, if I am not mistaken there is a specific issue with this tranny that requires a valve rebuild or something like it to renew the correct shifting feel etc. Although, it is quite common to have to replace one of these trannies at this mileage as well.
Let's not jump to conclusions. Buy a maintenance kit here; http://www.racingking.net/Canada/scripts/prodList.asp?idCategory=20 for 95 USD and have the tranny fluid and screen replaced. (I would seriously have it completely flushed somewhere with the correct stuff. Redline or Amsoil fluids are great in my experience).
I suggest racing king because of their experience with e34's and the service I have received in the past. This maintenance kit replaces all the stuff you should make sure and do, all together to eliminate possible issue related to general tune up type things and will make your car run tip top if any of these parts are sub par on your car.
Drive it for a while to see if that doesn't improve what you are accustomed to.

Scott

Hello everyone, I own a 95' 525i ATM(automatic transmission) with 140k miles

since i have owned my 5 , one question has haunted me: Am I getting the top performance out of my 5?

There are two issues in particular that have me scratching my head that i want to fix and would greatly appreciate if someone could point me in the right direction.

When i begin driving for the day and the engine is cold i encounter a problem. I get on the highway/freeway and accelerate to move at the speed of traffic, then my transmission stalls. i make it into 2nd gear and i stare at the RPM gauge. the arrow rises to about 3k rpm , then flutters up and down from 3k rpm back down to about 2.5k rpm. If i press all the way down on the acceleration , the transmission stops stalling and continues rising to 4krpm and on (but its a very rough transition). if instead i attempt to gradually accelerate , the rpms continue to flutter until i release my foot from pedal and sort of "pepper" the acceleration. is the fluttering or stalling of acceleration/rpms damaging my transmission?

the other issue i have with the 5 , is that from what i've read on the forums and seen on the freeway , the e34 is a fast car. my 5 , seems to be lacking power and acceleration but i'm not sure what could be the cause , i recently changed the spark plugs and put in Bosh platinums. for about a week i had better mpg and acceleration. i also did an oil change about two months ago , but still i feel as though i'm not tapping into the full potential of the engine.

any suggestions or advice would be greatly appreciated
thank you for your time guys and gals

[joshua43214]

Your car uses the double electrode type plug, putting in the crappy Botch plats is taking a big step backwards. Irridium is fine, but never change the style of plug tip. The "what plug to use" is a tired old debate, but pretty much the one thing that every professional agrees on, is never use Botch platinums. The ones with the BMW logo are made to a much higher standard and work, Botch is probably the worst manufacturer when it comes to their non badged OEM parts.

[Montreal525]

Your car uses the double electrode type plug, putting in the crappy Botch plats is taking a big step backwards. Irridium is fine, but never change the style of plug tip. The "what plug to use" is a tired old debate, but pretty much the one thing that every professional agrees on, is never use Botch platinums. The ones with the BMW logo are made to a much higher standard and work, Botch is probably the worst manufacturer when it comes to their non badged OEM parts.

Ha.... Well, off to the parts store I go.... ;)

Jeff

[hoodsstalker]

well, let me explain again what happens when i begin driving.
what i really want to emphasize is that this only occurs until the car is warmed up.
when i enter the freeway for the first time and gradually increase my speed around the 40-50 mph mark the transmissionor engine chokes. i figured it was the transmission because the rpm gauge slips from 4k rpm back down to 3k rpm than tries to return to 4k rpm but slips back down to 3k again. this slipping/ stalling of the acceleration goes away if either I take my foot off the gas or floor it. If i continue to attempt at gradually increasing my speed by slowly pressing my foot down on the acceleration pedal , the rpms/tranny continues to slip. is this damaging the transmission if it only occurs when my engine is cold? because after it warms up after five-ten minutes the car runs like a champ for the most part. is this a common defect in my model? and if i bought another transmission would it be better to go with a manual or auto , would it be more difficult to install the manual?

[Gayle]

the other issue i have with the 5 , is that from what i've read on the forums and seen on the freeway , the e34 is a fast car. my 5 , seems to be lacking power and acceleration but i'm not sure what could be the cause




Part of the problem may be your expectations. These cars were designed to be autoban crusiers, not race cars. They are heavy. That is why people are always trying to shave a few pounds off here and there and worry what aftermarket rims, etc weigh. Not negating what others have said and you probably can improve your cars performance but I personally would not call the e34 a fast car.

We had a thread a while back about what is the fastest you have driven and in what? ( http://www.bimmer.info/forum/showthread.php?t=16379&highlight=hall+shame)

e34 525s did not figure promimently.

who is the fastest fool (http://servo.postverket.us/alex/Hall%20of%20Shame.xls)



.

[mzarifkar]

I think i have bad news for you, your transmissions bouncing between revs, is called pendulum shifting, do a search on it, i have it too, it will only get worse. our cars have bulletproof engines with **** for automatic tranny, going into sport mode (s3) while you are accelerating to your desired cruising speed will help.

[hoodsstalker]

is there anyway to reverse the effect? and is s3 A or M on the lil switch board next to the shifter or 3rd gear?

[joshua43214]

If your transmission slips, the RPMs will increase, not decrease. As was stated above, you car is doing what is called pendulum shifting. this is when it hunts back and forth between 2 gears.

There was a service bulitin released to address this issue, and required replacingthe valve body. This is an expensive part, but far cheaper than a rebuilt trans. If you do decide to go with a rebuild, I do not recomend you rebuild the one you have, since you will have to get a new valve body ontop of the regular rebuild cost. Get one from Kurt Koehler, it will have all the updated parts and is affordable. He is a board member, so searrch for his name.

[mzarifkar]

with your transmission in regular A mode, if you move the lever to 3 you will be in sport mode, your gear indicator on the dash will indicate S3, in sport mode you have higher revs before shifting and you wont shift into 4th gear (overdrive)

is there anyway to reverse the effect? and is s3 A or M on the lil switch board next to the shifter or 3rd gear?