thats it im keeping the car

[markus]

and doing the 5-speed swap.

for those of you who do not know my transmission in my car went out over a month ago and the cost of rebuilding is astronomical.

i have one of those aftermarket warranties which provided me with a used tranny.

called the mechanic today and told me the cooler threads have stripped and the warranty company doesnt include the cooler. basically this is a hard part to get used and the only way is through a dealer which doesnt fly with me and also i have to pay for the fluid. i dont want to put money towards fluid which will go into the used tranny so i rather put it towards the 5-speed.


i contacted the euro depot and the 5-speed kit is around $1900. it includes all new parts which is what i like besides the obvious used items like the transmission and driveshaft, pedals, etc..


my mechanic doesnt mind doing it but hes not sure if the warranty company will buy the tranny back. if not then how much can i get for a used 5HP30? or is there a company out there that will take them? like kurt kroller?

anyways i had a chance to look under the car with the tranny out and its prety amazing how BMW designed all these cars to accept manual transmissions. theres even a rubber plug in where the clutch lines go through. my mechanic was suprised becuase he thought there would have to be holes cut and such. BMW already did that.

But if anyone needs a good used BMW 540iA driveshaft or automatic tranny computer or wiring harness let me know. i need $$$$. I also have a set of style 19s in my basement id hate to let go but i want my car back. they are all straight and in very good shape. the clear coat is peeling off in some spots on 2 of the wheels. One wheel is real bad but all the wheels are straight. i wouldnt hesitate to run them as is but to look 100% they will need to be recleared.

[scott540]

Are you putting a 5 speed in 540 or a 6 speed? Just curious

[txp135]

Scott, he said 5 speed, the 6 speed costs too much.

Markus, I'm glad you are keeping it. I wonder how much diff in performance is between the 5 and the 6 sp. But I'm sure it will be very satisfactory. Most of the time I skip the gears anyway because there's really no need for 6 of them unless I'm trying to top out the speedo. Most of the time, it's just 1st, 2nd, then 6th.

[shrike071]

Just FYI - I have an auto-trans cooler (OEM) I will send you for postage-costs....

[markus]

is the cooler for the 5HP30 or no? I dont even know how this god damn thing is suppsoed to fit in. either way these autos are POSs.

[winfred]

yea the cases of those trannys are some of the softest **** alloy i've seen, i think they are made from melted down lawn furniture and beer cans


is the cooler for the 5HP30 or no? I dont even know how this god damn thing is suppsoed to fit in. either way these autos are POSs.

[632 Regal]

beer cans are tough, pot metal perhaps?


yea the cases of those trannys are some of the softest **** alloy i've seen, i think they are made from melted down lawn furniture and beer cans

[shrike071]

The cooler I have is for the auto that came in the 93 - The GM one. This goes in front of your radiator. I'll dig it out and take a pic.

[yaofeng]

I take you called around and could not get a good price on a six speed package? Have you tried this place?

http://www.austinveedub.com/

They have one the last time I checked a few days ago. I bought mine a year ago for $2,000.

[Ross]

For sure. More than a few running around with pan bolts broken off too.

[RallyD]

install requires the removal of the radiator and is the same cooler for all of these applications
1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 BMW 525I 4DR ( E34 ) BMW 530I 4DR ( E34 ) BMW 540I 4DR ( E34 ) BMW M3 CONV ( E36 ) BMW 323I 4DR ( E36 ) BMW 323I CONV ( E36 ) BMW 323IS 2DR ( E36 ) BMW 318I 4DR ( E36 ) BMW 318I CONV ( E36 ) BMW 318IS 2DR ( E36 ) BMW 318TI HATCH ( E36 ) BMW 325I 4DR ( E36 ) BMW 325I CONV ( E36 ) BMW 325IS 2DR ( E36 ) BMW 328I 4DR ( E36 ) BMW 328I CONV ( E36 ) BMW 328IS 2DR ( E36 ) BMW M3 2DR ( E36 ) BMW M3 4DR ( E36 )

I just bought one for $50 because I messed up the connection block

But... a 5 speed manual would be the business.go for it!

[MBXB]

This is the trans cooler on my 540:

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do?model=HE63&mospid=47410&btnr=17_0086&hg=17&fg=05

[RallyD]

whoops, my bad

[markus]

nope but i will now.

but does the kit include new wear items like the clutch and mounts?

[yaofeng]

The 6 speed package include the clutch and the mount and rubber. But you don't want to use the old clutch. Or do you?

[markus]

i called asutin vee dub and the guy on the phone was less than helpful.

i asked him "so can you tell me a little more about the kit?"

him:"just come here and pull the parts you need, what more can I tell you"

his reply: "to be honest with ya you are better off fixing ur car and trading it for one with a 5-speed already in it"

GREAT customer service. Unless this guy was a noobie or simply hated his job i couldnt stand talking to this moron. I felt like saying "well no **** *******, you think this idea never crossed my mind? if i wanted to do that then why the hell would I be calling you about a kit"

this is the route I dont want to take. I rather just buy from euro depot which is a 100% plug and play kit. They even include the relay which you need to start the car and a new cluster that tells my DME its a manual.

Im not sure if id want to do this because would swapping a 530i cluster into a 540i cause and ill effects? Also id like to keep my milage as is.

[yaofeng]

I couldn't find the name of the contact person I talked to at Veedub. You can also send email asking them to provide a list of parts and total cost required for the conversion for you to review.

[genphreak]

The cooler I have is for the auto that came in the 93 - The GM one. This goes in front of your radiator. I'll dig it out and take a pic. Does an auto trans cooler from an e28 work with custom plumbing? Hmmm

(I'm planning too...)

[winfred]

us e28s the tranny cooler was part of the radiator so were e34s up to about 92, then they started with the external unit that could be put on about any bmw


Does an auto trans cooler from an e28 work with custom plumbing? Hmmm

(I'm planning too...)

[Elekta]

Dude, Austin Veedub is a no frills bone yard (ie not much weedeating going on around the cars). Most of the bmw bones are on the car. The audi's and vw's are picked over and the parts are on racks, and somewhat catagorized.

I sincerely doubt there's a six speed in there that some one in austin (like Sayther's (http://www.terrysaytherauto.com/Home.htm) outfit) hasn't already picked, but your best bet is to find someone (other than me of course ;) ) to go over there and walk around right down some vins and then crunch that data at home for what you might not get from the monkey behind the window.

Last time I was there, I didn't see 10 e34's at all let alone older manual 735's or cars that would have that transmission. You have to understand there are folks who pursue this much harder that us.... ( meaning electronic and telephone searches) I don't think a wrecked 840i6 or 540i6 would get towed to veedub frankly.

The boneyard system is not perfectly computer catagorized that's for sure and austin veedub is no candidate for efficiency.

You could email one of sayther's ( I think it's Rhett ) used parts guys and ask him to look for one for you...or for more ideas

best of luck

[markus]

in the meantime i think ill start purchasing the parts i need.

theres a used 530i-5 driveshaft on ebay and they want $80 for it so ill probly snatch that up. and give steve haygpood a call tommorow and ask about prices for the slave and master cylinders and the hoses for the clutch hydraulics.