DCT Fluid Change?

tb's e90 wrote

subscribed for the info!

What is the typical total cost, including parts and labor?

i replaced the fluid, bottom oil pan, bottom and side gaskets, suction and transmission filters, and all o-rings. all the parts were about $660. this was done while the transmission was out.

nholmes wrote

It might be lifetime, but the filters I pulled out at 103k were pretty gnarly.



Time will tell for those other cars that will never see any service.

yup mine were nasty as well. the DCT transmissions definitely need to be serviced!!

DrFerry wrote

Definition of 'lifetime fluid' = When it breaks it's lifetime is over......

I actually define "lifetime" as "warranty + 1 day".

Hahah

holy smokes, props to you for dropping trans in the garage. I've only been able to do a drain and refill.

Remember DCT is not an auto and there isn't a Tq converter - so the mechanical concept is totally different.
I'll probably do mine as preventative at 50K.

tb's e90 wrote

subscribed for the info!

Compares favorably to this sample at 66k:
http://www.m3post.com/forums/showpost.php?p=16422204&postcount=119

Compared to this sample at 50k even it seems to be holding up pretty well:
http://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=955281

Another at 50k:
http://www.m3post.com/forums/showpost.php?p=15577375&postcount=88

One at 30k with significant track time:
http://www.m3post.com/forums/showthread.php?t=658396

And one with just 2k:
http://www.m3post.com/forums/showpost.php?p=16855887&postcount=139

Just looking at those filters though makes me think 100k is when I'm going to do all my gaskets/fluid/filters.

Thanks for the data point!

Fellow Beamers...my dealership’s quoting 3100$ for a transmission leak that my other dealership never even bothered to mention. I had my DCT replaced at 45K, so i’m guessing not everything is broken. Can you please advise if that’s a reasonable quote?

I would get a second opinion from an independent mechanic that specializes in bmws

M3suri wrote

Fellow Beamers...my dealership’s quoting 3100$ for a transmission leak that my other dealership never even bothered to mention. I had my DCT replaced at 45K, so i’m guessing not everything is broken. Can you please advise if that’s a reasonable quote?

*IF* they confirm it's *ONLY* a DCT transmission *LEAK*
It's absolutely *NOT REASONABLE* !

M3suri wrote

Fellow Beamers...my dealership’s quoting 3100$ for a transmission leak that my other dealership never even bothered to mention. I had my DCT replaced at 45K, so i’m guessing not everything is broken. Can you please advise if that’s a reasonable quote?

Where is the leak? A lot of times it's the oil pan which is an easy fix. Most dealerships nowadays are predatory when it comes to repair quotes so you will need to probe where the leak is coming from to figure out what the job entails.

BrewRifle wrote

Getting mine flushed as we speak ~ 50k miles. Doing it as preventative maintenance since the car is now 5 year old and I figured that was long enough on the original fluid.

Was it easy to change the DCT fluid? I'd like to do a drain and fill with new filter. How many quarts does it take? Thanks, Glen

I was told if you do a drain/fill, fluid will be short by 1.5 quarts. Without running the special software, how did you guys do it? I have been working on cars since 16, and it's always a pain in the a_ _ working on the BMW vehicles. Why don't they just raise the fill lug 1/2" higher so servicing the fluid won't be a headache? It seems like BMW doesn't give a damn about serviceability. If Toyota can come up with the fun driving vehicles...then who would want to purchase a used BMW?

I noticed smoother operation when I changed it around 50,000KM . Lifetime my ass, don't be stupid.

Three Pedal Steve wrote

I am a manual trans guy and a friend with a DCT car was touting that his car has permanent transmission fluid. In the past automatic transmissions require fluid service and manuals were considered permanent. To my thinking anything with moving parts requires fluid changes at some point.

So the question is to DCT owners- What is your trans fluid change interval? 37000 miles?

I got mine done at 40k kms. It does have to do a lot with how you drive and your surroundings.

Mine had the typical leak, fixed in August under Carmax warranty to the tune of $2100.
That was probably on the steep end of cost to fix but I didn't have to care. Dealership quoted me $850 just for fluid/filter change alone prior to all this taking place. Car was at 38k miles at the time of fix and I did not experience any change in DCT character after the full service was done.

Bump.

When you install the oil pan, did you use new gasket and all new bolts (14 of them)? or reused?

Thanks for the info!