Removal Of Autobox, Help Appreciated

[Theo]

Hi there, need to remove a switchable autobox from a car today, and would appreciate a bit of advice. What is the correct proceedure for removal? So far all i've done is remove the prop shaft, rear support bracket, I can see im going to need to undo the bolts in the bell housing which are E14 and E? It's the torque converter which is puzzling me, how is it removed from the flywheel?

[Herrity]

This might sound a little crazy to most people but I used a little pry bar with the rear of the box supported high at the same level it un-bolts from the car. If you remove the exhaust it makes the job a whole lot easier, an you just gently rock the bar in the gap provided and the converter comes out with the gearbox, I did do this in January so my memory could just be a little hazy.

[Ant]

agreed, undo the bolts holding the converter to the flex plate and withdraw the unit complete, saves a lot of mess when the ATF spills outa the TC, all over you

to unbolt the TC, rotate the engine and through the service port in the lower section of the bellhousing, you'll see the bolts pop into view.

[Theo]

Cheers for the advice, I got distracted and removed the power steering setup instead, so not made too much progress. Did manage to drain the ATF out (no spillages ), and removed the plate under the TC, so just need to remove this, and then go and buy an E14 socket and an E10 socket so I dont chew the heads!

BTW - do the gearboxes on eary manual cars have the same torx heads (E14 and E10?)

[Jos]

I think the box on my original 318 '85 were just normal 17mm socket bolts but looking on the TIS the 325 earlys seem to be torx too.

http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do ... g=23&fg=10