I've been offered an e39 535 auto tiptronic, for a ridiculous price.
It's in a hell of a state, but nothing that can't be fixed. The only thing that worries me is that there is apparently 'no drive' - i.e. it starts ok, but when put in drive, nothing happens.
I know nothing about auto's so could someone put me straight?
What is the likely cause of 'no drive' in an auto?
is there any possibility it might be a simple fix?
How can i diagnose what the actual prob is?
Worst case scenario - how much for a new autobox?
i'm going to see the car in about 5 hours, so any advice would be very gratefully received,
many thanks
m535man
Auto gearbox with no drive - just how fatal is it?
Moderator: martauto
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bazza93
- E30 Zone Camper
- Posts: 1305
- Joined: Sat Sep 09, 2006 11:00 pm
- Location: in corringham essex
on past experiance auto box's once given up, thats it ! 
auto box's are a specialist thing, but you might just be lucky and the linkage might have come adrift 
auto box's are a specialist thing, but you might just be lucky and the linkage might have come adrift will be back in an E30 oneday soon !
THE BMW 3-SERIES. IT'S WHY SOME ENTHUSIASTS ARE MORE ENTHUSIASTIC,
THE BMW 3-SERIES. IT'S WHY SOME ENTHUSIASTS ARE MORE ENTHUSIASTIC,
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darkchild
- E30 Zone Addict
- Posts: 2730
- Joined: Mon Feb 06, 2006 11:00 pm
- Location: Kingston 12
Hearing more and more bad press for the E39's autobox. Probably due to BMW's ridiculous "sealed for life" nonsense.
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Andyboy
- Alpina Colada
- Posts: 12578
- Joined: Mon Sep 11, 2006 11:00 pm
The E39 in general is a bit crap in old age - nice when new but just like a BMW built by Renault. They just are not robust like the old stuff and suffer a lot of stupid faults you never had on older stuff like the E34 - dash pixels, plastic anti roll bar links(!), radiators fracturing where the hoses go on etc. They just are not fixable when they go wrong because almost every electrical part needs to be coded to the car.
The V8's are really something to be avoided. The M62 engine isn't very good and the ZF autoboxes are a disaster area. Unless this one is £500 I would steer well clear. I bought a 98 528i Sport recently with Alpina wheels - swapped these for Spoons and shoved the piece of shit back in the auctions.
But to answer your original question; the gearbox is shagged and needs either replacement or a rebuild.
The V8's are really something to be avoided. The M62 engine isn't very good and the ZF autoboxes are a disaster area. Unless this one is £500 I would steer well clear. I bought a 98 528i Sport recently with Alpina wheels - swapped these for Spoons and shoved the piece of shit back in the auctions.
But to answer your original question; the gearbox is shagged and needs either replacement or a rebuild.