Seems like the 1-2 3-2 shifting issue is right from the 2005 first gen cooper s right up to the present 2010 2nd gen cooper s, (doesn't seem to affect the cooper as much) I wouldn't like to class this as normal, I can't remember my old Ford granada auto's shifting like this.

These mini's we have are BMW's not Proton's or Kia's, we pay BMW prices which aint cheap, I expect it to change gear smoothly in every gear, I'm not asking too much here am I.

I bet when I go to BMW on friday they will claim they have not heard of the issue before

 

BMW with a Toyota Aisin transmission. Synthetic ATF fluid such as Redline D4, Amsoil or Royal Purple should smooth out the shifts. Mine is much smoother after adding 2.2 quarts of Mobil 1 during the change. However, I used old Mobil 1 ATF I had in the garage and heard on Bobistheoilguy forums that the new Mobil 1 ATF formulation is not listed as compatible with Toyota T-IV. Redline and Royal Purple are available at Amazon.

 

The new Mobil 1 synthetic ATF specifically has JWS3309 stamped on it. Look on the quart bottles themselves and see what they say.
As far as shifting, it is harsh because it is sporty. The tranny is tuned accordingly. It bites into gears firm and it drives as if there is no torque converter, there is no slushy feeling like a traditional automatic tranny. All this is redundant since you guys drive automatics but I did want to point out that, well, we bought a Mini, not Camry.

 

[quote=fishbone;3148603]The new Mobil 1 synthetic ATF specifically has JWS3309 stamped on it. Look on the quart bottles themselves and see what they say.
As far as shifting, it is harsh because it is sporty. The tranny is tuned accordingly. It bites into gears firm and it drives as if there is no torque converter, there is no slushy feeling like a traditional automatic tranny. All this is redundant since you guys drive automatics but I did want to point out that, well, we bought a Mini, not Camry.[/quote

It can be sporty without being harsh surely, we have the sport mode for that, so if I slipped it ito that mode and it was harsh I may be able to accept that because I want to drive a bit more enthusiastically, but in norm drive mode it should be smooth.
Your saying cos we got a mini and its a sporty car it should bite into gears, then it should bite into every gear shift the same not just the 1-2 up 3-2 down.

From what I have read on some of the VW forums, guy's with the R32 or the GTI Golfs with the DSG box (no torque converter) are sporty and very smooth on the shifting, may be looking at one of these for our next car

 

The reason 1-2 and 3 are slammy is because of the gear ratios and the type of load the engine sees. If you accelerate grandma-mode, you won't feel the shifts. There cannot be a significant difference between Sport mode and normal because that would involve significantly higher line pressure, which isn't really possible to do without some serious mods.
I can only WISH the tranny on my Subaru Legacy GT shifted and felt the same as the Mini S. I have a modded valve body on it and even though at WOT it shifts quick and crisp, city driving is kinda sloppy because of the high stall torque converter. The Mini torque converter feels like it's always in torque lock-up mode and I love it. The Mini tranny also has a smarter shift logic. It will hold the right gear for the speed, whereas my Subie 5EAT's sole goal in life is to get to 5th gear as quick as possible.
The DSG box is a different animal altogether and a very very sophisticated and expensive unit. On a traditional tranny the only way to make the gear changes smooth is pretty much by lowering the line pressure, which in turn means slipping the clutches, akin to riding the clutch on a MT. Personally, I say no thanks to that
You have a valid point and I'm not contradicting you in any way, just expressing my opinion.

 

Drove the car again today. Gears do not slam at all. It does shift a bit too firm when downshifting. Other than that, gears engage pretty smooth. I think slammy gears is a sign the ATF needs replacing. Have you guys done at least 3 drain and fills? Do you have the correct level of ATF?

 

Yes a little over 3 drain and fills, and the level should be spot on, temp was a little over 40c when the fluid stopped trickling out of standpipe.

Right ours from cold will change smooth in all gears, but you can tell the changes are a fraction of a second longer, like you say slipping the clutch a tad in a manual, after approx 3 miles of norm driving, engine warm/hot (cant tell the temp cos we don't have a gauge, just that stupid little overtemp light ) thats when you can get the little jerk from 1st to 2nd from a standing start, norm acceleration just steady i'm not flooring the gas in anyway, its just that 2nd gear that seems to be the issue, like I say its not every 1st to 2nd shift, prob 3 to 4 times out of ten and its the same when its coming down the gears into 2nd a little firmer like you say as it bites into that 2nd gear, and it does make a difference if you have your foot on the brake pedal as it changes down, foot on the brake = little jerk foot off brake and it can be a bigger jerk, before the fluid change this could have been a bang and shudder as it changes down into 2nd (foot off brake), its done that before especially downhill.
Now stick it in manual mode and you can eliminate the jerk fom 1st to 2nd cos you are starting off in second but you still may get the downchange jerk into 2nd in manual mode.

I would like to thankyou again fishbone for the great writeup on the fluid change procedure, it has made the tranny a lot better.
Maybe i'm being a bit too picky, I was just a bit miffed that it didn't totally cure that little jerk.

 

Don't worry, I am picky (actually I think I am ****) about things like this too.

 

Just read this and plan on doing the flush this weekend. So drain, measure, add amounr removed, drive 10 minutes and repeat. Also the ATF being added should be close to the same temp coming out? How did you heat, just sitting in hot water? Planned on using the Mobil 1 since is does state it is compatiable. Thanks

 

Wzabrouski, check the Mobil 1 ATF bottles to be sure they state Toyota T-IV compatible because the newest version is no longer compatible. Both types may be on store shelves. If it is the right stuff it will state on the back a long list of ATF types for which it is compatible including Toyota T-IV. If you cannot find it I heard Valvoline Max Life also works, but I would prefer a synthetic ATF.

I found it easier to do a fluid change while cold after sitting overnight and the new fluid is the same temp. Then repeat the next weekend when it has cooled down overnight so you do not have to deal with measuring temperatures. Just measure how much was drained out. Keep your new fluid in the car or garage so it is the same temp as the stuff in the trans. The other bonus for this method is you will not burn yourself on hot fluid or attempting to get that da*& bolt out of the trans.

 

After the last change you need to check the level when the fluid is hot. So, drive for thirty minutes, pull the drain plug if no fluid comes out use a thermometer to check the temp of the tranny. Heat fluid bottle in water at the same temp as tranny. Add fluid until it starts coming out of drain hole.

 

So the only way to see if you have the correct level of fluid is to see if it flows out when the drain bolt is removed?

 

So the only way to see if you have the correct level of fluid is to see if it flows out when the drain bolt is removed?

 

Yep.

But I didn't do this. I just measured and refilled and aimed for "close enough"... which I think I probably achieved.

 

IF you drive it for 30 minutes the ATF will be too hot. The temp has to be between 35-45*C IIRC.
Also, the motor needs to be running when you're checking the level.
Set the car level, pull the drain bolt with the engine cold, start it up and let it idle. Stick the thermometer on the pan and monitor the temp. Right around 35*C you should start seeing ATF come out. If not, shut it down and top off.

 

I too just drained it cold at garage overnight temp, carefully measured the amount drained, then refilled the same amount with fluid that had been stored in the garage and was the same temp. I doubt the level is off by more than a couple of ounces. It shifts perfectly, better than before.

 

Did you happen to measure how many quarts you actually got out doing it when the transmission was cold?

 

The answer to your question is in my quoted response, "carefully measured the amount drained." The amount measured the first time was 2 quarts, 5 ounces. The second time exactly 2 quarts. Others have drained up to 2 and a half quarts. It depends how high you jack up the front and side of your car and probably also the room temperature.

I poured the drained fluid into an empty 5 quart oil jug that had a clear volume indicator on the side with marks for each quart and pint. I think it was a Pennzoil Platinum jug (used on another vehicle).

 

I got about 2.5. Quarts each time

 

I know I'm reviving an older thread but I wanted to add that when I lifted the car up level, I got almost 3 quarts out of the transmission. When I raised only the front end, 2.5 quarts came out. I've changed the fluid on our transmission 4 times now and it still comes out dark after 100 miles of driving. The transmission is still acting funny so I don't think the fluid is the total cause of the problems. I may have to drop the pan and see about changing the filter.

For those of you that have removed the trans pan, is the gasket reusable? I really don't want to spend $87 on a gasket if the original one can be reused.

 

You did not state how many miles are on your car and if it has had prior transmission fluid changes. Dark fluid after 100 miles does not mean anything. Problems continuing after 4 changes is indicative of deeper more expensive problems.

I would not waste time changing the filter, it will not make any difference if you have other internal damage. If you do change it, you must replace the pan gasket. I cannot believe that a cheaper gasket is not available. www.makco.com sells one for $20 for the VW version of this trans, not sure if it also fits our car. I would get the part number and search www.ecstuning.com to see if they have it for less. You may have a damaged valve body as that has been an issue on some of these transmission.

If you have high mileage, and since it is an 05 I assume it does, and assuming this is the first time the fluid has been changed, I will make a leap and venture that you are in for an expensive repair or transmission replacement. It may cost more than the value of the car. A junkyard replacement transmission may be a cheaper alternative, then sell the car.

 

Well, the car has 115K on it now. The first fluid change was at 101K. After each subsequent fluid change and after resetting the adaptations, the car runs, drives, and shifts great. After 50 or so miles, it learns something and starts doing hard down shifts and stalling at a stop. It really makes me think that there is probably some buildup in a passage or on a shift solenoid and that is causing the majority of the problems.

As for the gasket, the prices i've found have been off RealOEM and Pelican parts. Most auto parts sites don't list the part since BMW claims it is a lifetime fill and therefore, no user replacable parts. I would hate to order a gasket online for a different model, take the car apart and find out it won't fit.

 

I think it is time to have a professional look at it, it sounds very serious. There may be a stored code.

I bought the transmission service manual from bulkparts.com I will try to check it tonight and see if there are differences in the MINI and VW transmission pan gaskets. It has many drawings showing the variations among the models. Such as the VW version has a fitting so you can easily add fluid, and some models cool it with ATF running thru the radiator like most cars, so you can actually do a flush! I do not understand why Mini chose this route of making the trans so difficult to service. The factory Toyota T-IV fluid is just glorified Dexron III and was never designed to be lifetime.

 

If you are able to cross reference the gaskets, that would be great. I would think that if the gasket is the same, then so is the pan and therefore, the filter.

On a side note, when I've changed the fluid, I've left the old fluid in a clear container for a week or more to see if anything settles out of it and so far, nothing. I haven't sent off a sample to Blackstone or anything but other than being dark, the fluid smells fine.

 

You could try cleaning it internally with Auto-RX. http://www.auto-rx.com/transmissions.html
I have used it several times in engines to great effect. It is also used in transmissions and power steering. It is unlike any other internal cleaner. It does not effect lubricity and cleans very gradually over 1,000 miles or so (for engines) not sure for trans, read the link. You can find independent comments at www.bobistheoilguy.com