Headunit and Trans fail Safe

X5patX5 · Post by **X5patX5** » Sun Apr 22, 2012 8:57 pm

Hello everyone i am new to this forum and new to the X5 so i have no experience whatsoever and hopefully after becoming a member here I will be able to resolve any issues i have, and come here to get good advice.

Firstly below is a picture of my headunit, (tv, cassette and 6 changer cd with sat nav)

Right after the great switchover there is no more TV available the subscription for the sat nav has expired from the last owner, so my next option is freeview (for the kids), I have a single din Pioneer head unit, which plays dvd, Mp3 and has an ipod control unit and you can also add an additional two screens so my question is,

Can this original Head unit be removed and what will i loose in regards to the controls in the car?

Is there a Single din converter i can buy to replace this unit?

Secondly, I have been reading loads of post on this website about trans fail safe problems, and all cases seem different and on searching the internet I cannot find a definitive solution as everyone seems to resolve the problem differently from as little as Â£15 for a tin of water repellent to Â£2000 for a gearbox refurb.

I purchased the car last week and had a ten mile drive home everything perfect no problems, did not drive the car or start it for three days and on starting the car the battery was dead so I then got my RAC jump box which started the car first time. I put the car into drive and it rolled forward and stopped, on giving the car gas it was moving very slowly and as it picked up loads of black smoke came out the back, the message Trans Fail safe appeared on the dash, but after 20 minutes of sluggish driving the problem and the smoke seems to clear and the car drives perfect. This problem only seems to happen from a cold start when the vehicle is left sitting over night but once it warms up the problem goes, but I still get the message Trans fail safe.

Any ideas? The Car is A BMW X5 3.0D Sport Automatic, thanks.

X5Sport · Post by **X5Sport** » Sun Apr 22, 2012 9:14 pm

Welcome....

You haven't said which year your car is? It does make a difference in both engine power and gearbox type. Pre 2003 cars are 184 bhp with 5sp, post 2003 are 218bhp with 6sp transmissions.

Can't help with the ICE question, although you can get a freeview receiver for the car. Obviously if you remove that head unit then you lose Nav etc. You will need some coding done to keep the TV working on the move. The Nav has no subscription. You buy a DVD, stick it in the computer in the boot and that's that. It goes on working. I assume you have a nav computer in the left boot cubby?

The gearbox issue is one that you may well be better off getting into a dealer to get the fault codes read. Dying batteries will throw erroneous messages up, but that does not explain the sluggish performance when cold, or the smoke. If the battery (in the boot) is more than 5 years old it's probably time to replace it. Bosch Silver Plus S5 or S6 are popular for these cars. About Â£90 from motor factors.

What I would suggest is if the transmission is sluggish, you need to get it checked sooner rather than later. It could be any number of things from the torque converter to a clutch. If it is in failsafe mode then you only have 3rd & 5th available - which could explain sluggish performance as you may be in 3rd. If it's been like this from the get go, I would take it back to where you bought it from in case someone has 'dumped' the car as they can't afford to fix it!

Dealers will run a diagnostic check for around Â£60 and it doesn't take long. It will also identify whether it's actually not a gearbox problem but something else. Are all your vacuum hoses to the turbo connected (LHS of the engine as you look from the front)? Can you hear the turbo spooling up?

Also try a transmission reset. Put the key in and turn it until all the lights come on but don't start the car. Fully depress the throttle for 30 secs, release it and turn the car off. This clears the learning function of the box and it will then 'relearn' your driving style.

These cars are very complex and it's often safer to at least get a check done by a BMW Dealer and then take it from there. As far as costs go, BMW will quote you Â£7K for a rebuilt box - they don't fix them. A specialist will charge anywhere from Â£1,200 upwards depending on the nature of the failure. Mine was just over Â£3,500 for a rebuild of my 6-sp box and included a replacement Mechatronics (gearbox brain) Unit - they're another Â£3k from the Dealer, which is why no one goes to them for the work.

X5patX5 · Post by **X5patX5** » Sun Apr 22, 2012 9:36 pm

Lol, the last sentence in your reply is very true, I work for VAG, (Volkswagen and Audi group) and the amount of business we loose due to the prices we charge is shocking, but there are some people out there who ask no questions and just pay, but i like to find a deal.

My car is a 2001 model, i have taken the car to a BMW mechanic who does work out of hours and on doing a diagnostic could not find a problem so reset my system due to me jump starting it. This solved the problem, but once i parked the car and returned again in the morning it was back.

Raj · Post by **Raj** » Sun Apr 22, 2012 11:40 pm

By the sounds of it you have an anologue tv receiver so no longer working with the switchover (so no bearing with Nav). You can replace it with a digital box (I have one if you want it....lol). But if you should want to replace the OE setup then it isn't too difficult. You will lose the functionality of the auxiliary ventilation as you won't be able to set the timers. You'll also lose the trip computer. Apart from that all good.

X5Sport · Post by **X5Sport** » Mon Apr 23, 2012 11:39 am

[quote=""X5patX5""]My car is a 2001 model, i have taken the car to a BMW mechanic who does work out of hours and on doing a diagnostic could not find a problem so reset my system due to me jump starting it. This solved the problem, but once i parked the car and returned again in the morning it was back.[/quote]

A 'Trans Fail Safe' error will be recorded and should be showing up? I know on the 6sp the dealer told me that the faults were stored by the box's own systems, but whether that is really the case I don't know. It took them less than 15 mins to find the faults though.....two bad clutches caused by the TC failing and the fragments causing the box to self-destruct..

The 5sp electronics module is in the black plastic box at the right rear of the engine bay as you look from the front. A lot easier to get at than the 6sp which is in the bottom of the gearbox!

One trick with these cars is to wait for all the amber warnings to go out with the key in Pos2 before starting the engine. There are so many modules that go through a 'boot-up' cycle that if you catch them mid-startup then odd errors can be thrown. Similarly a bad battery will cause the same things to happen.

wilkoturbo · Post by **wilkoturbo** » Mon Apr 23, 2012 12:10 pm

Raj how much for the freeview box ???

X5patX5 · Post by **X5patX5** » Mon Apr 23, 2012 7:46 pm

[quote=""wilkoturbo""]Raj how much for the freeview box ???[/quote]
wait in line lol, yes raj how much for the freeview box

X5patX5 · Post by **X5patX5** » Mon Apr 23, 2012 7:52 pm

[quote=""X5Sport""][quote=""X5patX5""]My car is a 2001 model, i have taken the car to a BMW mechanic who does work out of hours and on doing a diagnostic could not find a problem so reset my system due to me jump starting it. This solved the problem, but once i parked the car and returned again in the morning it was back.[/quote]

A 'Trans Fail Safe' error will be recorded and should be showing up? I know on the 6sp the dealer told me that the faults were stored by the box's own systems, but whether that is really the case I don't know. It took them less than 15 mins to find the faults though.....two bad clutches caused by the TC failing and the fragments causing the box to self-destruct..

The 5sp electronics module is in the black plastic box at the right rear of the engine bay as you look from the front. A lot easier to get at than the 6sp which is in the bottom of the gearbox!

One trick with these cars is to wait for all the amber warnings to go out with the key in Pos2 before starting the engine. There are so many modules that go through a 'boot-up' cycle that if you catch them mid-startup then odd errors can be thrown. Similarly a bad battery will cause the same things to happen.[/quote]

Thanks for the info i am going to try and sort this issue out next weekend, I will update this thread with the results, going to also give the car a full service as I doubt the seller has done anything with this car even though the service book is stamped.

Raj · Post by **Raj** » Tue Apr 24, 2012 7:11 am

[quote=""wilkoturbo""]Raj how much for the freeview box ???[/quote]

PM'd.

Raj · Post by **Raj** » Tue Apr 24, 2012 7:12 am

[quote=""X5patX5""][quote=""wilkoturbo""]Raj how much for the freeview box ???[/quote]
wait in line lol, yes raj how much for the freeview box[/quote]

PM'd.

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