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Lifetime Transmission Fluid?

A

Aimster

Lifer
BMW had from the years 00-03 'lifetime' transmission fluid.

Do you agree with this? I have 102k miles and never changed the transmission fluid or touched the transmission fluid.

Lexus has begun offering "lifetime" transmission fluid as well.
 
It's getting more common. The units are factory sealed and cannot be serviced. They must be replaced when they fail.

With an auto transmission you are talking about internal wear parts (clutch packs) and moving parts (lubrication and heat issues). Logic dictates that over time the fluid will wear and become contaminated. So the question left unanswered is how long is a "lifetime"? I think the answer is well past the limits of the warranty, which means the repairs when needed will be paid for out of pocket.
 
I'm sure it'll be fine well past the warranty period, but it sounds like the days of 200,000+ mile transmissions are probably over.

They probably just figured that on most cars, the lifetime of the transmission is longer than the lifetime of the other components, so why make it any better than you have to?
 
Often the "lifetime" means for as long as the original owner owns the car.
If BMW stopped after '03, that probably means it wasn't such a good idea.
 
They said the same thing about my dad's Lexus ES300. I believed them until the trans blew up @ 120k miles (planetary gears blown to pieces). Now i've added an aftermarket trans cooler and change the fluid regulary
 
My Q45 was lifetime too and I never had any problems. You know there has to be wear on any moving parts.
 
The problem with "lifetime" anything is that I'm never the one that defines what constitutes a reasonable "lifetime".

ZV
 
Originally posted by: db
Often the "lifetime" means for as long as the original owner owns the car.
If BMW stopped after '03, that probably means it wasn't such a good idea.
Click to expand...

And the average BMW owner tends to keep their car for...what...two years?
 
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