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      05-01-2023, 05:23 PM   #1
tfunk88
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ZF8 transmission initial fluid fill amount?

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Soooo while doing the front driveshaft I decided to also change my transmission and diff fluids.

For the initial fill of the transmission I could only get in about 2.7l before fluid started coming out. Is that normal? I put a level on the transmission pan front to back and side to side and it’s level af 😉
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      05-01-2023, 06:01 PM   #2
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Yeah that’s about right. It’ll swallow a couple more when you turn on the car.
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      05-01-2023, 06:58 PM   #3
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FCP Sent me 7 or 8 bottles. That’s about 2 too many in total.
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      05-01-2023, 07:26 PM   #4
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New Pan, Drain & Fill is about a 5.5L job.

This presumes you are following procedure.
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      05-01-2023, 07:56 PM   #5
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Thanks, I’ve found things that varied from 4L to 6.5L if you loosened the solenoid.

I think about 4L total came out when I drained it. With the front diff fluid I had a total of around 4.5L or thereabout
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      08-01-2023, 09:29 PM   #6
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Trans temp fluid

How were you able to measure the temperature of the transmission fluid ? per the FCP video the temp is supposed to be between 40-50 C then topping it off your fluid once it was in this operating range
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      08-01-2023, 10:21 PM   #7
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You will need a wifi/enet cable. There is no native in iDrive/Cluster way of doing it.

If you are trying to stick to a budged, get yourself a ENET cable and a free copy of ISTA. ISTA will give you the reading. Do a quick search, you should be able to find instructions on how to use ISTA and see that value.

Alternatively you can use android apps (+wifi dongle/enet) to see the temp via something like Bimmerlink/Torque. or you can use like a dedicated scanner like a NT530. Personally the 530 is a waist of money, get yourself a ENET/wifi dongle and you will get more use out of it.
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      08-01-2023, 10:21 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DirkX5 View Post
How were you able to measure the temperature of the transmission fluid ? per the FCP video the temp is supposed to be between 40-50 C then topping it off your fluid once it was in this operating range
I use ISTA.
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      08-02-2023, 12:45 AM   #9
tlow98
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Chilled View Post
You will need a wifi/enet cable. There is no native in iDrive/Cluster way of doing it.

If you are trying to stick to a budged, get yourself a ENET cable and a free copy of ISTA. ISTA will give you the reading. Do a quick search, you should be able to find instructions on how to use ISTA and see that value.

Alternatively you can use android apps (+wifi dongle/enet) to see the temp via something like Bimmerlink/Torque. or you can use like a dedicated scanner like a NT530. Personally the 530 is a waist of money, get yourself a ENET/wifi dongle and you will get more use out of it.
Don’t totally agree on the 530. It’s A great tool to throw in the trunk for when you need it and it does 80% of what an enthusiast will need after the car starts to become less reliable. I have both. I get out the computer less and less these days…
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      08-02-2023, 01:10 AM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by tlow98 View Post
Don’t totally agree on the 530. It’s A great tool to throw in the trunk for when you need it and it does 80% of what an enthusiast will need after the car starts to become less reliable. I have both. I get out the computer less and less these days…
Fair enough, I find ista/bimmerlink/torque just easier and quicker to use. Maybe its my lack of knowledge or how i tried to use of the 530, but I found slow and clumsy to use. Plus ista is free vs the per manufacturer $ with the 530.

Granted I do have it rolling around in the trunk, in case of emergency.
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      08-02-2023, 03:04 PM   #11
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DirkX5 View Post
How were you able to measure the temperature of the transmission fluid ? per the FCP video the temp is supposed to be between 40-50 C then topping it off your fluid once it was in this operating range
Honestly it's not necessary to measure temp. How much can the fluid possibly expand when warm?
Just start it up and top off and put the plug in. Worst case, the trans is overfilled by a couple ounces. No big deal.
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      08-02-2023, 03:49 PM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DirkX5 View Post
How were you able to measure the temperature of the transmission fluid ? per the FCP video the temp is supposed to be between 40-50 C then topping it off your fluid once it was in this operating range
I used the BimmerLink app
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      08-02-2023, 03:57 PM   #13
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Quote:
Originally Posted by stocktree View Post
Honestly it's not necessary to measure temp. How much can the fluid possibly expand when warm?
Just start it up and top off and put the plug in. Worst case, the trans is overfilled by a couple ounces. No big deal.
Is that what you did with no ill effects?
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      08-02-2023, 04:14 PM   #14
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Quote:
Originally Posted by stocktree View Post
Honestly it's not necessary to measure temp. How much can the fluid possibly expand when warm?
Just start it up and top off and put the plug in. Worst case, the trans is overfilled by a couple ounces. No big deal.
wow. That amounts to some seriously bad advice.

Was this meant as tongue-in-cheek?
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      08-02-2023, 04:55 PM   #15
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Quote:
Originally Posted by tlow98 View Post
Is that what you did with no ill effects?
Probably driven 50k miles since.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tomcat_F15_STL View Post
wow. That amounts to some seriously bad advice.

Was this meant as tongue-in-cheek?
Please give me a logical reason as to the harm?
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      08-02-2023, 06:18 PM   #16
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Transmission fluid has a massive volume expansion as temperature rises. That advice amounts to telling somebody they don’t need to pay attention to the manufacturer of a very expensive transmission.
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      08-02-2023, 10:37 PM   #17
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Tomcat_F15_STL View Post
Transmission fluid has a massive volume expansion as temperature rises. That advice amounts to telling somebody they don’t need to pay attention to the manufacturer of a very expensive transmission.
Massive eh? Does it foam up?
Here's a sample quote I found on internet.
Quote:
. MIL-H-83282 oil has a coefficient of cubical thermal expansion of 0.00046/°F. Thus a temperature rise of 100°F will increase a 2.0 gallon volume by 0.09 gallons .
As you can see, fluid barely expands. And if you know how an automatic transmission works, you'd know the fluid just sits in the pan like a bath. And the pickup tube is on the bottom, where the fluid gets sucked in by the trans pump.
The extra oil in the pan acts as a reserve. So the fluid level going up or down a bit has zero effect on function.
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      08-02-2023, 11:32 PM   #18
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Quote:
Originally Posted by stocktree View Post
Massive eh? Does it foam up?
I suggest that you are trolling for an argument. And oversimplifying.

That being said, it is unwise to ignore the manufacturer's (ZF's) procedure for refilling a transmission.
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      08-03-2023, 12:20 AM   #19
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Tomcat_F15_STL View Post
I suggest that you are trolling for an argument. And oversimplifying.

That being said, it is unwise to ignore the manufacturer's (ZF's) procedure for refilling a transmission.
I'm not trolling. I'm just someone who's rebuilt transmissions before, and knows how they work, and I'm asking you why the fluid level is so critical?
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      08-03-2023, 12:27 AM   #20
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Alright, friend. We obviously have different opinions on what constitutes helpful advice.

This is the advice from the manufacturer...

https://aftermarket.zf.com/en/afterm...assenger-cars/

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Last edited by Tomcat_F15_STL; 08-03-2023 at 12:38 AM..
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      08-10-2023, 06:37 AM   #21
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Quote:
Originally Posted by tfunk88 View Post
I used the BimmerLink app
How on BimmerLink do you see transmission oil temps?
I have BimmerLink and B code but haven’t been able to see the fluid temps anywhere?
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      08-10-2023, 06:46 AM   #22
tfunk88
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DirkX5 View Post
How were you able to measure the temperature of the transmission fluid ? per the FCP video the temp is supposed to be between 40-50 C then topping it off your fluid once it was in this operating range
One of the things in BimmerLink is “sensor values”. You can choose various ones to monitor
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