Final Drive Oil

[donsobeck]

Here I sit as a 4 %er twice, and with a bottle of Valvoline sae 85w=140 synthetic blend that meets api services GL-5, MT-1.That its the final drive engineering that is bad and not the oils being used. But only GOD will say for sure.

DON

[kdog]

Don,

How was the drive fixed the first time? Was it a bearing replacement or an entirely new drive?

Thanks,
-joel

[donsobeck]

The bearing was replaced by BMW under warranty with a 17 ball unit.
The first went out at 30,000 and the second at 90,000.
After the first the oil in the final drive was changed at the same time as engine oil.
The second went out after 2000 miles after a oil change and the drain plug looked great.

DON

[kdog]

Thanks, Don. My gut feel is that after a bearing replacement, the failure rate of the drive is MUCH higher than 4%. Probably more like 75%. That's due to the difficulty of properly setting up the rear drive after a bearing replacement. Most mechanics simply aren't qualified to do the job. If and when mine finally fails, I'll buy a brand new drive.

Regards,
-joel