Well that wasn't half as scary as I thought it would be... (Well apart
from the noise the 17mm allen keyed filler plug made when it came
undone, I thought I'd cracked the Alley sump on the box!).

After draining I got 2.5 litres into the gearbox sump. Then started
the engine, cycled through all the gears a few times, then got back
underneath the car and topped it up.

Another 1.5 litres ended up going in. So 4L in total.

200 miles done since then, gear change noticeably smoother, and kick
down quicker.

I'll give it a few weeks, then I'll go the whole hog and drop the pan,
change the filter, and flush it through again... Assuming I can find
someone who'll sell me a gasket and filter of course!

Dodgy.

I hope you didn't send them to the email address on that post, it's a
fake!

Anyway, thanks for the replies, I found a chart with ZF boxes, and
with a bit of cross referencing left right and centre, found that VW
use some ZF boxes, namely the 5HP19FL in the passat, which uses the
Esso LT 71141 fluid... VW supply the oil in litres at just under £10 a
pop.
VW Part # G 052 162 A2

Far better than the £19 a litre BMW wanted to charge me, and that was
with me bringing in my own container!

D0d6y.

I sent a couple of pdfs and a chart. Hope they help. I used them on the
wife's '98 528i. Excellent.

Hi All,

I hope someone can help, the local BMW dealer wouldn't, he just wanted
me to get my car in the shop and up on the ramp for £££. Kept saying it
could be one of several types, even when I said it was an A5S 310Z box.

My automatic transmission is showing signs of low fluid, sluggish
pulling away when hot, and the occasional snatched change.

This is one of the infamous "sealed for life" boxes, so it's probably in
need of a change (E36 '96 325TDS 100,000 miles).

But... What fluid?! All the books in the local car parts place say refer
to handbook, which you can guess, says refer to BMW dealer.

I'm all set to top it up, the under tray is off, I've found a 17mm allen
key to remove the recessed plug, and I have some Dextron II type (Comma
AQM) laying about, but I don't know what I should put in it!

I keep thinking even the wrong stuff is better than not enough stuff...

I'm in the UK, so if anyone can give me a UK brand, that would be fantastic.

Ta

Dodgy.