Getrag 262 vs 265

[Ich bin ein E9er]

Since I picked up my coupe last month it has had a terrible whine in the trans. I have tried the 50/50 mix of gear oil/ ATF but have seen (heard) no improvement. I spoke with Carl at La Jolla Independent about it and he suggested I look for a new gear box. Well I found a Getrag 265/5 out of an ’81 528i locally that I am going to look at tomorrow. I also spent some time under my car this morning and noticed that my transmission is marked 262.0.510.0 does this mean I have a 262 in the car now? The more important question is, are the 262 and 265 gearboxes the same length? What other differences will I find when I replace the 262 with a 265?

Thanks,
Steve

 

[x_atlas0]

This has all been covered before, many, many times. There are a multitude of FAQs about the 5 speed conversion. Search around a bit and you will find the answers you seek.

If you have a 5 speed right now, then the odds are that you already have a 265. Many of the 265s have 262 stamped on the front case, but you can tell it is a 265 because there will be 3 primary case sections, rather than 2.

 

[Ich bin ein E9er]

Sorry for dragging up old subjects, but I used the search function and found tons of stuff on the 265 but almost nothing on a 262. The two piece/ three piece case info helps a lot. The box in my car is defiantly three pieces.

Once again the forum comes through.

Thanks,
Steve

 

[x_atlas0]

265:
http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do?model=3995&mospid=47163&btnr=23_0612&hg=23&fg=05

262:
http://www.realoem.com/bmw/showparts.do?model=3431&mospid=47806&btnr=23_0795&hg=23&fg=05

Notice how the 265 uses the front and back pieces of the 262 case, but has a third section in the middle? That's what I was talking about. Since you already have a 265, based on your description, another one should be a drop-in affair.

Carl is right that another 265 is cheaper, but personally, I'd get one rebuilt by somebody like Metric Mechanic or better yet, Jim Blanton. Should run ~4k, but should also last a very, very long time.

 

[MichaelP]

Ich bin, the 262/5, which sounds like what you have now, is essentially the same as the 265. The thing to look for in any case is whether the gearbox has the mechanical speedodrive pinions at the bottom rear. Later 265s are found in cars with electronic speedometer sensors at the flywheel, so transmissions from those cars will have a blockoff plate at the drive hole. The mechanical drive can be installed in the back of the 'box, but reports suggest it's painful enough to warrant finding one with it already installed.

 

[Ich bin ein E9er]

I agree that a Metric Mechanic or Jim Blanton massaged unit would certainly alleviate any angst as far as trans issues in the future. But that said I am trying to be cautious on where and how much I spend on the car as it is still a bit of an unknown to me at this time. So I am not ready to spend 1/3 of what I paid for my car on a gearbox. Plus I am basically paying a core price for the 265/5 which I could resell if I needed to. The unit I am going to look at is allegedly out of an ’81 528i so it should have the speedo drive.

Are there any particular things I should look for or look out for when examining a used gearbox not installed in a car?

Thanks,
Steve

 

[Malc]

You need to make sure the input shaft splines are the same as your old box otherwise you have to change your clutch.
I think all the clutch release arms are the same but the pivot point may change - others will know, but basically make sure everything measures up the same
Malc

 

[ScottAndrews]

I'd try Red Line MTL.

The whine is from the countershaft (the bearings are shot). It should run a quite a long while and MTL will quiet it down.

You can find another 265 for about $200-$500, but the quality will always be a bit of a crap shoot. I bought one as a spare. I figure when my whiney 265 craps out, I'll drop the "new" one in and the figure out what to do long term.

 

[dp]

Carl is right that another 265 is cheaper, but personally, I'd get one rebuilt by somebody like Metric Mechanic or better yet, Jim Blanton. Should run ~4k, but should also last a very, very long time.

~2250 plus core charge, but (as one erstwhile lister claims) you s/b able to buy ten used ones for that ?!

 

[Honolulu]

one thing

One thing you might look at on a used unit, if out of the car, is to drain the oil and see what it looks like. There should be no beads of water in the oil, which would suggest that the layshaft bearing at the bottom of the trans has been sitting in water and become rusty. A rusty bearing will be noisy, but a noisy bearing may become less so after some mileage "scrubs" off any surface imperfection.

No good way to look inside... you could try to reach some sort of buy-back understanding as to quality with the seller, within a certain number of miles/weeks.