BMW 2 Series Trans Issues: Warning Lights & Rough Shifts

I have some experience working on cars, and I dealt with a similar issue on my 2017 BMW 3 Series (gasoline). Those symptoms sound really familiar! I had warning lights and rough shifting too. Turned out it was just a faulty wiring connection to the transmission control module. Took it to my regular workshop, and they diagnosed it pretty quickly. The cable connection had worked itself loose over time, causing all those scary symptoms. Total repair was 95 Euro, mostly labor costs for tracking down the issue and fixing the connection. Much better than having to replace transmission parts! Before I can give more specific advice though, could you share: Current mileage? When did these symptoms first start? Any recent work done on the car? Which transmission (manual/auto)? This could help determine if you're dealing with the same issue I had.

Thanks for sharing your experience! My car's at 148153 KM and these issues started about a week ago. I have an automatic transmission and actually just had a regular service last month. Your wiring issue definitely sounds promising, a lot cheaper than what I was fearing! Been really worried it might be something major with the transmission itself. Did you notice any particular patterns with when the rough shifting would happen in your case? Like during cold starts or at specific speeds? Really hoping it's something similar to what you dealt with.

Hey again! Yep, with my BMW 3 Series I actually noticed the rough shifting was most noticeable during cold starts in the morning. The transmission would act really weird for the first 10-15 minutes of driving, jerking between gears and sometimes not wanting to shift up at all. Once it warmed up, it would get a bit better but still wasn't right. The funny thing is, I was also freaking out about potential major transmission issues, especially since my car had similar mileage to yours (around 145k km). The warning lights definitely didn't help calm my nerves! Since you mentioned yours started acting up after a regular service, they might have accidentally disturbed some wiring while doing other work. That's actually pretty common. When they were fixing mine, the mechanic showed me how the wiring connector had partially separated from its mounting point, probably from normal vibration over time. Just keep an eye on your transmission fluid temperature gauge if you have one, in my case, it was reading all sorts of weird numbers before they fixed the wiring. Honestly, with the symptoms being so similar and happening right after service, I'd bet you're dealing with something electrical rather than mechanical. Much easier on the wallet that way! Want me to share what diagnostic codes my car was throwing? Might help you compare with yours.

Thanks so much for the detailed info, especially about the cold start symptoms! That's exactly what I'm experiencing too. The morning drives are definitely the worst, and yes, I've been watching the transmission temp gauge acting really weird. Would love to know what diagnostic codes you got, I'm planning to take it to the shop tomorrow and having that info would be super helpful for comparison. You've honestly made me feel so much better about this whole situation. I was already mentally preparing for a massive repair bill, but hearing about your experience with the wiring issue gives me hope! Makes total sense about the service possibly disturbing some connections too, they did have to access several areas around the transmission for routine checks. Will definitely ask them to check the wiring connections first before diving into anything major. Really appreciate you taking the time to share your experience, helped calm my nerves quite a bit!