iv had my e39 for about 3 weeks now and love the car. Its a 523i manual so performance is great having just come out of a 2002 impreza sti, but a great car to drive. My only reservation is that the manual box feels very notchy. It engages all gears fine and works 100% but it just dosnt feel smooth at all. Is this normal. Thanks for any replys. Iv only just signed to this site so any help is appreciated. Dave.

welcome to the bmw owners club dave.

im sure some one can answer your questions

Welcome along mate

Welcome :) Newbie just like me,

My first 5 series was a 520i E39 so its pretty similar to your 523i. Great car but what I don't understand is you've come out of a sc00by and into a tank and you say you enjoy the performance? The lower end of the E39's (anything below a 528i) are like driving a chest of draws.. :S haha

Question, what feels notchy? changing gears or the gear whilst its engaged? are their any noises coming from the transmission when driving?

You could try changing your transmission fluid? the small shards of grinded off metal from the gears find their way into the oil and make it a nasty place to shift. Most of the E39's on the road today would have never had its transmission fluid changed. I know mine didn't :S My E28 didn't want to go into gear at all on the cold morning. I changed my transmission fluid and hey!presto... smooth as anything.

Hope this helps,

Newbie Daz

First impression would be a worn selector fork in the box, But as Daz mentioned, an oil change may cure it !

BTW I'm not a big fan of the BMW manual box anyway... Good in the 3 series though !!