How to Change the Transmission Fluid in a BMW E30

1. Warm your cars transmission by driving it around for about 10 minutes. Be careful not to go far over this time frame, since you want the fluid to be warm, but not scalding hot for this procedure.
2. Turn your BMWs ignition off and lock the emergency brake into place to prevent injury during the fluid replacement.
3. Jack your car evenly about six inches off of the ground and use extra support in the form of jack stands. You will need four jack stands near each tire in order to position the car level with the ground.
4. Find the transmission pan under the front end of the BMW--it is a square, bolted pan-like object.
5. Position the drip pan on the ground, directly beneath the center of the transmission pan. This is to ensure that any hot fluid spills into the drip pan, and not onto you.
6. Release the drain plug at the center of the transmission pan using the socket wrench. The fluid will immediately fall out of the transmission pan, so be sure that you are not in the way of your drip pan.
7. Unscrew the remaining bolts after you are confident that the majority of fluid has drained from the transmission pan. There will still be a small amount of fluid pooled in the bottom of the pan, so use caution as you let the pan down.
8. Empty any remaining fluid from the transmission pan into your drip pan.
9. Wipe the entire transmission pan with the shop rag and a touch of degreaser. Be sure to clean the outside, as well as the inside of the pan, taking caution to also clean the corners, so that the old fluid does not contaminate the new fluid.
10. Mount the transmission pan back into its original position on the transmission, using your socket wrench.
11. Remove the jack stands from under your BMW and lower the car with the jack.
12. Open the hood of thew E30 and locate the transmission fill plug near the windshield, between the center and the drivers side of the car.
13. Open the fill plug cap at the top of the transmission by unscrewing it with your hand. The fill plug on a BMW E30 is yellow and has a dipstick attached to it. The dipstick can be set aside for now.
14. Place the funnel upright into the center of the transmissions fill plug.
15. Begin pouring the new Dexron III transmission fluid into the transmission through the funnel, to avoid spilling.
16. Release the emergency brake after pouring in the second quart of transmission fluid.
17. Turn the ignition key and shift the car into each gear, holding your foot on the brake pedal the entire time. Shifting gears allows the transmission fluid to flow throughout the system, providing a more accurate reading when measuring the level of the fluid.
18. Put your BMW in Park and let the motor continue to run.
19. Add only one-half of the third quart of transmission fluid through the fill plug and funnel.
20. Use the dipstick to measure the level of the transmission fluid by placing the cap back into the fill plug and immediately pulling it out. The dipstick will show you whether or not your transmission is filled to the recommended capacity.
21. Continue pouring small amounts of the third quart of transmission fluid, until the dipstick reads Full. Use extreme caution not to flood the transmission, since the clean-up for such a spill would add significant time to completing this project.
22. Turn your engine off after the dipstick shows the transmission fluid at the recommended fill level.
23. Re-cap the fill plug with the dipstick cap and close the hood of your car. The transmission fluid change is now finished.

How to Replace the Transmission Fluid in an Audi A4

1. Warm your cars fluids by driving at least 10 minutes before parking. This allows the fluid to thin, making the emptying process easier.
2. Elevate your vehicle evenly using a car jack and jack stands.The car should not be tipped in either direction, since a tipped transmission is dangerous during the procedure because hot fluid could spill out and cause injury.
3. Locate your transmission pan under the drivers side hood of your vehicle. The fluid will be in the square, bolted filter pan.
4. Place your drip pan on the ground beneath the transmission pan area, as a safeguard in the case of spillage.
5. Remove all of the bolts using your socket wrench on one side of the transmission pan, beginning in any corner. It is important to take the bolts off very slowly, so that any fluid that drips will gradually fall into the drip pan and not on you.
6. Lower the transmission pan to ground level without tipping it to either side, since it is likely to be filled with old transmission fluid. If any fluid spills, use your shop rag to wipe up the spill.
7. Discard the old transmission fluid by carefully pouring one corner of the transmission pan at the opening of the milk jug until the pan is completely emptied.
8. Wipe the transmission pan clean, so that no particles or residue from the old fluid can contaminate the new fluid.
9. Mount the transmission pan back into its original position by hand-tightening the bolts for a temporary hold.
10. Secure the bolts into place using your socket wrench. It is important to wiggle the pan a bit to be sure that no bolts are loose and that there is no crevice between the transmission pan and the actual transmission.
11. Remove your jack stands and lower the car jack with caution.
12. Fill the new transmission fluid to the fill line. The typical refill capacity for an Audi A4 is three quarts, although you should watch the line carefully to be sure that you do not go significantly over or under this marking.
13. Run your engine in the park gear for approximately five minutes before checking the fluid levels again. The warmth of the engine will make the fluid settle into the transmission.
14. Measure the fluid level using the transmission dipstick. If the fluid reads below the capacity line, more fluid can be poured into the transmission opening while the car is still running. Shifting the gears of the car may also help the fluid to settle for a more accurate reading, although this is not required.
15. When the dipstick shows the transmission fluid at a sufficient level, the transmission fluid change is complete.

How to Fill Up the Transmission for a 1999 Audi A4

1. Turn off the car and make sure that the keys are out of the ignition to ensure that the car will not be turned on while you are working on it.
2. Put the hand brake on the car and then place a large log or brick behind one of the back tires to avoid the car sliding back while you are working on it.
3. Put a jack behind one of the front tires of the Audi A4 and jack up the car about 3 feet from the ground and then slip a jack stand to hold that side of the car up. Repeat this step on the other side of the vehicle.
4. Slide in under the car and look up into the hood area of the car until you find the A4s gear box. The gear box will look like a round, metallic cylinder.
5. Slip a 17mm Allen wrench behind the gear box and unscrew the fill bolt. Slide the fill bolt out completely once its unscrewed. If any transmission fluid drips out of the hole the fill bolt was in, then the transmission is full and doesnt need any more fluid added to it.
6. Fill up a fill bottle with transmission fluid for your 1999 Audi A4 and then inject the transmission fluid in through the hole where the fill bolt used to be until some of the transmission fluid seeps out.
7. Replace the fill bolt and tighten it with the same Allen wrench.
8. Slide out from underneath your A4 and carefully lower your car back to the ground.