[F22Cam]

Hello All

I’m looking to get some opinions / advice on people who are running XHP on their Zf8hp45 or similar.

If you have XHP did you do a trans fluid change ?

I’m at 53k miles on a 15’ 235

I have bm3 stage 2 and want to do XHP. However I’m not sure how necessary it is to service the trans before I do this.

Opinions on this seem to vary greatly. Some do it as often as 45k miles, while some don’t do it at all.

I’m not very hard on the car. I don’t launch / do donuts. I’ll push the car occasionally on the highway/ backroads when it’s warmed up, give it WOT occasionally, but no track days or anything like that.

I plan on keeping the car for about 2-4 more years but Im sure I’ll wanna sell it around the 85-100k mile mark.

Any thoughts are appreciated, thanks !

[Coupsoup]

I have spent alot of time in transmission shops. I'd never go more than 60k without a transmission service personally. My zf 8hp45 currently has 44k and I'll be taking the valve body out to do a tune up on it in the next month or so. I'll document it well and make sure to check the valve bores etc for wear while I have it apart.

I think our cars are both low mileage for their age, and I'd be much more inclined to change it based on the fact that it's a decade old than by mileage.

I'm currently running bm3 trans flash myself. Curious what you think of the xhp flash when you do it, check in with your opinion after you get it done please!

[F22Cam]

Originally Posted by Coupsoup

I have spent alot of time in transmission shops. I'd never go more than 60k without a transmission service personally. My zf 8hp45 currently has 44k and I'll be taking the valve body out to do a tune up on it in the next month or so. I'll document it well and make sure to check the valve bores etc for wear while I have it apart.

I think our cars are both low mileage for their age, and I'd be much more inclined to change it based on the fact that it's a decade old than by mileage.

I'm currently running bm3 trans flash myself. Curious what you think of the xhp flash when you do it, check in with your opinion after you get it done please!

Part of my theory here is ZF recommends a fluid change as late as 75k miles. I’m probably going to want to get rid of the car only 10,15k miles after that since I don’t wanna drive a car with over 100k. But given the car will be 12-14 years old at that point does raise my eyebrows a bit.

I’m still a bit on the fence about XHP. I really have no complaints about what BMW did from the factory with the trans / drive modes. I just want the added goodies and extra sounds

Maybe I’ll just flash it now and consider the fluid change next year when I’m around 60k miles

[Coupsoup]

BM3 has a trans flash included. Have you installed that yet?

[F22Cam]

Originally Posted by Coupsoup

BM3 has a trans flash included. Have you installed that yet?

No I haven’t

[Coupsoup]

Its pretty mild but, especially in sport shift mode, it is definitely more crisp and holds onto the gears a bit longer.

[F22Cam]

Originally Posted by Coupsoup

Its pretty mild but, especially in sport shift mode, it is definitely more crisp and holds onto the gears a bit longer.

I probably should’ve done that before. At this point I’m thinking about just flashing xhp today.

I have a oil change at 55 and 60k miles. I’m thinking about just ordering the trans kit at one of those intervals and doing it then.

I think ill be alright considering I don’t push the car very hard often and I don’t drive that much. Even if I never did the fluid change no way this trans fails me before 100k miles right? 😅

[Coupsoup]

The software isn't going to make the transmission go, it'll be the fluid.

I can't really speak to the reliability personally, I'll reserve judgement until I get a good look inside the valve body to see how bad it's worn.

[F22Cam]

Originally Posted by Coupsoup

The software isn't going to make the transmission go, it'll be the fluid.

I can't really speak to the reliability personally, I'll reserve judgement until I get a good look inside the valve body to see how bad it's worn.

Please come back with an update!

I’m really interested to know what it looks like.

I’ll probably flash xhp and give a impression post on here as well

[sali012094]

Would you guys recommend a xHP or BM3 ZF trans flash? is it something you actually can feel?

[F22Cam]

Originally Posted by sali012094

Would you guys recommend a xHP or BM3 ZF trans flash? is it something you actually can feel?

I can’t comment on the BM3 trans, I’ve never tried it.

xHP is great tho. U can 100% feel the difference whether it’s on the downshifts, upshifts, shift points, torque.

I’m still messing around trying to find the right steering’s but I’d definitely recommend xHP

[F22Cam]

So I flashed xHP.

Definitely made more of a difference than I expected. I went to stage 3 and have done about 100 miles on it.

Even the super jerky 1-2 shift on cold start is gone!

Shifts are rapid in Sport +. And once you push that shifter to the left the car is damn near at 4k rpm the whole time. I had my shift map at sportive + but it was too aggressive for my liking, I changed it to sportive and this is probably what I’ll stick with.

I’m still messing with the downshift blips, torque reduction, ignition cut shifting, and other settings. xHP adds a crazy amount of customization and you can really set the trans up however you want.

[Coupsoup]

Originally Posted by sali012094

Would you guys recommend a xHP or BM3 ZF trans flash? is it something you actually can feel?

BM3 auto trans flash is free with any tunes for the DME. So if you're looking to tighten things up without spending any extra money it's an easy win.

Xhp was like 350 plus the hardware when I looked? I'll likely end up getting it as I'm planning on tracking my car and I'm sure I'll want the ability to tweak things.

BM3 definitely feels tighter and sportier, especially in sport shift mode. Sometimes very small throttle input will launch the car from a stop though, she really wants to get moving. It did not, however, fix my 1-2 shift flare. It's possible you can cover it up with the xph tune but I think there's an underlying issue there I don't want to cover up with higher pressures.

[F22Cam]

Originally Posted by Coupsoup

BM3 auto trans flash is free with any tunes for the DME. So if you're looking to tighten things up without spending any extra money it's an easy win.

Xhp was like 350 plus the hardware when I looked? I'll likely end up getting it as I'm planning on tracking my car and I'm sure I'll want the ability to tweak things.

BM3 definitely feels tighter and sportier, especially in sport shift mode. Sometimes very small throttle input will launch the car from a stop though, she really wants to get moving. It did not, however, fix my 1-2 shift flare. It's possible you can cover it up with the xph tune but I think there's an underlying issue there I don't want to cover up with higher pressures.

xHP is 350 plus the hardware but if you have a bm3 Bluetooth plug or a Enet cable you can use that to flash xHP.

Whatever the issue is with the 1-2 shift, it is widespread on these cars. Look through the forums you’ll see many people with that same problem. Mine has done that as long as I can remember, which makes me think if it is an issue at all, it’s not detrimental.

I’m just glad xHP got rid of it.