Hi all,

I have a recurrent problem with my transmission mounts (auto trans)... It does the caracteristic 'money shift', I mean that when the transmission upshift (1st to 2nd, etc.), I hear a metallic sound from the rear of the car, like if you play with quarters in your pant pockets... It was diagnosed by my independant BMW repair shop as worn transmission mounts.

The car: 1993 525i automatic, 216k miles.

So they were replaced last September, so 7 months ago (at 208k miles). Indeed they were worn badly, and new auto trans mounts fixed this issue. But only for a while. 2 months later, it started to behave the same... So in december 2007 my mechanic replaced them again (on warranty, at 210k), he showed me the mounts to tell me they had soften way too much.

It ran good for a little, and now at 216k, 4 months later, the issue reappears! There is no transmission leak at all which could soften the trans. mounts. A little bit of oil leak, from the oil canister housing (5 pints of oil added in 6k miles) but it drops down the oil pan, which is way up front than the trans. mounts...

Anyway, transmission mounts should be made of oil resistant rubber, right? Any idea what would cause those mounts to fail so readily?

Thanks for your help, Alex