Jim Blanton of Metric Mechanic fame. (archive)

Jim Blanton and Jim Rowe started Metric Mechanic in Kansas City. Jim Blanton was the mastermind behind the transmissions and Jim Rowe with the engines. Jim Blanton went off on his own and now operates Blanton Transmissions in Kansas City.

Mark W
'85 M535i (Blanton transmission and rear diff)

I am not sure where you get all your information, but I have never heard of this Blanton guy. As for the problems you stated with the M5 tranny, I just had mine rebuilt after 20,000 hard miles of track use (and 110,000 miles of street use).

Dulles Motorsport in Chantilly Va rebuilt mine, and YES, it was very expensive, and YES they complained the whole time they were doing the work about how hard it is to rebuild an M5 transmission but they got it done and the transmission works better than it ever did.

As for blowing through the synchros, maybe you need to work on your heel and toe technique a bit. My M5 only sees track time (it's just barely street legal) and I can guarantee you that few people on this board put an M5 transmission through the torture I do, shifting frequently at 7200 RPM on a regular basis. Certainly synchros wear out with repeated hard use, but the M5 synchros are no less effective than any of the other BMW tranny's.

Saying that no one will rebuild an M5 tranny is a bit misleading as there are several places in my area that will do it and then there are shops like Korman, Turner, ERT, and others that have experience rebuilding them. Yes the are expensive and yes this is a very cumbersome job, but there are plenty of people who can do the work and plenty of people who have had theirs rebuilt with no problems.

Regards,

Jon P. Kofod
1995 F355 Challenge
1996 750iL
2000 A6 Avant 2.8
1988 M5
1962 Caddy Fleetwood

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