levale

up till now the only issues were burnt out bulbs, however at 29 k
started hearing whirling noise, took to dealer who replaced transfer
case, transmission and torque convertor. Thank God this happened under
the 4 year 50 k warrantee.

GLKKa2H

I'm glad you got it covered by warranty. Good luck!

On this forum there is reported 2 transfer case replacements (observed by whirling noise) and recently 3 cases are reported on a German forum, as well noted by noise. Two of the cases occurred at 30.000 - and 35.000 km (3.rd not given)!

bop11

The 722.9 transmission has had many failures. See the C-Class board both pre and post 2007. Most seem to happen around 80k miles. Even the repaired units have failed. Some VDO plastic part is said to be the weak point. MB uses this transmission in many, if not most of their models so they may have a big problem.

dgiturbo

I went through a tranny issue with my ML recently, and had long talks with the techs. Was told the GLK uses a slightly different design of the 722.9 tranny and is more robust than the ML's. From what they explained, I was confident enough to order a GLK. (Driving one as a loaner for that month was also a plus)
You are the first post I have seen for GLK tranny failure, and with the 5 others mentioned above, I am hoping it is just a fluke chalked up to mass production.

GLKKa2H

The 5 cases referred to are reported as transfer case and not the transmission (722.960). However does a Daimler procedure state: "In the event of a repair, the transfer case cannot be replaced separately. It has to be replaced along with the automatic transmission".

venchka

Assuming that transfer case refers to vehicles equpped with 4matic, is there anything that we can do to prolong the service life of the transfer case?

Wayne

MKenM

gsrjc

i have 20k on my GLK and never tranny issues even the bad shifting that people talk about. i guess i've been lucky. i also have only driven in E mode because i hate the gas mileage the GLK has, so I don't drive in S mode. if i want speed, i just take out another car.

MBRedux

Nissan AWD-CVT transmissions also have a severe transfercase failure rate....

GLKKa2H

Six steps required to prolong the service life of the GLK transfer case:

1. Follow MB ”Break-in procedure” - (gone / done(lost that one? Too bad).
2. Follow the MB maintenance program - (important when warranty claims arises).
3. Don’t challenge the rpms - (you won’t win anyway).
4. Keep the GLK in the garage - (physical exercise is good for you - a win/win).
5. (Pray to ...) - (deleted).
6. (Be) Drive happy - don’t worry, have faith in MB quality - (went away with the “sixties” – IMO).

ewc

What precisely is the type of whining people are hearing?

Ours is most notcible off-throttle, anywhere from 40 mph up. Lift off the gas, hear a slight high pitched whine coming from the gearshift area. I haven't noticed any noise while I'm actually accellerating.

I'm going to have it checked when I take it in for a break-in oil change at 3k miles.

Oh, and my door grab handles creak like crazy too when pulling/squeezing them. I haven't decided if I want the dealer messing around with the doors or if I just live with it.

MBRedux

THE MILLION $ QUESTION

Are there any EARLY symptoms or signs, that we should be looking for, such as a low hum (or whine) when silently cruising?

PS: Time to think about unloading the car if this is a REAL concern.

TASP

I've got the exact same problem at 30K on ours.

GLKKa2H

+ three new transfer case (automatic transmission to be replaced together with it according to a Daimler procedure) failures recently reported on a German forum - at 37.300 -, 43.500 – and 49.700 miles.

The number of cases worldwide must be substantial, in light of the number reported on two forums, as I suppose only a limited number of GLK owners participate on them.

MBNA109

Seems to me some of these transfer case failures are happening PRIOR to the hypothesis Glyn put out in this thread:
https://mbworld.org/forums/c-class-w...s-60k-kms.html

Which has suggested 39K mile intervals.

Makes me think, it may not be wholly bad flush & fill factory/dealer practices but something more nefarious.

iewoals

Can you elaborate on what "whirling" noises you heard? I sometimes hear some "moaning like" noises when I have the AC on right after the car is started. But it seems to go away after the car has been warmed up. I think what I'm hearing is related to the AC but want to make sure I'm not missing something.

tuckmics

My 2010 GLK is in the shop this week...the whirring sound (sounds like a plane taking off and is not affected by rpm, only by speed of the car) started all of a sudden on a trip from Walla Walla to Seattle (about 6 hours). Took it in, told that it was the transfer case and that the entire transmission had to be replaced.

Helli217

I'm noticing this seems to be all 2010's, but I haven't seen the german forums, etc. Was there something addressed within the trans/transfer case for the 2011-MY? Been seriously considering the GLK for my fiance, but reading more and more about this issue is scaring the hell out of me. As a side note, what does warranty extension cost through MB? lol

tuckmics

I haven't had my GLK long and it only has 18,000 miles on it, so still under warrenty. It appears that this issue has typically occurred within the first 20K miles or so, some as early as 2000 or 3000 miles, so I would expect that it will be a warrenty issue in most cases. My understanding was that the issue with the transfer case was resolved in the newer models. However, I believe it is the same transmission. The transmission they are putting in to mine is brand new and it is an old transmission design that MB has used for many years. Also remember that the problem isn't with the transmission, it is just that you cannot just replace the transfer case.

mbzusr

I would hope it was addressed, especially in the replacements. But the 2010s could be reported more possibly because they are reaching 30k and above already.

iewoals

Didn't someone with a 2011 or 2012 model report the same issue with the transfer case here? I'm not sure it's really been resolved. More like what mbzusr said, it's just that the 2010's have more mileage and are more likely to have it show up at this point. Seriously considering the extended warranty at this point even though I haven't had any issues because I'd like to drive the car for at least 7 years.

GLKKa2H

I've seen a couple of cases on a German forum which apparently are 2011s, in the 30- - 40k miles frame, like a great number of reported "transfer cases". Time (milage) will tell.

rmfnla

Could be their girlfriend...

islanderinnyc

Guys , I just bought a 2014 GLK350 4matic with 18 miles on the ODO, Today,
and I have that noise,
called the dealer and and will have it checked on saturday....
cannot believe is would be my 1st benz experience.

MKenM

This thread was started almost 2 years ago. It pertained to 2011-12's do you think 2 years later that yours has the same problem. Please let us know what you find out.