Rizzo1

Hey guys. I had an 05 C 240 that I just sold but I had to take a 95 C 220 on trade to get rid of it. The car is minty and only has 140000 kms on it ( 86000 miles ). Its an auto. Every time I get in to it and drive it for the first few blocks the tranny revs high before it will shift in to the next gear. It will rev to about 3500 to 4000 rpm before it hits the next gear. it does this for about 2 blocks and then works perfect. There is no slipping and once I have driven it a few blocks it works great until I shut it off again. The sales guy at MB told me this was normal on these years and that it is the cars way of warming up the Cats faster? I have never heard of this but he says its the way they are? Is this true or is this a sign that the tranny needs the filter and fluid changed? Just wondering if I should be concerned?

Thanks.

timmyj51

My '95 C220 does exactly the same thing. The guy was right, there
is a built in shifting delay to warm the cat but as these cars get older the
delay lengthens and, as you've noticed, becomes a nuisance. However, there's an easy way to get around this.
When you start up the car put it into "3" gear (not "D") and as soon as you feel it shift into third (around 5/10 mph) then shift (while the car's moving) into "D". By starting in "3" you bypass the delay mechanism
and the tranny shifts up to fourth gear quickly and smoothly. However, if you slow down to second gear, or stop, before you've driven the car for
at least a few blocks you have to start the process all over. This method really comes in handy if you have to make a quick acceleration like getting onto the freeway.

xvvvz

After this long, you might want to still go ahead and change the filter and fluid. Sealed for life is not working out like they hoped. Better safe than sorry. Your unit uses the cheap fluid, so it isn't much of an investment.

timmyj51

By all means change your fluid/filter but it won't do anything to correct
the delayed shift. I change my fluid/filter every year and the delayed shift
is always the same.

xvvvz

Correct. The upshift delay while cold is an intended "feature" for lack of a better word.

Rizzo1

Thanks for the help guys. I appreciate it.