nathandimond

Okay, I've been poking around the forum and stumbled onto a thread about transmissions and shifting issues. We had to replace the transmission in our 2002 Acura with not even 60,000 miles on it. It was a nightmare and the darn thing still doesn't shift smoothly. If I'm going to switch to Mercedes I must know if I will have tranny issues. I want 4matic so just the 5 speed tanny is all I'm worried about. Does the jerky shift from 1-2 exist with this gearbox? Is the 5G known for any sort of issue specifically with 06 & 07 model years. Please give any reputable input you can. This issue could turn me cold to the C class for good.

samaritrey

The 5 speeds are great as long as you don't have one that is contaminated or over 100k on original fluid. BTW i don't think any w203 05-07 has the 5 speed but the c55. they have the new 7 speed.

nathandimond

I know Mercedes introduced the 7G in those years but the models with the 4matic all-wheel-drive still had the 5 speed until the W204s came out.

samaritrey

did not know that. well like i said as long as you have a good 5 speed that has not had the contamination or been abused you should be good. mine has 141k and still shift nice. i will say when it is really cold (under 30F) it does hate 1 to 2 but once it is warmed up shift perfect.

Glyn M Ruck

The 722.6 5 speed is a mature box that gives virtually no trouble at all and will do huge mileage if you change the fluid & filter every 40,000 miles or 60,000 Km.

Early cars suffered Valeo radiator leaks into the transmission. These were replaced with Behr radiators. Your intended MYs are well out of this period. By 2003 Valeo were a thing of the past.

e1000

Yup, 5-speed transmission in the later model w203's are very reliable. Don't let the Honda/Acura transmission issue make you scared to buy another car.

LILBENZ230

I had an 02 Acura TL. It went through 3 transmissions between 33k and 76k miles. It was a grand POS.. but all car makers make mistakes and those transmissions were Honda's.

Edit:

Just to be clear, the 722.6 5AT was used through 2005 on RWD C-class cars. 2006-2007 have the 7G except for the 4Matics.

nathandimond

Man, I love this forum. Everyone who participates is so knowledgable and friendly. I cannot think of a better way to do car research. Thanks for all your help guys.

samaritrey

Thank you for teaching me something new about the w203s.

acr2001

As long as we're talking about the 5 speed transmission in here...

17 degrees F. the other day, started the car up in the morning without warming it up. Got down the road, transmission tried shifting from first into second (the first shift of the day). I had the throttle at about 20%, doing about 10-15 mph. As soon as the transmission tried to shift, RPMs dipped down to nothing, engine stuttered and nearly stalled out, transmission took a while to 'catch'. What the hell? Hasn't happened again. Engine seems to be running fine.

samaritrey

have you had the problem with the tcu connector?

nathandimond

I havn't been very clear about this but I don't actually own a W203 yet. I've just been doing research and trying to verify any rumors I've heard about Mercedes reliability. Sorry for the confusion.

LILBENZ230

Trey's right.. need to check fluid, ACR.

e1000

buy a Toyota? I guess you can't do that anymore either. Later model w203's are fairly reliable cars. If you look at reliability ratings, all manufacturers are pretty close these days.

acr2001

I haven't checked that connector. Wasn't sure if that was an issue for 2005? I can't find any info on where the connector is located. Is it something I can easily check?

Glyn M Ruck

acr - warm up your car - I doubt you have a problem with the TCU connector. Front RHS diagonal of tranny.

LILBENZ230

My 2005 had this issue.. why wouldn't it be possible for him to have it on his 2005?

acr2001

Is the connector behind a skid plate or can I see it from under the car?

I wish you could check the fluid level on these damn things!!! I'm surprised none of these modding companies ever created a freakin dip stick that you can install!

I'm with you Glyn - probably a fluke - my whole car starts to feel like a bucket of bolts when its this cold and hasn't warmed up. I just want to take a look at it to be sure.

LILBENZ230

At least I'm not the only one with a C-class that experiences this.

acr2001

If that wasn't bad enough, my belt tensioner is shot and sounds terrible (going to replace it in the summer). The drivers seat makes all kind of creaking noises when my weight shifts (no I'm not a fatty either). I know there's a TSB kicking around here somewhere on how to fix the noises coming from the seat. Going to have to fix that this summer too...

Oh, and the rear suspension is making all kinds of wonderful rubbing noises whenever it gets any serious travel....

LILBENZ230

ACR -

There is a good thread on here about fixing that seat. All it takes is a bit of lubricating on two bolts that are just beneath the seat. My seat used to creak a ton, too, until I sprayed a bit of WD-40 on just those two bolts - months and months ago. It hasn't made a sound since.

The rear suspension issue - are you SURE it's suspension? When my car begin to do the rubbing noises that sounded like the rear suspension it actually turned out to be the rear engine/transmission mount had collapsed. It was replaced under warranty but it's not an expensive part.

acr2001

Thanks for the info!
Hopefully I'll get a chance to look at the seat tomorrow if it's that easy.
The transmission mount is an interesting thought, because I have been noticing more vibration than usual when the engine is idling in gear at a stop.
Hard to say though, because I only hear the rubbing when the rear suspension is traveling. Going to have to listen to it more closely.

I can't really say I'm happy with the reliability of this car. I have page after page of warranty work, but now the warranty is up so this might get painful. Drivers side door check (door strap? it has so many different names) needs to be replaced too.

LILBENZ230

That's the funny thing about the rear transmission/engine mount. Mine only made noise during rear suspension travel, too. I took 4 dealer trips to diagnose it and finally get it fixed. They replaced parts of the front and rear suspension in their quest to solve the issue. It drove me insane for the two months it took to finally get it resolved. But once it was fixed, I noticed the improvement in NVH immediately.

My car's mount is failing again, though. I hear the noise now every now and then and the NVH is up a bit. I'll get it fixed once it becomes constant.

My car had its share of warranty work, too. But I'm satisfied - it hasn't let me down. It's temperamental when its cold and has some quirks but is a good car overall. A couple of new issues in mine are cropping up in the past week.. time to drag up my thread - be sure to check it.

Glyn M Ruck

Here: See 115



It is my experience that once the TCU bush leaks the problems persist rather than sporadic. Others might have found differently.

acr2001

Thanks Glyn!