03MBC320

hey guys, over the past week or two i've been noticing very abrupt and harsh shifts, as well as a stutter/vibration both before and after each shift (makes for a crappy ride), when just cruising/coasting at around 45/50 mph, i get what feels like a rotating pull on the car (hard to explain but very noticeable). so i get home a few days ago and go to chekc the transmission fluid, but low and behold our "do not touch yourself cars" don't have any way in the manuel to check transmission fluid, it just states, "Your transmission fluid does not need to be checked (), if you feel something is wrong with your transmission, please bring your vehicle to your local authorized MB Stealership"
So, i'm bringing the car in tomorrow, 1pm, and just want to see if theres anything i should be aware of headed in? i always feel like dealerships are just waiting to rip people off so is there anything i should look out for? anything to ask specifically? they're charging 100$ to do a transmission diagnostic, and even over the phone they refused to waive that 100$ fee if i proceeded with the suggested repairs through their dealership so i'm already pissed about that. Basically anything i should make sure they do, make sure they don't do. etc? Cars got about 73,000 miles on it, its a 2003 (so pretty sure she's out of warranty =( )
any helps appreciated

mleskovar

You need the tool/level probe to check trans fluid. One not so uncommon problem on early C's is glycol in the trans fluid from a faulty radiator. You would need to have a sample of the fluid analyzed for this condition. Your trans plug could be leaking and have fluid migrate up the wire to the control unit. Your trans mounts could be shot. Or your trans could be worn. You could check all of these conditions yourself if you know what to look for. I agree about the 'diagnostic' fee ripoff. It should be included in the hourly charge for labor if you have the work done there. But to make a long answer short....yes, you are at the mercy of the dealer unless you do the work yourself. All of the conditions I mentioned (except maybe a worn/damaged transmission) are covered somewhere in this forum. Good luck, let us know how it goes.

03MBC320

ok just got a call from the dealership an hour ago,
they said that there was anti-freeze in the transmission fluid!
and that they'll be calling me tomorrow to let me know what caused it/ how they have to go about fixing it. this sounds like it'll be fun

LILBENZ230

You're a victim of the Valeo radiator design flaw. Let us know how this works out.

03MBC320

mercedes just called me with price quote.
$2,650 to replace the radiator and flush the transmission (1750 of that is labor),
$990 to fix the split front axle joints (not causing the problem, but apparently will become a problem since they dont hold lubricant now)
and top it all off with 3,400 to flush the entire engine just for kicks (apparantely theres a 10% chance the radiator/transmission flush isn't going to fix the car, so flushing the engine would tell me if there was another problem..)


im gonna go pick the car up and take it to euro image, the guy there said he'd do all that for under 1,000

mleskovar

Good choice. Try to drive it as little as possible. Hopefully it's not too far gone to fix.

TemjinX2

Just diy it. A new radiator is about $160 shipped on ebay and the coolant, tranny fluid and filter is about $120-150 max.

Oh yeah, you can buy the tranny dip stick for $45 shipped on ebay.

If your in southern california, I can probably just lend u mine.

You can knock it all out within a day.

LILBENZ230

$7,000 at the dealer? If you did that much damage in a crash it would be totaled. Stealers..

mleskovar

Good point, another reason I do all my own work. That, and I still like wrenching. And what's up with the "engine flush"? That's a come-on you usually get from chain automotive shops. Worthless service that could end up doing more harm than good.