Differential Fluid Change (4MATIC Owners)
 

This questions is more for the 4MATIC owners because the 4MATIC's have a front & rear differential.

1.) Does anyone know the official MB recommended service interval for the differential oil/fluid change? I've heard various answers from different dealerships.

2.) I'm currently sitting at the dealer getting the differential oil change. The MB tech was puzzled at first when looking at the front differential. There is a drain plug but no fill plug for the W204. He said they will need to remove the driveshaft in order to refill the front differential (an added 3 hours of labor). Anyone else run into this problem?

3.) What did u pay for the 4MATIC differential oil change?

FYI - I just told them to do the rear differential change for now.

I cannot address the W204, as my only 4MATIC is a W211, and we did just change the fluid at 39,000 miles. But, if you are at the dealership, ask them to walk you over to your car on the rack, take out the owner's manual portfolio, and find the recommended maintenance service schedules in the book. That is the controlling information on what you should do.

consult your owners manual

I doubt whether you will find any information on when to change your diff oil in your manual. There is no mention in my 2 wheel drive.

It has been recommended previously on this forum that 100,000 miles would be a good point to do a change.

I think I will be doing mine a little earlier ie 100,000 km.

https://mbworld.org/forums/c-class-w...nuals-etc.html

The manuals I have seen only recommend a level check. Other older manuals pre W204 say 10 years or 300,000Km.

You have to suck the oil out of the front diff. They do not have to remove the drive shaft.

We always recommend every 100K miles on the 203 forum just for good measure. The diff oil has a sacrificial additive system in it & while it will go a long, long way it does deplete in the end. It's also a good idea to get any wear debris out of the diff within reason & clean magnetic plugs where fitted.

JC - you are wise!

From the W204 maintenance manual:

US Service 20 once at 39,000 miles
Underside of vehicle
Automatic transmission - oil and filter change 2702

I know now it has been decided that it should be done more than once, but it says nothing in the whole manual about a differential change, unless that's included in the trans fluid change.

No it's not included in the transmission fluid service. MBUSA has this filled for life nonsense inculcated in the organisation. This must trouble Stuttgart. Filled for life = compromised life. Yes I know with cars it's a toss out with the trash market.

Service the 722.9 transmission every 39K miles like ROW - it is one expensive piece of kit to repair & changing axle oils every 100K miles is a very good idea. The W203 4Matic owners find the axles an easy DIY. The W204 is majority W203 under the shell with tweaks.

Okay, sounds good.

So 100K for front and rear differentials, anything else under their that should have its fluid changed? Or anything else you think MBUSA is compromising anywhere in the car?

They have pulled back engine oil change rate to 10K miles which is good. They are good about 2 year brake fluid flushes. One problem we have found with some dealers when servicing the 722.9 is that they are reluctant to drain the torque converter that once again has a drain plug. TC drain plugs were deleted in 1999 on the 722.6 to the disgust of all. Requiring flushing proceedures with 14 quarts of oil & such nonesense. Anyway early 722.9 trannys had no TC plug but all W204's do have. The TC holds nearly half the fluid in the transmission. Make sure they drain it at service & replace the plug with a new microencapsulated one. Don't let dealers tell you it is difficult. It is not. You remove a rubber cover from an opening in the bell housing & rotate the engine until the drain plug lines up with the aperture.

I had my brake booster replaced under warranty because it began leaking air (I heard a hissing sound by the brake pedals), any chance a replacement of this part would require a brake fluid flush? Otherwise another thing I have to add to the list, you really think its an important procedure?

If they changed the booster they would have to bleed the brakes. Whether they did a proper flush I don't know. Brake fluid is hygroscopic. i.e. it absorbs water. At the cost of a new ABS block these days you don't want any corrosion in the system.

i thought it was a forever fluid

Not filled for life. Word of advice, never second guess Glyn, haha.

To summarize:
1) Front and rear 4matic differentials are advised to be flushed every 100k miles.

2) Change engine oil and filter every 10k miles (duh!).

3) Perform transmission fluid flush (which simultaneously flushes transfer case for 4matic, as they are connected) and replace filter (also make sure torque converter housing is drained via separate drain plug) every 39k miles.

4) Perform brake fluid flush every 2 years.

Some of the above maintenance is not "required" but HIGHLY recommended. And no, not recommended like your dealer trying to get a few extra bucks, but recommended as in will save you numerous repair bills and headaches down the line/out of warranty.

I would also like to add that at the same time the brake fluid is performed, I would also do a laser alignment and 4 wheel road force balancing. In my experience, in my areas (with the terrible condition of the roads) 2 years is just the right amount of time when I start to feel vibrations and my alignment starts to get out of wack. While these may seem "extra" or not needed, if your alignment is off it could give you uneven wear, making even new tires worthless and garbage in a matter of miles 10-20k.

Glyn has also previously recommended to install fluted bolts so you will be able to adjust castor or camber when performing alignments. (This will get rid of slight pulling to right by having a 1 degree additional positive castor on the RHS (so LHS = 9.6, RHS = 10.6 degrees) due to camber in the road surface, even if your alignment was just done and is good).

i never saw it on my maintenance manual for diff oil change... only listed is for c63

This is only for 4matic. The transfer case for 4matic is drained when the transmission fluid is changed (as they are connected in w204's). The differential fluid/oil should be changed ever 100k miles (front and rear) on 4matics.

It may be considered "lifetime fill" but as our experience tells us, this shouldn't be (transmission fluid was once considered lifetime fill). It is always a good idea to do at LEAST one flush, just to get any debris and some fresh fluid in there. But I would do it every 100k miles (if the car lasts till the 200k mark) and every 39k for the transmission.

most epic fail post of the year.....

1. 7gtronic has the transfer case integrated into the same bellhousing as the tranny. so this shares with the tranny oil
2. w204-4matic have front and rear differentials. its listed in the manual for the oil amount and weight....

please get ur information right......

the point of the thread is about differential oil change. i think i read somewhere that it is lifetime, but i need to recomfirm. no harm getting it changed every time u do tranny change.

I find conflicting information on it all the time. The issue is mercedes service sheet lists the transmission flush and 4matic transfer case as TWO different and separated services, see below:
US Service 20
Required
once at 39,000 mi:
Underside of vehicle
" Automatic transmission > Oil and filter
change
Transmission 722.6 AP27.00>P>2702I
Transmission 722.9 AP27.00>P>2702W
" Transfer case > oil change (4MATIC models) AP28.00>P>2801P

However, this may just be for the e-class, where I obtained my information. I'm not really positive on the w204 as I haven't had to do the service yet...

So what you're saying is that the transfer case for 4matic is integrated into the transmission fluid housing, but that there are two separate (front and rear) differentials for w204?

I doubt whether you will find any information on when to change your diff oil in your manual.

http://www.jimjam.info/03.jpghttp://www.jimjam.info/13.jpg
http://www.bookunion.org/4.jpghttp://www.jimjam.info/jh3.jpg

jct - I hope I don't come over as dogmatic. I merely want owners to experience long & trouble free life from their cars. :zoom:

qaz - Please treat respected members of this forum in a polite fashion.

Every lubricant used on/in a car has a finite life including the grease in your wheel bearings. So does your coolant. Change interval is dependent on contamination & degradation in a specific application & service. Suggesting "filled for life" is nothing but planned obsolescence.

This can either be specified as mileage or time, or you can undertake an analysis program that is only practical in fleets.

w211 are different...... u cannot base stuff from other cars...

Do they have to separately refill the TC or does it refill when you refill the trans? It would seem that if you have to drain it separately, you'd have to refill it separately.

Glyn-
Any confirmation on whether the 4matic transfer case is simultaneously drained and refilled with the main transmission drain/fill hole?

there is not transfer case for W204-4matics!!!! i cannot stress this enough times. The transfer gears all all integrated into the transmission sharing the oil with the transmission!!!

from the 2007 MB fluid application manual. look the W204 does not have a transfer case!!!

for those people that are confusing transfer case from differential they are different. i have not found any maintenance info, but they say is forever.....

http://img824.imageshack.us/img824/7...ercase2010.jpg

heres the spec for differential oils (from 2007 manual again)
http://img836.imageshack.us/img836/9664/diff2010.png

Here is a video I found showing the 4m system at work on the w221, check out 1:15, it mentions the integrated transfer case, you were right, my question is what happens to that transfer case on the RWD models, their transmission must have a different part number and must be built without that transfer case right?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZoIc4SyZy2M

http://img832.imageshack.us/img832/9057/glky.jpg

here is a picture from the GLK sales brocher. looks like its all integrated into the same unit.

Here we go.

https://mbworld.org/forums/attachmen...1&d=1324337520

if you take a look at them manual, the 4matic cars use more fluid than the 2wd cars. this is because the transfer gearing is all integrated into one unit!!!

http://img440.imageshack.us/img440/3701/2010manual.jpg

Here's a C-Class / GLK Class 4-Matic differential.... Sure looks like it has a drain and filler plug to me!

http://cdn2.worldcarfans.co/2007/12/...06.Mini1L2.jpg


... seen here too! (#3).. but the filler plug looks sealed off in this sketch.

https://mbworld.org/forums/attachmen...et-4-matic.jpg

And to top it all off, it seems the E-Class for some reason has a separate transfer case, so JC had correct info, just different for the C-class, taken from the MBusa website:

notice bottom left of picture

Attachment 380655

The transfer case is integral with the transmission. It bolts straight onto the back of the 722.9 in place of the tail shaft. All Benz 4Matic systems are modifications of the same theme. The E Class & C Class have the same system. Propshafts are different.

thats not a transfer case. its a differential. y u guys no understand?

My bad... not thinking... you're right... it's a dif... the car is rear drive, with a front differential... and one in back as well... :y

lets not talk about the e-class. the w212 should be the same, but keep that in e-class forums please. people here are getting confused........

in the end, no transfer case like the older 4matic for the W204. front and rear differentials need different gear oil (85w-90)

Here - corrected

5 speed C Class Transfer Case:

https://mbworld.org/forums/attachmen...1&d=1324339144

5 speed E Class Transfer Case:

https://mbworld.org/forums/attachmen...1&d=1324339144

so i think the important question here is

does the w204 transmission fluid flow through the transfer case too or is it a separate loop?

The transmission fluid is common sump. There is no seal between transmission & transfer case.

Edit - This appears to apply to W204/W212 I can't identify if this applies from certain VIN numbers. Benz has done a number of running upgrades on the 4Matic system. LandSeaAir - What E Class was that you posted for above?

W203/W211 have a level plug at the rear but no drain & show a seal & run on transmission fluid. Now I intend investigating whether any service has ever been recommended on W203/211 4 Matics.

Both new and old have magnets in the base of the housing.

And this must be why the 4MATIC engine requires 7.4 quarts of oil while the RWD takes 8.5, always wondered how a awd system could effect engine oil capacity, I learned a lot from this thread!

Attachment 380654

Indeed - the driveshaft goes through the sump. This can mess with sucking oil out of a 4Matic's engine. Many gripes on the 203 forum.

i believe only the W211 with V8 AND 7Gtronic AND 4matic (e500/e550). the other W211 used a 5 speed with a 4matic and that required a separate transfer case oil.

has been mention before. you can still drain it but you might or might not get all of it out.

Indeed - Look what I found and I'm pleased I did. With the 5 Speed 4matic the transfer case took gear oil. This applies to W203 & W211. W204 4Matics were a running change to 7 speed - Yes? That is why the EPC is confusing. The above diagrams I have posted are for 5 Speed 4Matics.

Here is oil drain method for 5 speed 4Matics.

sort of a useless link for w204 forum. if possible can you put the one for w204 7g up??? thanks!!!

Thanks guys. It's been some useful research. The W204 4Matics were never built in RHD so I have limited knowledge of them.

i thought they were in the UK?? what about trying to look for the e-class ones since they do share the same tranny?

just looked on japan site. they offer 4matic but in LHD form. never knew 4matix is so exclusivly for LHD markets.....

No RHD 4Matics built.

I've had my say here. If you want any more go look it up yourself.

Actually the driveshaft doesn't go through the sump... it goes under it... there's a a channel under the sump where it goes through.... thus it decreases the capacity of the sump in AWD 4-Matics... this was widely discussed in the GLK forum.

where can i find??? what about the ML/R/GL??

+1 - Terminology - my bad

Purchase or obtain a copy of the WIS & EPC & almost dedicate a computer to it.

When you learn some manners you will find me highly cooperative.

I would never keep used engine oil in the car for as long as 10k miles. I know it is recommended, but there is no harm in changing it sooner. It used to be 3k for mineral and 5k for synthetic, but in fact even synthetic does it's best only for the first 1 to 3k miles depending on the brand. So I am sticking with at most 5k. The pennies you save on extra oil you pay back in gas for more friction anyway. I think longer intervals are driven by environmentalists and green initiatives and only provide for your car to last during the warranty period, same as the "lifetime" differential lubricant or "lifetime" transmission oil on VW.

seeing how u drive a honda, those typical oil capacity is around 4 quarts. benz has around 7.4 or 8.5 quarts. considering they use a large filter and synthetic oil, 10k isnt that much. an extended drain interval on a regular car with 3-4 quarts can be around 5K+, so with the increase capacity i dont worry much.

the diffs are highly sealed, i do not see any need to change them except to get rid of metal bits during break in. can anyone confirm about magnetic drain bolt?

Okay, so I think its settled then. The w204 4matic "transfer case" is non-existent as it has been integrated into the transmission and shares the same fluid.

Now I think the only debate is on the differentials. Should the fluid in the front and/or back ever be changed? I am never against changing something, as it can't cause any harm. My only fear is that if it wasn't designed to be replaced (filler and drain plugs), it could cause problems when you try to replace it, and may cause more harm then good if you have to start messing with seals, etc.

I'm not so upset that I provided wrong information from the e-class. It seems it has spurred everyone to do a bit of research and we have come up with great findings and stomped out any uncertainty.

Thanks for all the info and hard work!

Also, as far as changing engine oil every 5k, you are right, it can't do harm, but it offers negligible benefits and I would consider a waste of time, money, filter, oil and effort. I highly doubt that you will save upwards of $100 in improved fuel economy by having new oil every 5k as opposed to 10k miles. There are better ways to save on gas or improve fuel economy (such as driving style, making sure air filters are clean and free of debris, proper tire pressure).

Mercedes has MUCH larger oil capacities than other manufacturers. Synthetic does not mean 10k interval. My escalade uses synthetic and runs on a 5k interval. The fact that mercedes calls for fleece filters over traditional paper filters, as well as a much larger oil capacity allow for 10k oil and filter change intervals.

+1 This has been a great thread & got me up to date with W204 4Matics which are not produced or sold in SA due to no RHD.

Suck out and change on the diffs is a safe procedure and has always been done in areas of the world that Benz considers "torrid zones" and at max 10years or 300,000Km. I have no qualms recommending the 100K mile change for people that intend keeping their cars for a long while. They all have filler plugs. Magnetic plugs are fitted to some.

Engine oils in a Benz engine are not over stressed thanks to capacity. 10K mile changes are now conservative with fleece filters & same as ROW. They used to be 13K in the US and oils samples looked good in general terms if just slightly stressed on VI improver shear. A lot of samples I've seen had sheared out of grade & were just slightly light in viscosity but nothing to be alarmed about.

I'm told that Benz intends returning to 13,000 mile or 20,000 Km change globally with fleece filter. Diesels are already at 30,000 Km drain in some markets.

Being an oil man I think 10K miles or 15K Km changes are spot on, on gasoline engines, and that is what I will do with my CLK.

Please see above!

Do you know whether the front diff drain plug has now been removed from W204 4Matics & if so from when?

Hmm, seems odd that the rear would have plugs and the front wouldn't... Perhaps they are just hard to access and/or see?

Glyn, hopefully you can solve another mystery of mine. A friend of mine has a 2008 c300 4matic and it has a "kickdown" switch on the accelerator where when you put the pedal to the medal, you can press a little further to make the car downshift. This feature is missing on my 2009 c300 4matic and my 2011 c300 4matic. What gives?

Hmm, I know Merc redesigned the accelerator for 2010, but wouldn't of guess it would of been that way for 2009. My 08 has the button, and all other Mercedes that my dad has owned has had it, they must of redesigned it.

+2 learned a lot from this thread and had fun researching it.

The plug on early cars is not difficult to see. It's a pity if it's been deleted because that is more planned obsolescence.

The kick down switch removal was market specific. e.g. retained in Canada, deleted in USA. What the rationale was other than cost saving I do not know. Will try and find out.

This was done on many models. See from 2009 CLK owner’s manual for NA. Some sense from TPS hall sensor input & some with hard switch. All AMG have kickdown switch.

https://mbworld.org/forums/attachmen...1&d=1324461612

https://mbworld.org/forums/attachmen...1&d=1324461612

but i rather pay the price of a camry to drive a benz with less features. not worth the 20% premium to drive a benz in canada compared to usa.

Most places in the world pay double or more the US price for a Benz including Europe. Yes they are better appointed but not by that much.

Don't complain - you don't know what expensive is. Move to the US if you don't like Canadian car prices.

Taking my car to my mechanic for this tomorrow, worried he doesn't know to do this, and don't want to be "bossy"

Noticed when he did my dads S's 7 speed he only used 8 of Mercedes Benz fluids, I don't know what size they were sold in, I'm assuming quarts. According to the manual, my dads transmission uses 10.36 quarts, so there 2 quarts of old oil in there? I hope that isn't a problem....

the manual might state full fluid level as in required for a rebuild. change usually requires less.

Here is a DIY thread about automatic trans oil change ... informative. He speaks of changing the TC oil too.

DIY 722.9 7G-tronic 7-speed Automatic Fluid Change

Glyn, do you recommend the new atx flushing service?

.

Johnand's thread is definitive & TC must be drained to get all the oil out of the system.

See Sticky version here:

https://mbworld.org/forums/clk-class...ce-thread.html

Flushing is only necessary on 722.6 transmissions after 1999 that have no TC drain.

Dropped my car off to my mechanic this morning, he finished already and I'm picking it up tomorrow. I trust him, and I'm sure he knows he has to drain the TC, he's been working on imports for over 15 years. I feel pretty good I got it done, only for ~$300. I know we came to the conclusion of 100,000 miles, but I'm gonna ask him what he thinks about the differential fluid just for kicks.

Even good mechanics can have black holes in their knowledge base. ASK HIM before picking it up.

.

I vote Sticky (with possible rename) on this thread due to the vast information available, and all the usually unavailable pdf's from Glyn and others.

.

I Stickied on the CLK forum a while back looking after personal interests. :rolf: Will do it here.

I'm glad I found this thread. My car is at the dealer and they were trying to upsell me on front and rear diff fluid change, claiming it needs to be done every 40K miles. The car has 52K miles right now. Transmission fluid was previously changed at 38K miles.

The only thing that bothers me about treating all the 3 differentials the same on a 4MATIC is the clutches inside the center differential. Here is a description from Motortrend:


"Integrating 4MATIC's transfer case and planetary-type center diff into the transmission centralizes mass, exploiting the full benefit of Mercedes' longitudinally mounted engines. A double-plate "breakaway" clutch in the C-, E-, and S-Class 4MATIC transfer cases acts as a pseudo limited-slip diff, capable of changing front to rear load distribution (up to 70 percent frontwards or backwards) when there's less traction available. After the clutch, electronics like 4ETS and stability control can intervene when necessary. "

The basic front rear percents is 45% / 55%. If there is substantial heat generated by the preloaded (~ 80 ft-lbs) clutches, perhaps in the 70% mode, that would be a reason to change the center diff oil more frequently. But I suspect the 70% occurs in low torque low grip conditions.

Food for thought.

.

Service Frequency
 

May I ask why, in your note following item 4), you don't think it important to distinguish between what you refer to as "required" and "HIGHLY recommended"? :confused:

In addition, do you believe that those of us driving on on pristine roads should align our 4Matic cars every two years, as you do? Honestly, your indicator appears to be, "....when I start to feel vibrations and my alignment starts to get out of wack," right? :nix:

Gentlemen I have a question I have a 2011 w204 4matic and I just bought at 41k mile and I have NO past service history. so what can I do take it to a dealer and ask them to check? I mean this is very important to me I dont want to tell them to change the fluids and it doesnt need it.

I am not suggesting my experience is typical, but I took my '10 C300 4Matic to the local dealer for a post-purchase inspection. The dealer identified signs of fluid leaking from the transmission and the transfer case.

Tomorrow i have an appointment to visit with the manager of the dealer where the car was purchased to discuss any resolution they'd be willing to offer.

Since they owe me absolutely nothing, but appear to be conscientious, I have asked the sales manager, "If I pay for the required fluids, would consider replacing the leaking seals?"

Granted, my experience is unrelated to your question. If I were you, I think I'd just schedule a post-purchase inspection. Any good dealer, or independent shop that works on German cars, and Mercedeses (What's the plural of Mercedes? :nix:) in particular, should serve you well. I know that shops that service these cars know far more than I about the car I purchased.

All that aside, good luck with your endeavor, and I'll look forward to hearing of your experience! :y

Has anyone touched base on how to change the front axle hypoid gear oil. Listed in my manual, shows a capacity amount under fluids. Read TC is easy to do so no worries there. This is in reference to a 722.9 W204 2010 C300 4Matic

I just did my front and rear differential drain n fill and did I hear you correctly?,,,,,that the Mercedes technician needed to pull the front drive shaft to fill the fluid,,,, you got to be kidding me???!!!!!!!!! You simply fill exactly where you drain the fluid ,,,,,,,,, I simply used a 1 liter bottle and used a pump set up to fit the drain hole so no fluids spill out while pumping in 1 1/2 liters of fresh 75w90 up front and 1 liter for the back,,, took me 20 minutes to do both services,,,,,,

I just did my front and rear differential drain n fill and did I hear you correctly?,,,,,that the Mercedes technician needed to pull the front drive shaft to fill the fluid,,,, you got to be kidding me???!!!!!!!!! You simply fill exactly where you drain the fluid ,,,,,,,,, I simply used a 1 liter bottle and used a pump set up to fit the diameter of the drain hole so no fluids spill out while pumping in 1 1/2 liters of fresh 75w90 up front You just have to have the drain plug ready to cap when full,,, that's it,, I only had 80,000 miles and my front diff was nearly empty,,,, so yes it's got to get done asap,,,,

What year and transmission do you have? 722.6 or 722.9 ??

As this thread states, the front diff is attached to the transmission and I believe uses trans oil for lub. The Front Axle I was referring to, I believe is in a tight spot to reach on the passenger side behind the passenger side tire.
Yes that uses gear oil 75w90

How much diff fluid did you pump out?

Have any other members done the front and rear differentials?

The rear is easy, but according to my mechanic the front is more difficult.

I don't want to do the rear and not the front... would seem half-assed and stupid... instead I'll just leave both unchanged... even stupider

My MB dealer insists that my 2009 has no drain plug and the drive shaft has to be removed to change the fluid. I want this done asap since I think it needs to be done and is not a lifetime fluid. They did not perform a flush and fill on the front differential when I had my transmission fluid changed recently even though I asked for it to be done.

I was really hoping a drain plug was there since it will cost me about $500 to have the fluid change done at the dealership.

The dealership only put in about 6 litres of fluid when they did my transmission fluid change a short time back so where are the other 3 litres of transmission fluid?

You can use a syringe type device made for mechanics or a mity vac type pump and fill via the drain plug opening. You will have to compensate for loss. I changed mine out of my 2010 C300 W204 4Matic at 95k miles and the fluid was raunchy....smelled horrific. Glad new fluid is in for sure.

You can use a syringe type device made for mechanics or a mity vac type pump and fill via the drain plug opening. You will have to compensate for loss as you re putting the plug back in.

I changed mine out of my 2010 C300 W204 4Matic at 95k miles and the fluid was raunchy....smelled horrific. Glad new fluid is in for sure.

Hyoid gear oil is smelly to begin with. I am pretty sure (according to what I have been told) my 2008 does not have a filler plug hence the axle needs to be pulled. They brought the plug back in 2010 I believe.

I'm thinking about buying a new drain plug from the dealer and possibly modifying it to be some sort of bleeder valve, so I can pump new fluid in and close it off before disconnecting the pump. When I get around to actually doing it, I'll post a DIY, if it goes according to plan.

New (C250 CDI 4Matic '12 model) owner here with 225.000 kms. Is there a transfer case on this car or just the front and rear differentials that need to be done?
My local dealer told me that the transmission oil n filter will be changed acoording to the service messages. Is this correct? An oil n filter change was done at 139.000 kms as per the car's service history.

Yes but with 95k miles on it is even worse

Well the only thing that I could see possibly being the drain/fill hole is the square black cap on the top right of the unit... picture pulled from ebay, search: C300 4matic front differential, there's tons of them for $500 and under... they don't seem to be too big of a deal to find, and they aren't too cumbersome either.

One nice thing about the 204 is that there are so many of them out there, and so many wrecked ones as well, so parts from wrecked ones are cheap and easy to find...not to mention car is so easy to work on.

According to the listing, this is from a 2008.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/2008-2011-ME...dYKj4s&vxp=mtr

Looks like <2010 models don't have a drain screw at the bottom. If you find a diff that's from a 2010 or newer 204, it'll have one


The transfer case is integrated with the rest of the transmission and uses the same fluid, so you don't need to do a separate fluid change for it

Thanks, I've contacted my local dealer and told me that they service the rear differential every 150k kms and the cost is €140. The front one is hard to service it as they need to move away the driveshaft with higher labor cost. I haven't contacted any independent mechanic yet as I don't trust them for that kind of work.

My 2008 4matic is at the dealer right now getting the front diff fluid changed.


They tried really hard to not get me to do it and ask me why.


I simply answered why not? They said they have never really done this before and I think that they are foolish not to.


These 4 matic boxes are notorious for the bearing failing so fresh hypoid filled to spec should not be a bad idea. My car has only 630000K on it but the car is new to me and I want peace of mind about the differential fluid being changed F and R. (I had the rear done last fall).


I asked for them to save me a fluid sample of the original stuff to see how dirty it is or if there are metal particles in there. I bet it will be under filled also from the factory. A few instances I have read here show the factory fill was under what it was supposed to be and the fluid quite dirty.


I pick the car up later today so I'll let you all know my findings about how clean or dirty the original hypoid is.


This is also the dealership that said they have never seen an ESL failure which I find very hard to believe, considering a fella who bought a 2008 C350 not long after I bought mine last summer, had an ESL failure just this past December.

Got the car back and the original fluid sample they kept for me was very dark and dirty. Only 63,000 KM on the car but I am glad I had it done. I didn't get a chance to ask the tech if the original fluid level was low or not.

Bill came to about $492 CAD with taxes since they had to remove a drive axle to replace fluid ect.

Sorry TLdr the entire thread. Just getting caught up - sorry folks.

So:

So is that the guidance then? Every 100,000 miles - drain and fill front and rear differential fluid?

I'm getting my tranny drained and filled in a few weeks. Is this front/rear diff fluid drain and fill something else that isn't covered?

Thank you

Last month I drained my diff ( 2 wheel drive) at 10,000 KM & noticed the oil was quite dark.

I would not be waiting the 100,000 miles. It is only 1.1 litres. but need 2 one litre bottles. I bought the MB recommended 235.7 Fuchs Titan Sinopoid FE 75w85. which was A$40/ litre compared with MB A$120.

Holy moly. 10,000 miles? I mean, just because an oil is dark doesn't mean it's "bad". Have you tried getting a used oil analysis on it? (just curious).

I also assume there's no filter in the diff. :(

It's shocking to me that MB has no service interval for the diff.

PS - it's a separate diff for the front and rear right that needs to be drained? Yes, I realize it's an asinine question but just asking ahead of my tranny service. Maybe i'll do it all at the same time (50k km - yes, I know it's early but I drive my car hard) :zoom:

That's a typo, it should read 100,000 km. Well, it looked as black as a witches tit if you want to know the truth. I have not had it analysed , rather go on 50 years experience & spend the money on fresh oil.

Ah, ok, that's perfectly fair. 100,000 miles = 160,000 km so maybe i'll wait until my 100,000km tranny drain and fill. That gives me a 60,000km buffer.

I'm like that stupid child.

My car says oil change intervals are 20k. I do them at 10k. My tranny service time is at 60,000km. I'll do it at 47,000km.

I dunno - the idea of doing a service at the manufacturer's suggested time = it's too long for me. I always do them early. I mean, girls like it when we finish early, right?

:naughty::naughty::naughty::naughty:

So how much fluid to do the tranny, front AND rear diff's ?

front differential gear oil capacity
 

Can anyone tell me what the recommended oil capacity is on the front differential of a 2012 E350 4matic?

The manual should mention capacity for the front diff as stated by the other user it’s connected, not separated like
the rear

. In any event, On my w204 2010 C300, I drained/refilled at 93k thru the drain hole and calculated how much I would lose prior to putting the plug in. I used a modified caulking cylinder with a piece of hose.

Thank you for you for the input..

are you sure in the back of the manual, it doesn’t state the capacity?

Check my signature for an easy way to drain/refill the front differential but I’m pretty sure it’s 1.1L.

I m not seeing a signature at the end of
your post. I checked your profile and nothing as well.

Sorry about that, the mobile site always unchecked the “add signature” box for some reason.

It has been added now.

hmmmm still not seeing it. I am on an iPhone so IDK.

For my 2013 e 350 4matic I believe the maintenance manual says 70k miles. Not clear which differential or if they are interconnected. Called Aamco (dealer too busy) and they said change fluid and replace pan because pan holds the filter. Price over $600. ouch

The front fluid change of the 4matic is labour intensive if you follow the proper procedure. There is another way of doing the service which involves pumping the fluid from the drain (red neck way). There will be new fluid spilled but if the tech is smart enough he can compensate for this during the pumping.

I did mine last summer. It was confusing because the operators manual says the front holds 1.1 L but only .55 L came out. This amount seemed to match what others online say is in there. So I put in .55 l. For the rear the operators manual says 1.1 L and that's exactly the amount that came out so that's what I put back in.

Looking at the front vs the rear differentials the front looks a lot smaller, I don't see how it can hold the same amount of fluid as the rear. I could be totally wrong. But my cars been running fine since.

Another thing about operator manuals fluid amounts, mine says coolant capacity is 4.8 L but when I replaced I put in around 7 L (almost 2 jugs of 50/50 coolant) to fill it. And I didn't even fully drain it, I removed the oil filter housing and let it drain out there, I didn't touch the radiator drain.

I used an inexpensive fluid transfer pump. It works well because it sucks up and pushes all the fluid through and doesn't leave any in the lines. I used some new quick connects I had laying around so I could disconnect the line and the fluid wouldn't come back out while I got the plug ready to install it back. I didn't loose much fluid putting the plug back in. The front I ended up pumping in .65 L and a little spilled out. The rear I just kept filling until it started coming out the fill hole, which happened to be 1.1 L.



https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mbw...b17ec3ff1f.jpg

https://cimg0.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mbw...3bf0eff20c.jpg


This is the fluid I used. It has the specific Mercedes approval number right on the back label. I picked it up locally, I bought 3 bottles but ended up only needing two.

https://cimg9.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mbw...e6c8a707fc.png