7G+ 4MATIC transmission fluid change report
12-29-2020, 12:38 PM
#1
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Thread Starter
7G+ 4MATIC transmission fluid change report
Hello everyone,
As my 2012 car was coming up on 9 years and 50,000 km, I decided that it’s time for the transmission fluid and filter to be replaced.
After having confirmed that the transmission is 7G+ not 7G based on the indentations of the pan, I bought the blue fluid (236.15), the SmartMediaTriple filter (2222772000) required for the 7G+ and blue fluid, and the gasket.
A friend of mine, @Jason A, who’s a member of this forum, also joined since his Canadian 2012 C250 4MATIC with 150,000 km needed a transmission fluid change. His car also has the 7G+ and we bought the same parts listed above.
Here is a list of our findings:
- By unscrewing the drain plug, the overflow pipe, and the torque converter plug on my friend’s car, approx 8-9 liters of fluid were drained. On my car, we did the same but also drained the transfer case by unscrewing the bolt in the rear of the transmission. Around 1L additional came out. To our surprise, even with the additional transfer case drain, only around 7L of fluid were drained. His car has either been serviced before and overfilled or my car had less fluid for some reason.
- On his car which was manufactured in 02/12, the filter found installed was the SmartMediaTriple filter which is made for the 7G+ whereas on my car, which was manufactured in 11/11, the filter we found was the regular Combination Filter for the 7G. On both cars, new SmartMediaTriple filters were installed.
- We ended up taking apart his filter in the name of science so that we can see what’s inside and it was pretty dirty as it had picked up a lot of fine shavings. Pictures attached.
- The magnets on my car had more fine shavings than his.
- Although we don’t know how much mileage was on the fluid found in his car, it was noticeably darker and dirtier than the fluid in my car.
- We both filled the pan with 7L initially, ran the car so it warms up, then added an additional 4L for a total of 11L. When the transmission fluid reached 45C, we let the fluid drain until it started dripping and then we buttoned it all up. On his car, 1.3L of fluid drained out so a total of 9.7L was pumped in. On my car, 1.7L of fluid drained out so a total of 9.3L was pumped in. This was also surprising since on my car we drained the transfer case but not on his. I hope my car is running low on fluid now.
- If it wasn’t for @ltwargssf , I wouldn’t have known that the transfer case has a drain bolt and should be drained so thank you @ltwargssf .
- I cannot stress enough how important it is to use the correct blue fluid (236.15) and the correct SmartMediaTriple filter for the 7G+. Please do not use the wrong red fluid (236.14) and the wrong combination filter made for the 7G with the 7G+.
We look forward to your comments and questions.
Cheers.
As my 2012 car was coming up on 9 years and 50,000 km, I decided that it’s time for the transmission fluid and filter to be replaced.
After having confirmed that the transmission is 7G+ not 7G based on the indentations of the pan, I bought the blue fluid (236.15), the SmartMediaTriple filter (2222772000) required for the 7G+ and blue fluid, and the gasket.
A friend of mine, @Jason A, who’s a member of this forum, also joined since his Canadian 2012 C250 4MATIC with 150,000 km needed a transmission fluid change. His car also has the 7G+ and we bought the same parts listed above.
Here is a list of our findings:
- By unscrewing the drain plug, the overflow pipe, and the torque converter plug on my friend’s car, approx 8-9 liters of fluid were drained. On my car, we did the same but also drained the transfer case by unscrewing the bolt in the rear of the transmission. Around 1L additional came out. To our surprise, even with the additional transfer case drain, only around 7L of fluid were drained. His car has either been serviced before and overfilled or my car had less fluid for some reason.
- On his car which was manufactured in 02/12, the filter found installed was the SmartMediaTriple filter which is made for the 7G+ whereas on my car, which was manufactured in 11/11, the filter we found was the regular Combination Filter for the 7G. On both cars, new SmartMediaTriple filters were installed.
- We ended up taking apart his filter in the name of science so that we can see what’s inside and it was pretty dirty as it had picked up a lot of fine shavings. Pictures attached.
- The magnets on my car had more fine shavings than his.
- Although we don’t know how much mileage was on the fluid found in his car, it was noticeably darker and dirtier than the fluid in my car.
- We both filled the pan with 7L initially, ran the car so it warms up, then added an additional 4L for a total of 11L. When the transmission fluid reached 45C, we let the fluid drain until it started dripping and then we buttoned it all up. On his car, 1.3L of fluid drained out so a total of 9.7L was pumped in. On my car, 1.7L of fluid drained out so a total of 9.3L was pumped in. This was also surprising since on my car we drained the transfer case but not on his. I hope my car is running low on fluid now.
- If it wasn’t for @ltwargssf , I wouldn’t have known that the transfer case has a drain bolt and should be drained so thank you @ltwargssf .
- I cannot stress enough how important it is to use the correct blue fluid (236.15) and the correct SmartMediaTriple filter for the 7G+. Please do not use the wrong red fluid (236.14) and the wrong combination filter made for the 7G with the 7G+.
We look forward to your comments and questions.
Cheers.
