superswiss

I can sympathize with that. I also come from driving manual cars for 20 years and the 2nd gear start always felt cringeworthy to me. It's part of what kept me from AMG in the past. Never liked how the PFL C63 started in 2nd gear in Comfort mode. Because it has a clutch instead of a torque converter it basically slips the clutch like crazy in those situations and I cringed every time. Ultimately, 1st gear starts are about better response and more off-the-line torque, though, and it's why AMG thankfully made this change finally. Fairly common for torque converter automatics to start in 2nd gear, though.

W205C43PFL

I see. I am sorry to hear that and given your past experience with manual, I understand why you would appreciate it to be starting in 1st gear. Unless someone figure out how to modify the TCU software so it starts in first gear for you, I am afraid there is not much you can do. I wonder if you can change the settings in individual so you can just flip it to individual while keeping everything else the same so you can just switch to individual every time you drive instead of leaving it in comfort.

W205C43PFL

I don't remember what settings are available in individual since I never actually use it, I just flip it to sport+ or use comfort. I will check it next time I get in the car but I am not sure if it is the same for the C300, not to mention I don't have a facelift so there might be changes too.

blizzard12

Sport mode is the only way to make it automatically downshift to 1st. So, I've set my individual config to comfort steering with sport transmission. But that's not ideal as I don't want to be driving at high(er) revs all the time.

One way to make it downshift to 1st is the kickdown switch under the gas pedal. I'd be ok with a solution that would manually activate that switch without having to depress the acceleration completely causing the engine to rev up.

W205C43PFL

If I remember correctly, you could set the transmission into manual mode in individual so you can just drive the car in full manual mode and just shift yourself entirely without the car controlling the shifting in anyway (C43 has a manual button but I believe you can just set the transmission to manual in individual on a C300 to achieve the same thing). I am not sure though.

superswiss

The individual mode has all the settings you'd expect. It effectively lets you mix-and-match settings from the different standard modes. OP, could set the Drive setting to Sport in order to get the 1st gear start, but leave the suspension in Comfort for example to still get a comfortable ride. Individual mode, IMO is the most useful mode as one can set up the car to one's preference. In the C300 the Individual mode is also the only way to put the transmission in permanent manual mode. As opposed to the AMG models, the regular models don't have a button to activate M. You can still use the paddles, but like in the AMGs that only puts it in temporary manual mode. In the FL AMG models with the AMG Drive Unit, the Individual mode is particularly useful because it can be instantly activated by pressing the drive mode selector regardless of the current mode.

superswiss

You can always put it in Sport to start off the line and then once you are moving switch back to Comfort when you want the rpms to be lower. I know it's not as intuitive and convenient with the switch on the center console. I change modes all the time in my C63, but fortunately I can do it from the steering wheel. Whenever I get a 4-banger loaner I pretty much always have to at least put it in Sport around town, and then on the highway I put it back in Comfort.

blizzard12

Correct. In individual mode I can set the transmission to manual. However, while paddle shifters might be extremely useful on the track in race cars, they are nothing more than a useless fancy feature in street cars. Especially when you have 9 speeds to select from, all 9 of them sequential, and the shifters turn with the steering wheel. Cornering and using paddle shifters is less than ideal at best. Also, downshifting has caused me lots of bad moments when the transmission decided to downshift (because of low rpm) at the same time when I was downshifting resulting in double-shifting and jerking the car. So, manual shifting not ideal either.

blizzard12

I've tried something similar - manually shifting down to 1st at a standstill and when the car started moving switching back to auto mode using the shift lever.
I will try your suggestion of switching between sport and comfort modes. Thanks!

superswiss

I agree that in normal commuter cars with torque converters the paddle shifters are somewhat questionable. I actually don't use them whenever I have a C300, GLC300 or other regular old loaner, but I drive my C63 about 90% or more in manual mode. I have my individual mode setup to put my transmission in M, and I use it on the highway and the open road most of the time. But there are a few key differences between an MB and a 63 AMG. First off the shifts are crisp and satisfying due to the entire transmission using clutches for everything, and AMGs have what's known as a true manual mode, so like with a manual car, it doesn't automatically upshift at redline. Now it will still automatically downshift if you let the revs drop too low to avoid stalling the engine. That's never really been an issue for me, though. If the revs get this low, then I was essentially asleep behind the steering wheel. I personally don't like how automatic transmissions are reactive in many situations, so like when I drive a manual car, I first downshift into the proper gear before getting on the accelerator. There are a few tricks to manage all these gears, but not sure if they all work in a C300. One trick is to press and hold the downshift paddle for a second or so to instantly downshift to the lowest possible gear for maximum acceleration, and another trick is while on the throttle, rapidly press the downshift paddle consecutively to instantly downshift multiple gears. For example if I'm cruising along in 9th gear and I want to pass somebody, I flick the downshift paddle twice to drop two gears at once into 7th.

blizzard12

I know holding the upshift paddle will switch from manual to auto mode. I haven't tried holding the downshift paddle, but I'll try to see if it works the way you described it. According to the specs the transmission is able to skip gears when needed. I personally have never experienced it as I don't drive that aggressively.

blizzard12

What do you guys think of coasting? I know from experience that shifting into neutral and back to D at a standstill will force the transmission to start in 1st.
So, what if I shift into N while approaching a red light and when the car comes to a stop I shift back to D?

The car's manual says never shift into N while in motion as it may damage the transmission, but the car still lets you do it. I've tried it and it is pretty smart: when coasting in N and shifting back to D it automatically selects the proper gear according to your speed. So, the question is: will it or will not damage the transmission?

As a side note shifting into R when you are traveling forward at a speed will definitely damage a transmission, therefore these transmissions will not even let you shift into R while in motion. The engineers thought about it and disabled this "feature". Then why did they not disable shifting into N while in motion if it can damage the transmission?

Just fiddling with my and the engineers' thoughts.
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blizzard12

It is obvious that people are divided over the 1st vs 2nd gear start. Some hate the 1st gear start others hate the 2nd gear start. How hard would it have been for the much praised engineers to add an option to the command menu like "Start in 2nd gear" or something similar? There are so many settings already like tighten the seat belt or not, fold the mirrors or not, audible lock or silent, lighting options, you name it... and they could have easily satisfied both groups. But no! You want a feature? Buy a new car! While most of these features are minor software adjustments.
This is where Tesla leads the way. You can get features over the air. You don't even have to drive to the dealership.

decorily

If you pull and hold the downshift paddle doesn’t it act like a kickdown and get you straight to the optimal gear for acceleration?

decorily

Did the GLC start in 1st?
Which model GLC?

blizzard12

2017 GLC 300. It also started in 2nd except when towing. When it detected an electrical connection to the trailer it started in 1st.

W205C43PFL

Thanks for confirming, although unfortunately from what you just described, you don't want that so that isn't a good solution after all.

decorily

Interesting. .both of my wife's GLCs started in 1st .

blizzard12

Were they GLC300 with the 9G transmission or other GLC models?
I've read somewhere that MBs with smaller engines start in 1st gear. Like the C220 and probably the C180 as well (mostly European models). I have the Canadian model C300 with 2L engine and it starts in 2nd. So did the GLC300 with the 9 speed transmission.
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W205C43PFL

I think OP meant starting at 1st even after driving and then coming to a stop, not just when starting the engine.

blizzard12

Correct! I meant automatically downshifting to 1st after coming to a full stop.

Elvisfan0108

Put a piece of tape over the indicator. You’ll never know what gear you are in.

superswiss

That's correct, it skips gears if you slow down aggressively. I often see mine do 7-5-3 skipping all the even gears in between.

It's mainly illegal in the USA to put your transmission in N while coasting, not that it damages the transmission.

Yes, it does. That's what I said. If you pull and hold the downshift paddle it drops to the lowest possible gear like the kickdown. Most of the time, though, I just need to drop 2 or 3 gears and not 5 gears like it does with the kickdown/holding downshfit paddle, so that's where quick flicking of the downshift paddles twice or trice comes into play. Perhaps a bit of a different story in a C300, but with 500 lb-ft of torque in my C63 kickdown lights the tarmac and tires on fire .

Elvisfan0108

maybe it would be cheaper to get a psychiatrist?

blizzard12

That would be my last concern. I'd care more if it damaged the transmission like the owner's manual states.