Quickvr4

Hi guys,

For the ones who did not do this on their own, how much did a mechanic charge you to replace the transmission fluid and filter?

Thanks.

arekux

about $240, I personally would not change it myself these cars are too picky if u dont do it right, I do my own oil, plugs, diff oil, pulley but not that.

mylesq

new around here, actually first thing to chime in on, my 05 has about 92k on the ticker, was running into issues with tranny being jerky,at idle, rough shifts , and even had once on highway while doing an aggresive pass the trans kinda go out as if it were no longer engaging.. had the tranny flushed yesterday($245) and all i can say is its been night and day difference.. went for 100 mile drive lastnigh, the car feels stronger than ever.. just my .02 Good luck to all..

myles

Saaboteur

It's not that difficult to do. There are only six bolts that hold the trans pan onto the trans. The filter inside just pops off and on. I just sorted this out on my C55 a couple weekends ago. LOL though - I was so proud to get the pan back on, and ready to fill with new fluid, but then I noticed that I had forgotten to put the new filter on. Fail. But fortunately I had not filled with new fluid yet, and as I pointed out, there are only six bolts that hold the trans pan on, so it didn't take long to remove it to install the new filter.

That said, you are supposed to use the official Mercedes trans dipstick tool - bloody hell cost me like $90 from the dealer, but you can find them much cheaper online - and the Star diagnostics to check the temperature of the trans fluid. I got around the latter by using an infrared thermometer instead. No issues, have done it on two 722.6 transmission cars, my C43 and C55. Also, to access the dipstick tube, you have to break the factory applied seal on there, but this is also easily replaced with another one, or you can just leave it off, the cap won't fly off or anything.

But my understanding is that the newer cars, ie. W203, do not have torque converter drain plugs. My C43 does (but it is hidden above an exhaust pipe). The solution may be to drain and replace filter and pan gasket, replace fluid, drive around for a while, drain again and fill again with more fluid - that way you should be able to get most of the old fluid out eventually.

Quickvr4

Can't you just put in the same amount of fluid that you drained?

Saaboteur

That's basically what I did, but I also used the dipstick to verify.

maverik259

I'm about 2k miles from 60k where the book recommends a flush...still debating doing this myself...I've heard 9l since we cant access the torque converter, is that what you recall putting in there?

I was also planning on just using my mityvac to suck it all out...anyone use the mityvac for this procedure?

Saaboteur

I think I only managed to drain about 3.5-4.0L dropping the pan. I don't think a mityvac would work - you might as well just drain the fluid out of the pan. The trans fluid dipstick tube takes a rather long and circuitous route down to the trans pan.

When I find the time, I'll drain and fill again.

Tump43

I used the mityvac method. You get about 4 liters using the mityvac. Make sure to have the MB tranny dip stick. Bring the engine and tranny fluid to operating temperature (80c) by driving around the block (about 5 minutes); measure and record the tranny fluid level (with the engine running); suck out about 4 liters; replace exactly what you removed; drive around the block shifting through all the gears to bring the tranny fluid to operating temperature; measure the tranny fluid level with the engine running; make necessary up/down adjustments. Did this twice over 3 weeks after having dropped the pan, changing the gasket and filter, and about 4 liters of tranny fluid a couple of months earlier (you only get about 4 liters by dropping the pan). Everything has been working fine for me since -- I also used the new MB tranny fluid recomended for the 7 speed tranny. Our 722.6 tranny holds about 14 liters. The factory flush and refill method as posted, I believe, by Sabouter (from Starteck) is the best method though, if you have the skills and tools.

maverik259

ya i might have to give this a try on my own possibly...we'll have to see

MBNiko

I'm paying $350 at a Chicago-land Mercedes specialized service shop. Dealer wanted $720...

maverik259

There is no way the dealer wanted $720 to flush you tranny! Are you sure?

Nachtsturm

Wouldn't surprise me. Another chicagoland benz dealer quoted me 650. All other were in the 500-550 range for my ML55.

MBNiko

Definitely sure! It was $6XX.00 plus tax, so about 720 or so. It's ridiculous out here. That dealer was actually located in Northwest Indiana.

Quickvr4

My dealer wanted $490.

Tump43

Dealers here in NY charge $650 to $700 for a tranny flush.

Saaboteur

Perhaps it's the case that dealerships don't make (as) much money actually selling vehicles nowadays, and they need to make money on service. I dunno about the Benz dealerships in the US, but the two local ones in my city are huge-mongous, gorgeous buildings, all open with glass and steel and all that. Gotta pay for it somehow.

A friend owns a new-ish Volvo. The service 'menu' (simple stuff, rotate tires, check fluids, oil change, etc) can get quite expensive. Simple one with just an oil change is near on $200. The more involved menu item topped out at about $1,500. Crazy man, it's pretty routine stuff that could be done in several hours in one's garage, and probably substantially less so in a shop.

tw2

Mine quoted NZ$800 for the C32. That is at least US$600. They also refuse to sell me the oem transmission dipstick saying it is dealer only.

FrankW

My tranny flush was around $220-240 from my local mb specialist. Includes fluids, seals, and filter.

Newzchspy

Ouch, still too high!! Where did you go for $350.00???

Newzchspy

So where did you take it for the ML55??? Speedriven??