ChrisM

I have a 2003 C32 with 7K miles on it. Picked it up in October and in general have enjoyed the vehicle. I am getting a bit worried about the reliability now, however. First I brought it into service for an ESP module issue. Now it has been in the shop for a week and will be there for at least a week more with a trany issue.

I started noticing issues with the trany locking and unlocking the torque convertor at light throttle. The dealer discovered that the trany cooler/radiator had an internal leak where coolant was entering into the transmission cooler, thus adding coolant to the trany. They have elected to replace the entire transmission and coolant system to be sure all is properly repaired. I certainly appreciate the attention to detail and not just replacing the known bad parts and sending me on my way.

My concerns are two fold....

First, is this car reliable? This this just the beginning of a painful life with it?

Second, the trany is coming from Germany. They say there is only ONE in the world available right now so it is being shipped here. Is our trany that different from the C240? Are there improvements from 2003 to 2004 in the trany and controller for it that will be better than the one that I am replacing?

Lots of questions so I hope someone can shed some light on them.

Thanks

Chris

©32

I always thought thats the C32 transmission is schizophrenic.

Sometimes its good... sometimes its sensitive or sluggish... but never perfect.

I thought they fixed transmission issues in 2003 models (mine is 2002).

Regarding 320 or 240... I am not sure... maybe its the same 'hardware' i.e. transmission... but different transmission software (Speedshift).

I wouldn't be suprised if we have a C240 transmission... the C32 shares exhaust manifold with a C240 too.

Prasith32

Chris,

I have an 03 as well with 15k miles. I have had my car in the shop for about a month total over the past 1.5 years.

In answering your reliability concern I think its a wash. If you are looking for a performance car like this all of your other choices will have the same problem. S4, M3.

I have had problems with my ESP module and had it replaced as well and IMO that is the greatest weakness in the car. However it is quite common and I have heard of many other people having it so I would not be worried.

I have also had problems with my throttle actuator and intercooler pump but all of those were replaced with updated parts and now the car feels better than ever.

As for the tranny. Ours is quite different from the normal c-class. Our tranny is the same as the one on the E55, and others (just no paddle shift - which i think is just a tap into our gearbox manual tranny anyways). Our tranny can handle more HP than the base tranny and the shifts and torque converter programming are different.

Since I have had many problems I bought the extended warranty and I am fully confident that any problems that come up will be fixed. I wouldn't give up my car unless my engine blew (no m3 flames please).

Prasith

s4iscool

Thats some pretty poor logic...exhaust manifold = same tranny?

C32's have a butt load more HP and TQ, which calls for a much more robust tranny. Its not the same.

©32

I think they use the same transmission 'unit' for all the C Class cars (V6)... they just install the software for different requirements.

ChrisM

Thanks for the thoughts, guys. Hopefully this fix will keep the car whole for a few months. I have a hard time accepting that I should expect a performance car should break. My Lexus is pretty high tech and has never seen the dealer. In fact, I have owned 3 and 1 Jag XK8 and none have had these types of issues.

I asked about an upgraded ESP or reflash and they didn't have anything to share. Maybe I'll get lucky and the new trany will be an upgrade over the 03 one coming out.

Chris

CynCarvin32

The C32 has the S500-S600 trans from the 2001-2002 W220 cars. This trans is stronger an for a good reason. The C32's tq rating is much higher than the C320 and C240. People mod C32's to having near 450 hp and there is NO way a C240 trans could take that stress.

As far as I know...the diffis also larger and stronger than in the non AMG cars.

The torque converter is also different so there are some key differences in the two cars drivelins.

FrankW

I don't think anyone has answer your first question yet, so NO, this car will not be a pain-in-the-a$$ to maintain.

This car is basically my daily driver and I have no problem with it. The main problem is the BAS/ESP error for me which has already been fixed (this was basically the general for all C-class). The annoying thing is that the mirrors almost ever stay in the setted place, but that has been fixed on the 2003 and 2004. I'm too lazy to get that fixed, so I live with it besides it's only a few press of buttons to get it back to normal.

hmm...you got lucky on the JAG. My dad has a 96 XJ12 which has many problems with it's drivetrain in general and just recently we found that the interior mirror has a internal leak and the dimming no longer works. The digital clock also doesn't work anymore.

about the Lex. I don't think they were very high tech compare to the Germans back then. My friends with new Lexuses also has different problems.

IMO all high performance cars have more problems than normal cars.

ultraseven

Mine is an 04 with about 6000 miles on it now. It is basically my commute/grocery/skiing/all purpose car.

I haven't had any ESP problems or any other electrical component issues. However, I do experience the torque converter lockup that people have mentioned here. It happens at light throttle between 1500 - 2000 rpm, but goes away after the engine warms up. I decided to ignore this for now and I will take it to the dealer if it gets more severe.