Does any of you think the gearbox (auto) shifts slow. When I compare it to my wife’s 320ML, her car shifts faster and smoother where my CLK’s which shifts are more hesitant and even if its slower, not as smooth. This is especially apparent going from 2’nd to 3’rd gear.

Cheers

The trans. is of an adaptive design the the more aggressively you drive the more aggressive the shifts.

My trans is really messed up. Sometimes the car slames into the next gear under normal driving. Then it would slip just as if i was driving and threw the car in netural. At one point i had to stop to get the car to go again. Now the shift point are all ****ed up and jerky.

This car has been nothing but problems from day 1. Not at all what i expected from MB. The sales people are jerks MB headquarters people are jerks, and i just cant seem to get anywhere with this car. The SRS light has come on 4 times already.
The same dealer said they would give me $42000 for the car. BMW said $48000

I paid cash for the car. Dummy me... I could of drove it through the showroom floor. And told them to keep it.

Now im thinking about putting a match to it!

Im getting out of this **** box ASAP. Guys have fun with your cars!

CK

yes im also unhappy with the trans

when i shift from1st to 2nd or 2nd to 3ed it always hesitates first....
its like u feel ur body is pushed forward for a while ..like braking..
its just not smooth...

i dont know iwhether this is caused by my driving style or not...
becase sometimes its ok...especiall when ur going fast..

Vodc4,
Your description is spot on what i experience too.

RJC,
I though the adaptive design was only at what revs it picks the shifts. The more aggressive you are the longer it keeps the gear and shifts at higher revs. I didn't think it affected how it actually executes the shifts, and that is what I'm not happy with ..... although i have the same expereince as vodc4, the more aggressive i drive, the better (smoother and faster) the gearbox shifts.

Chriskober,
bad to hear you're so unhappy. I'm generally happy, even if it is not perfect.

Cheers,

My brother told me this is normal and this is caused by my driving style

but since im not the only one
maybe i should tell the dealer to fix it?

have you tried to tell the dealer to fix it?

btw it is better now....the 1st time i got the car...during the 1st few weeks it was very bad

I have same problem with c320. If I drive slow, stop-go, like in a residential area, the car jerks and shifts way too slow. I never had any problem on the freeway. I read about a flash update on this forum for engine control unit, bulletin #p-b-07.00/28a. I am going to mention this to the mechanic when I bring it in for service next week. I dont know if that would help with the shifting problem. Does anyone know???

Yes- This is one of the first things I noticed about my car. I mentioned this a while back but didn't have much feedback at the time. Looks like this is part of the design, not necessarily a problem with the trans.

My transmission shifts very smoothly. Actually, that's one of the first compliments I get when someone new sits in the car. They say they can't even feel it. I have, however, had the tranmission change gears slowly occasionaly if I really punch it. My feeling is that is related to the way it has "learned" my driving style. Punching it is not something I do that often (ie. 5,000+ RPMS).

Mine seems to work exactly opposite of yours 500 AMG. If I punch it, the transmission shifts very quickly and very smoothly.

But if I accelerate normally from a stop, the 1-2-3 shifts are slow and lazy. I swear it feels exactly like someone shifting a manual transmission slowly. As it goes from 2nd to 3rd, it actually feels like the engine is partially disengaged from the transmission, the throttle is backed off, the gear is changed and then the transmission is re-engaged. I can live with it but I don't like it. It would be nice if there was some type of "fix".

We had a similar problem with our S-class. Took it into the delearship and they wiped the transmission memory. After the car had learnt the driving style again, it was smooth sailing from there...until we sold it.

My trans is mess up. i try to switch from S to W to try to get it to act normal but no luck. The scary part is, the other day i tried to Accelerate from a stand still and car chocked big time.

That my 2 cents

So does it mean it depends on our driving style?
damn, i think i can drive more smoothly with my honda oddysey

It seems like its a problem with the design, not our individual trans. Not sure if that is good or bad news.

It also seems like a communality that the harder we drive, the smoother and faster the trans shifts, and when crousing slow, it shifts slow and jerky.

Do we all have 320CLK. Only exception to above is 500AMG, and I guess he has a 500CLK.

In the end, i think i can live with it. Not sure i want to have the dealer messing with it.

Cheers

Yeah, its basically like a computer that learns your driving to provide maximum comfort and performance. So if you drive smoothly and leisurly all the time, and then suddenly give it the boot...it will react slowly initially, until it learns that you are drving more aggresively. Also if you drive fairly aggressively all the time, and then slow down the shifts will be less smooth, beause the computer is used to you driving harder. The computer doesnt learn instantaneosly, it takes quite a while. The best thing to do, is once the thing is reset, to maintain a consisten driving style all the time. The shifts should then be seamless. Many regard the 5 speed mercedes transmission as the smoothest transmission in the world.

That is my understanding of the transmission anyway.

"Do we all have 320CLK. Only exception to above is 500AMG, and I guess he has a 500CLK."

Mine is CLK500

I do think that "Mercedes Benz #" is correct !

I have a 320, and I have no problems with my transmission. It is very, very smooth. I do not drive aggressively, and my computer seems to have adapted quite well to my driving style.

Saw a review for the CLK 320 on thecarconnection.com that supports what some of us have been experiencing with our transmissions. I have the CLK500 and it behaves the same way.

I have noticed though that the tranmission starts making smoother shifts the more it warms up. First thing in the morning, 1-2 and 2-3 are pretty hesitant at part throttle. If I drive it for 45 minutes, it smooths out significantly.