Hi,
i am hoping you could give me a bit of advise. I am the 2nd owner of my 97 e320 with 113k miles and within the last 3k miles the transmissions started to shift hard. It shifts hard from 1st to 2nd only when reved over 2500rpm same going from 2nd to third and if i drive very slow keeping the rpms down it shifts smooth and rest of the gears are all smooth. I should also mention that when it shifts rough that i hear a clunk sound from the engine area. Does this should like a specific problem with my transmission or more like a timing or motor/trans mount problem? Should I do the following or just take it to some mechanic or dealer for service? thank you.

here is what im planning to do to address this:
1. replace the trans fluid using MB 722.6 fluid
2. replace the shift linkage bushing, mine is definitely worn out.

questions:
Since I will have the trans open should I also replace
1. 722.6 Pressure regulator spring replacement - spring with Sonnax part number 68942-01.
2. what spark plugs should I buy?

items I need to buy.
Fluid = 65.00 (6 @ 10.67ea)
Cap / Safety Clip = .88
Filter Kit = 15.54 (filter & gasket)
Drain Plug = 1.91
Copper Drain Plug Seal = .20
Dip Stick Tool = 45.00

I live in NJ and would love to hear your opinion.

thanks again,
Sunny

 

Clunking sounds are usually not good so you may want to have the dealer or a trusted MB mechanic look at the car.

If you decide to do the trans service yourself here's some info:

There should be a drain plug on the torque convertor as well and if you drain both the trans pan and torque convertor you'll need more like 8-9 liters of fluid. The torque convertor has a support with a little rectangular window at 6 o'clock. You need to rotate the torque convertor until the drain plug appears in that window. You can turn the torque convertor with a wrench on the crank at the front of the engine or you can use a screw driver -- wedging it against the window in the support and working it around. If you're really lucky, it'll be showing when you shut off the engine. Tip:If you measure how much you drain out and replace exactly the same amount you can safely drive the car to get the transmission up to temp before final level check. Transmission does not get to 80 degrees as fast as coolant. I drive with spirit about 20-30 minutes back in the canyons before final level check.

You don't need to replace the drain plug just the two seals under the plugs.

Shop around the dip stick tool is available for about $25 or so.

When you get the pan off, before cleaning, feel the bottom carefully with the tip of your finger for grit. A little fine grit (aluminum, brass and graphite) is okay especially given the mileage. A lot or big pieces is 'not a good thing'.

Also, shifting complaints can be related to the fact that this transmission 'adapts' to your driving style and can shift rough if you put the pedal down after a prolonged period of slow driving. The dealer (and some indies) can check the adaptation values and reset them if they've 'whigged out'.

Regarding plugs: Since they're good for 100,000 or 4 years the boots can be difficult to get off without damaging the coil wires. There is a 17mm valve adj. wrench (MB Part 110-598-01-01 about $35 from dealer) with an offset that works as a 'tool' to pry them off easily and safely. Not absolutely necessary but nice to have. There are posters out here who sell these tools and I'm sure they'll be along shortly.

BTW, there is a rather nice DIY in the W210 forum on benzworld_dot_org on doing the transmission service. Lots of pictures and tips.

Note: There are two fluids recommended by MB for the 722.6x transmission. The original Part No. 011 989 21 03 10 (about $15/l from autohausaz_dot_com) but you can also use the fluid for the newer 7 sp transmission which is usually a couple of bucks cheaper per liter. Sorry I don't know the part no.

Good luck.

 

richard gave you very good advice regarding tranny. i just wanted to add that the spark plugs in your engine need to be changed every 30-40k miles, and not 100k miles since you have the m104 engine that uses 6 spark plugs (copper plugs Bosch F8DC4), and not m112 engine (1998+ e320) which uses 12 plugs and they are changed every 100k miles. also you don't need the 17mm wrench, plugs in your engine are easily accessible easy to change.
also valvoline maxlife atf is approved for you 722.6 tranny. it costs only $4-5 at any autoparts store or even wal-mart. good luck

 

Thanks for the corrections, tirona. Sorry, Sunny, I was referring to a V6 not an I6.

Tirona, I don't think he can use Valvoline ATF Type D (Dextron III) if he has a 722.6 trans. Maybe for 722.5. That's from the doc Factory Approved Service Products Aug 2007 Page 6 You can use the 7 spd fluid (Part A001 989 45 03 13) but can't use the 5 spd fluid in a 7 spd.

 

Dip stick can be found from eBay or Oh Lord on this board.

Changing the engine mounts might be good regardless.

You might also need to flush the fluid twice, since each flush only gets about half out.

 

If he has the 722.6 in a MY97 he'll have the drain plug on the torque convertor and be able to get 90-95% out. The torque convertor drain plug was eliminated around 2000 so models after that date can only drain pan and get about 1/2 out as you suggest.

Also, not to be critical, but generally flushing refers to using power either external (flushing machine) or built-in (car's pump) to discharge fluid as opposed to draining which is 'powered' by gravity.

 

Thank you all for the advice.

I just ordered a dip stick from ohlord and now just doing a bit more research on what the problem could be before changing atf fluid.

I did some more troubleshooting with my mechanic and this is what the issue feels like. when reved above 3k rpm the car shifts into every gear rough. Paying attention to rpms/engine/trans noises this is what the problem sounds like...the engine revs up then when its about to shift the rpms drop slightly to allow the trans to shift into the next gear but it doesn't shift immediately and then the engine begins to rev back to normal and finally the trans shifts(LATE) causing the jerk when shifting. Meaning its almost like the trans and engine are out-of-sync with each other, is that possible? what controls this? what would cause the trans to miss the desires shift time? We also checked all codes/sensors and no errors have been recorded.
as for the motor trans mounts they all seem good.

Anyone else feel my pain... i just want to get back to driving normal again so i can enjoy the car instead of driving like i own a hyundai :-)

 

sunny61, in my case i have noticed that the tranny shifts a little rougher and slower at higher rpm's when car is cold first thing in the morning and expecially when it gets colder, and this behaviour is because it has to wait until the catalytic converters are all warmed up. after that (3-4 min after start) it behaves fine. mine has always done that since i got the car 6 years ago. in the s320 is a little less obvious than in the e320, but maybe because it is a heavier car. i have changed the fluid/filter twice in the last 50k miles, first time at 130k miles and second time at around 160k miles, and the second time i changed the fluid i also changed the conductor plate since i had p0715 code. just remember to change the little pressure regulating spring ($5 part# 140 993 58 01) on the outside of the valve body and the connector plug ($10 part# 203 540 02 53) when changing the tranny fluid/filter. and if you have error codes relating to speed sensors you need to change the conductor plate ($200) also. all these parts are easy to replace once you drop the pan. good luck

 

Tirona, where can order these parts... the dealer? I would perfer to change everything in one go instead to going through the entire procedure all over again if the problem persists.
Autohausaz doesn't have these parts listed...

-little pressure regulating spring ($5 part# 140 993 58 01) on the outside of the valve body
-connector plug ($10 part# 203 540 02 53)
-conductor plate ($200)

And yes i am aware of the transmission warm-up times but my car continues to shift hard through out the entire day.

Thanks for the awesome tips!!!!

Sunny

 

yes, the first two are mb dealer parts. the conductor plate can be bought at dealer too part# 140-270-11-61, or online. peachparts.com/fastlane has the conductor plate for $187 with free shipping, part # W0133-1847632 from their website, so that might be cheaper than dealer. also don't forget to get a couple of red clips for the transmission filler tube , part # W0133-1643593 from peachparts or dealer has them for same price ($1) part# 140-991-00-55
.
these might be pretty helpful, you might have to create an account to open the pdf file and see the pictures:
http://www.benzworld.org/forums/w210...ml#post3538903
http://www.benzworld.org/forums/w210...tor-plate.html

keep us updated and good luck

 

Is there anywhere online to buy the MB Trans fluid?

 

yes, lot's of places online sell it like authausaz.com bmaparts.com peachparts.com etc, but cheaper way would be to buy the valvoline maxlife atf for $4-5/liter at any autoparts store. picture below taken from benzworld.org, originally posted by loubapache. look at the last line where it says it is approved for 722.6.

 

I already bought the trans fluid/gaskets from autohausaz...
Now im going to pickup the conductor plate from my local dealer for $195 (not bad price ) and try to change everything this coming weekend.

I will post a response with the results.
thanks all!!!
Sunny

 

That doesn't look like any technical document from MB I've ever seen.

OK I found it in the W210 stickies but read the preceding paragraph carefully.

"There is a host of other fluids claiming to meet the MB 236.10 or ATF 3403 specs (some were even on Mercedes training documents and carry the Mercedes part number on the bottle). For various reasons (some are business reasons), they are not on the current 236.10 sheet approved list (Shell 3403 is the only non-Mercedes fluid that is on the current 236.10 list)."


Here is latest official MB factory recommendations from startekinfo site. See page 20.

 

Hi Sunny,

One tip to share. When draining the fluid, collect it and measure how much you removed. I 'calibrated' an old milk bottle by adding water 1l/1q at a time and marking the side. The reason that this is useful is that you can then put almost the exact same amount back in. Now you can safely drive the car to get the transmission to operating temp. in order to make the final level adjustment with your dipstick tool. Caution: If you adjust the level to max when the transmission is not fully heated you will overfill since the fluid expands when hotter.

Good luck and enjoy the money you saved .
Richard

 

i know they are not now, but used to be before. mb had valvoline maxlife in their papers as 236.10 fluid, but later took it out. maybe valvoline didn't want to pay mb any money for them to show their product on mb papers. valvoline claims it meets 236.10, which meets specification for 722.6. http://store.europarts-sd.com/ATFspecguide.pdf
i personally used the fluid for 722.9, since at the time i changed my atf i didn't know about valvoline maxlife. if i did i would have bought maxlife, it's 3x cheaper and works the same.

 

Well, you're a braver man than me. I might fudge on PS or differential oil but on the engine and tranny I go with factory spec. But I understand some people need to consider the extra costs.

 

UPDATE on my problem:
I got the shift issue fixed. It turned out to be a broken spring.

Sunny

 

Thanks for letting us know.