Hi,
I'm new here. Sorry if this thread has been posted before but I figure I speak on my own problems.
2006 e350. Bought used. Less than 1/2 a year driving it, my tranny started giving me issues. No check engine light. But the usual case of restarting would reset it back to normal. NOW it is stuck in 1st gear and check engine light on.
It will stay only in 1st gear and I do not want to drive it pass 30mph.
Going to see a specialist Monday or Tuesday but can anyone chime in on cost and repair?
And how long it generally takes to fix. Worried :/

 

Same thing just happened to me today. Please let me know how your problem gets diagnosed.

 

Sounds like the car is in "limp" mode. That is the computer has determined there is a serious problem and has essentially shut down the car. Depending on how far you are from a dealer, you may be able to drive it, but I would have it towed (flatbed) to them and let them diagnose the problem. It may be simple and inexpensive, but serious enough for the computer to think that you should not drive it.

Second, depending on the problem and the solution, you should seriously consider having the transmission flushed and new transmission fluid installed. The transmission fluid should be changed around 30k miles (some may tell you it is "lifetime" IMHO no trans fluid is lifetime), many have gone further without harm but it is cheaper to change the fluid than replace a $8,000 transmission.

Good Luck

 

Thanks for the responses. It's definitely drivable but not recommended over 30 because any higher I can start to hear my engine working hard. My bf n brother in law are mechanics but unfortunately not MB mechanics. They both looked at it and did research and believe it's a piece that needs to be replaced and not tranny which is great news. But always more comforting to hear others that can relate too. I'm glad I've seen reports on google with the same issue but wonder why it hasnt been recalled by MB :/

 

Hey guys! Just an update! I'm so lucky, it was just auxiliary battery. Cost 334. Hope this will be the same solution for some.

 

Good news. Thanks for completing the circle and giving good information to future readers.

 

I know this is an old thread but do you remember what codes you got when this happened to you?

 

I am glad you didn't need a new tranny. Next time do a search on the aux battery and you may save lots more $$.

 

How is the Aux battery connected to the transmission? Awful that this happened and put the car in limp mode...

 

I presume that the aux battery failed and as a result the car went into limp mode, including locking the transmission in a low gear. A dead battery does not directly harm the transmission.

 

Yikes! Why would Mercedes design a car that turns into a pumpkin when you are on the road because the aux battery is low?

 

Good question since the aux is basically for the SBC brake back up system.

 

If the Aux battery is a backup to ensure SBC braking, and that Aux battery has failed, it implies that the braking system has lost electrical redundancy. i.e. an additional failure of the main battery would then cause the SBC to fail and you would be reliant on the pretty poor hydraulic backup system only.

So, in the interests of safety, it would make sense for the car to put itself into a slow mode, including putting the transmission into limp-home mode, thereby forcing you to do something about the aux battery to restore a state of braking system electrical redundancy. (think about aeroplane engines. You can run with one engine on a twin-engined aircraft, but you should usually divert to the nearest suitable field in the event of an engine failure and address the problem before you have both engines out.)

But I wouldn't know. This is just speculation and may be imputing MB with thinking they never had.

 

Well, I posted the above on Friday and today I got the battery "Visit Workshop" in red message. (Maybe if I post to a forum that's about winning lotto, then on Wednesday I'll win lotto? Does it work like that?)

It's a 2003 E320 and I have no clue when the batteries were last changed. 120K miles, so I hope the alternator is OK.

I'm off to test the Aux battery this afternoon, I suppose. I'll start with changing that and then cross my fingers. I have no fancy alternator test-equipment, just my trusty multimeter and battery charger.

 

I guess this is more proof that Mercedes should never have installed the elaborately error prone SBC system to begin with...

 

Hi
I have the same situation with my 2003 ML 350 SUV, stuck in first gear. I had a problem with erratic gear shifting some years ago just at 50K miles and had to really twist the dealers arm to get the vehicle repaired. It had an extended warrenty but they said this issue was not covered!! Finally got them to cover 50% of the costs as it was mostly labor, no parts as i recall. Total bill was about $1200 after about 4 days.

Now its back at 140K. Worse this time, it started to do some erratic things like stayng in nuetral, then after turning the motor off and restarting it would be Ok for a while then get stuck in 2nd , 3rd , or 4th at random times, sometimes days apart. Now it wont shift into the sport mode. From the other member posts sounds like it has gone into "limp mode"

Did the aux battery resolve the your problem? Where is this aux battery located, in the engine compartment or somewhere else on the car? Any help would be much appreciated.

 

Hi
I have the same situation with my 2003 ML 350 SUV, stuck in first gear. I had a problem with erratic gear shifting some years ago just at 50K miles and had to really twist the dealers arm to get the vehicle repaired. It had an extended warrenty but they said this issue was not covered!! Finally got them to cover 50% of the costs as it was mostly labor, no parts as i recall. Total bill was about $1200 after about 4 days.

Now its back at 140K. Worse this time, it started to do some erratic things like stayng in nuetral, then after turning the motor off and restarting it would be Ok for a while then get stuck in 2nd , 3rd , or 4th at random times, sometimes days apart. Now it wont shift into the sport mode. From the other member posts sounds like it has gone into "limp mode"

Did the aux battery resolve the your problem? Where is this aux battery located, in the engine compartment or somewhere else on the car? Any help would be much appreciated.

 

If you are asking me....

My problem was confined to the battery. I had no transmission problem. The aux battery on an 2004 E320 is in the front next to the engine. The ML series of cars did not have the same electric braking system. I would not be surprised if they have no aux battery at all.

 

Hi all
just to close the loop here is the resolution to my issue. After getting some advice from a MB mechanic on just answer i decided to send the vehicle in to an MB dealer to have the repairs done. Drove the vehicle 50 miles in limp mode (not above 28mph) to the dealership.
They carried out the inspection and came up with a damaged conductor plate and an error code on the control module., recommended replacing the conductor plate first and the checking to see if the control module error would clear. After the conductor plate was repaired and system reprogrammed (at a cost of $980.00) all errors were cleared and the vehicle is runnung great now. In fact, better than it has ever run and shifting through the gears crisply since the 80k repairs. Drove it 600 miles to Canada 4 days after the repair and no problems so far.

 

Hello Sir i would like to ask you a question. You said your problem was just a Aux Battery. Has that fixed the problem. Mine is in limp mode as we speak. And i have had the aux red light on for about 3 months and have been meaning to change it. I hope this is my problem. Did you have any other lights to come on such as Battery, ABS, and ESP malfunction on the dash? or did your steering become tight?

 

It is RED for a reason

 

Doesn't the Aux battery provide back up power for the SBC Brake System?

 

Are you sure you are referencing the correct Aux battery? My understanding was that it wasn't even on the same circuit as the regular battery and I doubt there are any connections, relays, or other relation to the transmission. As a lot have stated it is for SBC...

 

I have the same prob on my 2004 E320/ The check engine light is on and cannot shift out of first. Had aux battery replaced two weeks so does anyone have any ideas. Also cannot change the S?/C mode on the console either. Yikes

 

I don't have this problem, but my girlfriend has an '03 CLK 320, and it started to not shift out of first gear, and when put into reverse, it wouldn't click in and it would just stay in neutral. Shutting the car off and putting it back on would sometimes help the situation but it definitely didn't solve anything. I took it to my mechanic who does flawless work on my E500 and found that it was something with the computer that didn't allow it to shift properly. Not only that, but her transmission fluid was so bad that the gears started grinding on each other (careless blonde with a benz, id never do that) and she needed a whole other transmission because hers was so bad. imagine, as she also only has 74k miles which is crazy. I doubt any of you have bad transmission fluid like this, but definitely check the computer, I'm not exactly sure what or how but he told me it was computer related, and fixed it. For the used transmission, computer fix, and installation he charged $2500, this was 6 months ago. Since then the car has driven about 7k miles and absolutely nothing wrong with it, smooth shifts ( not rough like they used to be ). Only complaint is sometimes when driving through the gears, the rpm's rise all the way to about 3k before actually shifting. Other than that the car is perfect. Good luck to everyone and please post back with updates..