mbmae350

Morning,

My 2013 E 350 is at the dealership having a rebuilt transmission and torque converter installed. The only symptom was the car feeling like it was traveling on a rubble strip, usually at highway speeds while accelerating.

Questioning what exactly the failure was got me a simple answer that is what internal.

I was quoted 12,000 for the job but MB stepped up with some goodwill and is doing the work for 3500. Car has always been serviced at dealership and has 48k miles.

Here's hoping for a non eventful stretch of miles moving forward!

mwmeci

I have 104,000 on my 2011 E350 4matic. If the transmission fails, the repair costs what the car is probably worth.
That sucks.

kajtek1

Would be nice to learn what cost the failure.
I have/had 2 of 7G who exceed 180k miles and the older one had only 1 service done per MB schedule. Both run perfect.

mbmae350

I hope to find out and will post it up.

KEY08

Is your car 4Matic? Good they are stepping up on the repair and not trying to stick it to you.

mbmae350

Yes, it is a 4matic. I should have the car back tonight and hope to have more details.

mbmae350

Well, got the car back today and all seems great in the short drive around the neighborhood. Final bill came in at over 15k! Dealership and MB really stepped up and took care of the majority of the bill.

Still didn't learn exactly what the failure was. The repair order is 3 or 4 pages.

2011WhiteE350

Can you post the repair order?
My car is close to 95k miles and occasionally launch forward when I'm slowing down to 20mph.
I search within our forum and there was some suggestion about replacing the solenoid..
Thanks.

kajtek1

There is MB video on youtube how to clean solenoids inlet screens.

mbmae350

I will see if I can be that tech savvy and post it. However, there is no mention of a solenoid, mine was a complete tranny and TC replacement.

Also, my cars symptoms were nothing like yours, so that is good news for you! Hopefully yours is just a solenoid.

Becksan

I had mine changed at 62k miles in my 2014. The cooling unit started leaking fluid into the transmission. So they had to replace the transmission, radiator and all hoses. $10k+ job, totally worth the extended warranty 🤣.

NotABaller

Dam that sucks. How common is this type of problem?

kajtek1

ATF heat exchangers inside radiators fail occasionally on all models and all brands, but some coolant in ATF is not killing the transmission unless neglected for long time.
Than dealers milking the warranties is nothing new.

Arrie

How does "cooling unit" leak into the transmission?

cetialpha5

This was very common on the W211 on the 2003 models in the first year. The transmission cooler was part of the radiator so coolant also got into the transmission which ruined the transmission. Many replaced their radiators with updated parts that didn't have that problem.

Arrie

Thanks,

i always thought the engine and transmission radiators are separate units.

kajtek1

They used to 20 years ago, when cars had additional radiators hidden in wheel wells.
Now new engines have so much attachments on them, that space under the hood is getting more and more valuable, so fluid heat exchangers allow for more flexibility.
My Ford truck has liquid cooled inetercooler
But even huge truck has the space under the hood so pack, that it is hard to put hand in it. On older truck much simpler engines would have space so people could "walk inside"

atraudes

The metal in the radiator between the transmission fluid and the coolant degrades or fails and the fluids are allowed to mix. It's a common problem on a lot of cars.

I remember my 65 Mustang had the same combined radiator setup, FWIW.

In addition to more compact packaging and lower part counts, I've heard the reason this configuration is desirable is because the warmth from the coolant helps to heat the transmission fluid quicker, which is important in colder climates.

nota_amg

nope, the "transmission cooler" is just a copper tube with cooling fins on the outside of it running top/bottom in one of the plastic end tanks on the radiator, so the coolant can cool the oil. sucks, but almost all cars are like that. if you catch it early before damage to trans(the clutch material in the transmission is attached to the friction plates with a water-soluble glue...) and before radiator starts to swell up and leak, you can change the fluids and add an external cooler.

mbvolvo92

Didn't want to start a new thread, but a family member just got their 2012 E350 back after having the transmission rebuilt due to water getting into it from the radiator. Had the same exact symptoms as your car, driving like going over rumble strips. Ironic because the car is meticulously maintained and had given absolutely no problems until the shudder in December. I'll be keeping an eye out for it on my E550.
It sure does seem like a fluke with all these other members not having this problem.

MBNUT1

Wow I thought that this was limited to the W211's. So I had my transfer case rebuilt a year ago at a local indy. The fluid was changed at that time. I picked up the car and it was quiet and shifted perfectly. A couple of months later I noticed that it didn't shift as smoothly and took it to the dealer to look at it. They recommended that I have the fluid checked for coolant contamination. I didn't do it that time thinking that was a W211 issue. Took it back to the indy had him look at the shifting. He didn't think it was a big deal. Been driving it since, shifts pretty much the same, 4 to 5th delayed shift and seems like it slips in third (all under light throttle). Its now going back to the indy because the transfer case is noisy. Now I am wondering if I have a coolant contamination problem. Going to try to get a sample of the fluid when they pull the transfer case.

Billyismyname

I currently have 150,000 on my 2014 E350 4Matic. Beat the **** out of it everyday and never had a fluid or filter change. Runs smooth as butter still (knock on wood). I think it honestly depends on the car, I’ve read some last long without changing/changing them and some that break at 80,000