change 7222.9 transmission fluid is it gonna miss the conductor plate
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Newbie
Joined: Feb 2020
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E320, W211
change 7222.9 transmission fluid is it gonna miss the conductor plate
HI every one......
I have an E300 w212 2010 model with 115k miles on it, I am the second owner and planning to get the transmission serviced some technician said to me if the first owner didn't change the fluid I shouldn't do it because it will miss up the transmission and it will act bad, what do you think should I do it to reserve the condutor plate and the longer the life of the transmission or not?
I have an E300 w212 2010 model with 115k miles on it, I am the second owner and planning to get the transmission serviced some technician said to me if the first owner didn't change the fluid I shouldn't do it because it will miss up the transmission and it will act bad, what do you think should I do it to reserve the condutor plate and the longer the life of the transmission or not?
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From: Silicon Valley
W212 MY'14 M276-3.5NA @75kMi
SERVICE ATF OR ....
HI every one......
I have an E300 w212 2010 model with 115k miles on it, I am the second owner and planning to get the transmission serviced some technician said to me if the first owner didn't change the fluid I shouldn't do it because it will miss up the transmission and it will act bad, what do you think should I do it to reserve the condutor plate and the longer the life of the transmission or not?
I have an E300 w212 2010 model with 115k miles on it, I am the second owner and planning to get the transmission serviced some technician said to me if the first owner didn't change the fluid I shouldn't do it because it will miss up the transmission and it will act bad, what do you think should I do it to reserve the condutor plate and the longer the life of the transmission or not?
At the end of the day, this $8000 decision to service or not is personal...
Are your gears slipping ?
is your tranny acting up?
DON'T USE MISC. "COMPATIBLE" ATF (RED/BLUE).
Last edited by CaliBenzDriver; Aug 22, 2025 at 07:02 PM.
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From: US
2008 E350, 2012 ML350, 2014 E350, 2015 ML350
HI every one......
I have an E300 w212 2010 model with 115k miles on it, I am the second owner and planning to get the transmission serviced some technician said to me if the first owner didn't change the fluid I shouldn't do it because it will miss up the transmission and it will act bad, what do you think should I do it to reserve the condutor plate and the longer the life of the transmission or not?
I have an E300 w212 2010 model with 115k miles on it, I am the second owner and planning to get the transmission serviced some technician said to me if the first owner didn't change the fluid I shouldn't do it because it will miss up the transmission and it will act bad, what do you think should I do it to reserve the condutor plate and the longer the life of the transmission or not?
Your mechanic can take a sample and warm it up to check if the level is OK. If he asks you how that is done, RUN.
Here is someone taking a sample,
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E320, W211
I will ask the mechanic to take a simple of the oil if it very black i will drive it the transmission die then I will get another used trany from the junk yard change the oil and filter in here used one around 500 USD
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Joined: Apr 2016
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From: Phoenix, AZ
2016 E350 Sport 2WD
If you are now noticing slippage in your transmission, do as you like. Otherwise, change the fluid.
Old transmissions that had adjustable bands were noted for slippage. If they slipped for too long, it was too late for a fluid change. Our transmissions do not use bands.
Old transmissions that had adjustable bands were noted for slippage. If they slipped for too long, it was too late for a fluid change. Our transmissions do not use bands.
Joined: Nov 2016
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From: Maryland
2015 SL400 (M276 Turbo), 2014 C350 Sport (M276 NA), 2004 SL500 (M113), 2004 Audi TT225 (BEA)
A drain and fill with a new filter is NOT the same thing as a FLUSH. A flush should be avoided, but a drain and fill with a new filter should benefit the tranny. When the pan is off, there should be two magnets in the pan to catch metal debris. It is normal for the magnets to have very fine particles stuck to them. Clean the magnets, clean the pan, instill a new filter and refill. If the magnets are heavily coated, you may want to drain the torque converter, as well.
Honestly, if I was a technician in that situation not knowing the service history, I too would walk away from the $600 job at the risk of having to replace the tranny if it fails afterwards.
Honestly, if I was a technician in that situation not knowing the service history, I too would walk away from the $600 job at the risk of having to replace the tranny if it fails afterwards.
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Joined: Apr 2016
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From: Phoenix, AZ
2016 E350 Sport 2WD
We ARE an opinionated group to be sure. I have looked for some provable, repeatable results one way or the other, but it is too difficult to find or perhaps just non-existent. Here is a post that I believe is what we need to understand:
https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/th....388071/page-2 See post #29
There are no 'flush' machines that I can find that forceably move fluid through the valve body, or other parts. None operate without the engine running, driving the transmission pump to produce line pressure and circulate the ATF.
My OPINION is formed in large part by conversations with my mom, who worked in a garage that repaired and rebuilt lots of transmissions. She did not do the mechanical work, just worked in the office, but heard many, many conversations between transmission owners and the garage owner, who hoped that their transmission problem could be fixed by replacing the fluid. The garage owner could tell with great certainty which jobs might tolerate new fluid, and which would not. The ones that he thought would not tolerate new fluid were just worn out anyway, and adding new fluid would just add that cost to repairing the transmission, which still needed to be done. But many customers insisted on new fluid, even against his advice. Either way, the garage made lots of money. Worn-out bands were a universal problem with those transmissions. From that experience, I conclude that if your transmission has noticeable difficulties, flaring on shifts, failure to shift, etc, you need to repair the transmission; otherwise, replace the fluid.
https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/th....388071/page-2 See post #29
There are no 'flush' machines that I can find that forceably move fluid through the valve body, or other parts. None operate without the engine running, driving the transmission pump to produce line pressure and circulate the ATF.
My OPINION is formed in large part by conversations with my mom, who worked in a garage that repaired and rebuilt lots of transmissions. She did not do the mechanical work, just worked in the office, but heard many, many conversations between transmission owners and the garage owner, who hoped that their transmission problem could be fixed by replacing the fluid. The garage owner could tell with great certainty which jobs might tolerate new fluid, and which would not. The ones that he thought would not tolerate new fluid were just worn out anyway, and adding new fluid would just add that cost to repairing the transmission, which still needed to be done. But many customers insisted on new fluid, even against his advice. Either way, the garage made lots of money. Worn-out bands were a universal problem with those transmissions. From that experience, I conclude that if your transmission has noticeable difficulties, flaring on shifts, failure to shift, etc, you need to repair the transmission; otherwise, replace the fluid.
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2008 E350, 2012 ML350, 2014 E350, 2015 ML350
We ARE an opinionated group to be sure. I have looked for some provable, repeatable results one way or the other, but it is too difficult to find or perhaps just non-existent. Here is a post that I believe is what we need to understand:
https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/th....388071/page-2 See post #29
There are no 'flush' machines that I can find that forceably move fluid through the valve body, or other parts. None operate without the engine running, driving the transmission pump to produce line pressure and circulate the ATF.
My OPINION is formed in large part by conversations with my mom, who worked in a garage that repaired and rebuilt lots of transmissions. She did not do the mechanical work, just worked in the office, but heard many, many conversations between transmission owners and the garage owner, who hoped that their transmission problem could be fixed by replacing the fluid. The garage owner could tell with great certainty which jobs might tolerate new fluid, and which would not. The ones that he thought would not tolerate new fluid were just worn out anyway, and adding new fluid would just add that cost to repairing the transmission, which still needed to be done. But many customers insisted on new fluid, even against his advice. Either way, the garage made lots of money. Worn-out bands were a universal problem with those transmissions. From that experience, I conclude that if your transmission has noticeable difficulties, flaring on shifts, failure to shift, etc, you need to repair the transmission; otherwise, replace the fluid.
https://bobistheoilguy.com/forums/th....388071/page-2 See post #29
There are no 'flush' machines that I can find that forceably move fluid through the valve body, or other parts. None operate without the engine running, driving the transmission pump to produce line pressure and circulate the ATF.
My OPINION is formed in large part by conversations with my mom, who worked in a garage that repaired and rebuilt lots of transmissions. She did not do the mechanical work, just worked in the office, but heard many, many conversations between transmission owners and the garage owner, who hoped that their transmission problem could be fixed by replacing the fluid. The garage owner could tell with great certainty which jobs might tolerate new fluid, and which would not. The ones that he thought would not tolerate new fluid were just worn out anyway, and adding new fluid would just add that cost to repairing the transmission, which still needed to be done. But many customers insisted on new fluid, even against his advice. Either way, the garage made lots of money. Worn-out bands were a universal problem with those transmissions. From that experience, I conclude that if your transmission has noticeable difficulties, flaring on shifts, failure to shift, etc, you need to repair the transmission; otherwise, replace the fluid.
On the flush machines. I must admit I have not seen one personally in decades, but I recall when a mechanics was flushing "live in front of me" a family Ford Fairlane station wagon back in the days until fresh fluid came out. Too far back to recall if the engine was ON or OFF.
I think most people highlight the difference between the procedure to be clear in case someone has the way to forcibly force fluid through the transmission. I think most people use flush/drain interchangeably.
Now, there are two practices I have seen so far
1 - Disconnect the return line from the radiator while adding fluid through the drain hole (engine running, of course) until clear/fresh fluid comes out.
2 - Connect extremely low-pressure air through the conductor plate and let the oil come back from the torque converter with oil. It is a very slow process, in hours. You can see SPR Automotive MB specialists doing so in several of their YouTube videos, and also read about the adapter on another thread.
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'13 s212 63 p30. '06 LX470
As someone that has exclusively purchased used cars, I always change the fluid regardless of mileage. I did this on an E 55 at 100+ thousand miles, I’ve done this on a LX 470 with 250,000 miles. I’ve done it on a Land Cruiser with 250,000 miles and I’ve done it on my E 63 with about 65,000 miles.. I’ve never had an issue with a transmission on any car I’ve ever owned.
As mentioned above, new fluid doesn’t destroy a transmission it lets you know that the transmission was already failing. I will echo that if there are no issues, a drain and flush will (likely) be fine.
some shops don’t like to take the risk because some customers think that the fluid will fix the problems they already have, but if you absolve them of the liability, you should be able to get whatever you need. Fluid is not for fixing problems, it is for maintenance, in the most general sense
As mentioned above, new fluid doesn’t destroy a transmission it lets you know that the transmission was already failing. I will echo that if there are no issues, a drain and flush will (likely) be fine.
some shops don’t like to take the risk because some customers think that the fluid will fix the problems they already have, but if you absolve them of the liability, you should be able to get whatever you need. Fluid is not for fixing problems, it is for maintenance, in the most general sense
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Posts: 457
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From: Phoenix, AZ
2016 E350 Sport 2WD
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2008 E350, 2012 ML350, 2014 E350, 2015 ML350
Here is Tassos describing the drain through the coolant lines near the radiator
Last edited by JCM_MB; Aug 25, 2025 at 10:40 AM.
