ML500 Transmission Problems
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 53
Likes: 1
2006 ML500
ML500 Transmission Problems
I have a new ML500 (less than 1,000km) and I'm experiencing the well documented problem of harsh downshifts from 2nd to 1st at low speeds.
I also had a heart stopping moment when I was accelerating and the tranmission went 1, 2, 3 then neutral. It did this about 4 times in a few miles but hasn't repeated this act.
The dealer needed the car over night to check fluid levels "at a certain temperature".
The result: he says the transmission fluid was about 1 Litre low. Maybe it was an airlock or the factory didn't fill it correctly! There's no lasting damage he says because the fluid doesn't have a bad smell.
He also claims he hasn't heard of similar problems before (ha).
Any comments? Could the fix be this simple?
He also claimed the power steering recall listed on Cars.com doesn't apply to the W164.
I also had a heart stopping moment when I was accelerating and the tranmission went 1, 2, 3 then neutral. It did this about 4 times in a few miles but hasn't repeated this act.
The dealer needed the car over night to check fluid levels "at a certain temperature".
The result: he says the transmission fluid was about 1 Litre low. Maybe it was an airlock or the factory didn't fill it correctly! There's no lasting damage he says because the fluid doesn't have a bad smell.
He also claims he hasn't heard of similar problems before (ha).
Any comments? Could the fix be this simple?
He also claimed the power steering recall listed on Cars.com doesn't apply to the W164.
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 53
Likes: 1
2006 ML500
Tranmission Fixed
Well pardon my skepticism. I picked the car up yesterday after 2 days in the shop. The official news was they detected some slippage and needed the car overnight to check the transmission levels using a computer.
It was 1L of fluid low and they topped it up.
The car now drives like the demonstrator did. Smooth stops and all.
I obviously can't verify the once off slip to neutral is fixed - only time will tell.
But if true, this seems a lot easy than replacing major chunks of the drive train.
It was 1L of fluid low and they topped it up.
The car now drives like the demonstrator did. Smooth stops and all.
I obviously can't verify the once off slip to neutral is fixed - only time will tell.
But if true, this seems a lot easy than replacing major chunks of the drive train.
