W220 transmission questions/upgrades possible?
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Sep 2013
Posts: 18
Likes: 2
'02 Silverado 3500, '02 BMW 530i supercharged, Merkur XR4Ti w/turbo'd 351W V8
W220 transmission questions/upgrades possible?
Hello,
I've been looking at W220's lately, and notice there's a variety of transmissions available. Been looking at S500's and N/A S55's mainly. They're dirt cheap these days, and can be found for pennies in great shape just needing a little maintenance.
However - I've been reading up on the transmission differences, and need a bit of education. It appears the S/C S55 got a trans with 'SpeedShift', and it holds gears mid-corner, double-downshifts etc. Is this strictly a programming issue, or are there hardware changes in the trans as well? If I wanted these features in, say an S500, would I need to swap trans and trans module? Or could an S500 trans module be reprogrammed with S55 software (or modified software) to make those features work? I don't care about the paddle shifters.
I've been looking at W220's lately, and notice there's a variety of transmissions available. Been looking at S500's and N/A S55's mainly. They're dirt cheap these days, and can be found for pennies in great shape just needing a little maintenance.
However - I've been reading up on the transmission differences, and need a bit of education. It appears the S/C S55 got a trans with 'SpeedShift', and it holds gears mid-corner, double-downshifts etc. Is this strictly a programming issue, or are there hardware changes in the trans as well? If I wanted these features in, say an S500, would I need to swap trans and trans module? Or could an S500 trans module be reprogrammed with S55 software (or modified software) to make those features work? I don't care about the paddle shifters.
Senior Member
Joined: Jun 2013
Posts: 262
Likes: 34
From: Houston, TX
'05 S430, '05 S600
Hello,
I've been looking at W220's lately, and notice there's a variety of transmissions available. Been looking at S500's and N/A S55's mainly. They're dirt cheap these days, and can be found for pennies in great shape just needing a little maintenance.
However - I've been reading up on the transmission differences, and need a bit of education. It appears the S/C S55 got a trans with 'SpeedShift', and it holds gears mid-corner, double-downshifts etc. Is this strictly a programming issue, or are there hardware changes in the trans as well? If I wanted these features in, say an S500, would I need to swap trans and trans module? Or could an S500 trans module be reprogrammed with S55 software (or modified software) to make those features work? I don't care about the paddle shifters.
I've been looking at W220's lately, and notice there's a variety of transmissions available. Been looking at S500's and N/A S55's mainly. They're dirt cheap these days, and can be found for pennies in great shape just needing a little maintenance.
However - I've been reading up on the transmission differences, and need a bit of education. It appears the S/C S55 got a trans with 'SpeedShift', and it holds gears mid-corner, double-downshifts etc. Is this strictly a programming issue, or are there hardware changes in the trans as well? If I wanted these features in, say an S500, would I need to swap trans and trans module? Or could an S500 trans module be reprogrammed with S55 software (or modified software) to make those features work? I don't care about the paddle shifters.
