93 400sel cold start shifting problem. Please help!
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Joined: Oct 2014
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1993 400sel, 1986 190e 2.3
93 400sel cold start shifting problem. Please help!
hello MB fans. I have a problem with my 93' 400sel. When I wake up in the mornings and drive my car (cold start), it seems like my car would not shift to second gear. I would have to press down on the pedal until my rpm reaches 4000 before it shifts to second gear or drive slow like around 10 mph (engine still revving around 2500 to 3000rpm) until it eventually shifts (which usually takes about two minutes). I noticed that this only happens during cold starts. When i let my engine run for about 5 to 8 minutes, it shifts like normal. What should i do??? Oh and this is my first post so please forgive me if someone has asked this already.
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Joined: Oct 2013
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1982 240D
Your car was designed to do this. Upon cold starts, the W140 and some other Benz models "hold" the lower gears while starting off when cold to warm up the catalytic converters (and thus the transmission as well from holding the gear) so the car puts out less carbon emissions faster and so you don't destroy the tranny by smashing around with a cold one. It takes 90-120 seconds for this process and it should still happen regardless of how long you let the engine warm up unless it gets to full operating temperature. When I start my Mercedes I only let it warm up to the point of the idle dropping to normal. It is actually really bad to warm up a car before driving it because the engine will be warm but the transmission will still be cold from not moving. Newer, fuel-injected vehicles, especially a flagship Mercedes-Benz, is designed to not warm up before driving. All you need to do is let the oil move through the engine for a few moments or until the idle has settled, then just drive the car easy until it has full warmed up. When I back out of my driveway and start heading down the main street my car holds first gear or second (depending on which driving mode the tranny is in) and will ultimately shift at the exact same point on the road every time (90-120 seconds, remember?).
Good luck!
Good luck!
Last edited by charliekuney; Nov 2, 2014 at 01:31 PM.
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