So I've read through the transmission issues and complaints threads.
Although Peppin2023's thread with the motor/transmission out briefly mentions him still loving the car after 4th gear, most others seem to have 3->2 downshift issues.

I decided to create a new thread to gather some information related to repairs, fixes, and technical details, so I ask for your support to keep the thread civilized focusing on technical discussions.
Please, no W223 complaints or MB bashing, we're fully aware of the poor qualities of MB transmissions.
Yes, I'm not too happy with the IQS criteria of my S but I still love the car and intend to fix it, which is the purpose of this thread.

So during the long road trip over the weekend, I noticed the 3 to 4 upshift was acting funky.
I could hear and feel the rpm jumping ever so slightly between gear 3 & 4 as if it was slipping.
This was with light throttle (I rarely accelerate hard - I would say 20% throttle or less most of the time.)
The next day on my way back home, it starts to sort of slam into 4th, jerking, compared to the slipping sensation.

I've tried with different throttle positions and roughly 50% throttle position seem to smooth it out but I could feel that the gear is not happy when engaging.
All other upshifts into other gears is buttery smooth.

Anyone experience similar and was successful in getting fixed? What was the issue?
I have an appointment set up for this Friday, but I wanted to do my due diligence and go in prepared.

Thanks guys!

 

Daniel - what comfort mode were you in? Eco, Sport, etc? Did you try switching to a different mode to see if shift points changed? That doesn't address your overall question, but thought I'd ask.

 

Good point, Mark.
I leave the car in I*ndividual mode - Steering, Suspension : Comfort, Drive system - Sport
I did switch to Sport mode at one point (basically the same drive mode) but haven't tried comfort or Sport+ mode.
I doubt it'll change, as I believe drive mode doesn't change the smoothness of the auto shift, just the shift points.

 

I was able to fix the same exact issue with this transmission but in my 1st W222. The thread is below. Mbenz has an “Forced Adaptation” procedure that the tech can follow along with another one joining him during the ride with the PC connected to the vehicle. To avoid confusion, I did not keep the car too long after that was done so am not sure if that was a good long-term solution but several users in this thread reported good results.
Link to the thread: https://mbworld.org/forums/s-class-w...ting-w222.html

I’ve seen a few posts recently that Mbenz is also doing now “standstill” adaptation. The unfortunate truth is that most users reported that the issue comes back after a few thousands of miles.

Question: Can you try to drive it long enough in eco mode; how does that change harsh shifts? Just curious if it’s gone in eco mode. If so, the forced adaptation will certainly take care of it (at least until the next oil change visit).

Also attached FYI - if it helps to show to your SA just like I did.

 

Wow, thank you for the in-depth information.
I paid little to no attention to auto gearboxes since I was a hardcore manual guy, but dealing with this unwarranted issue made me appreciate BMW's ZF 8HP even more.
That gearbox is, dare I say, flawless.

I honestly never tried the 'eco' mode but I'll try it on my way to the dealer this Friday and report back.

Again, I really appreciate the info!

 

No problem. If Eco makes it better I can share more in-depth documentation with you to show to your SA. Sometime pinpointing them to possible mbenz procedures can be helpful.

You’re welcome again, and good luck solving this issue.

 

Daniel, I ran your symptoms through Copilot - here's what it said. After a very long back and forth, I had it provide a two paragraph summary and synopsis of the issue. DM if you'd like the whole conversation.

You’re experiencing a 3→4 shift issue on a nearly new Mercedes W223 where it initially felt like a slight slip (RPM flare) under light throttle, then evolved into a harsher “slam” into 4th gear. Based on the behavior—especially it being isolated to one gear and improving with moderate throttle—the most likely cause is not mechanical wear, but the transmission’s adaptive learning (TCU) getting out of balance after prolonged light-load highway driving. The system likely under-applied the clutch at first (causing slip), then overcorrected (causing the harsh shift).

Since the car is only about a year old, this strongly points to an adaptation issue rather than hardware failure. The recommended approach is to perform a structured relearn drive cycle (controlled light and moderate accelerations with full warm-up) to help the system recalibrate clutch pressures and timing. If the issue doesn’t smooth out within ~50–100 miles, the best next step is a dealer or shop performing a transmission adaptation reset with a diagnostic tool, which fully clears and relearns shift behavior.

Step 1 — Do a Deliberate Relearn (Don’t just casually drive)

You need to “teach” it back into balance:

Do this exactly:

• Fully warm the car
• Find a flat road
• Do 10–15 cycles of:
  • 15–25% throttle acceleration
  • Let it shift 1 → 5 smoothly
  • Come to a complete stop

Then:

• Do 5–10 runs at ~40–50% throttle
  • This is key since you said that load behaves better

Then:

• Include coasting downshifts
  • Lift off throttle and let it downshift on its own

👉 This specifically targets recalibration of:

• 3→4 clutch fill time
• Pressure modulation
• Shift timing

 

Thanks for the input guys!
So I guess my driving conditions are somewhat different than other folks here from other part of the country where stop and go traffic is common.
I do not daily drive my S and when I do take it out for a drive, it's usually highway speed cruising (50-80+mph) with minimal stops.
I do realize it's not the best way to break in a vehicle, which is why I drove the car around town for the first few months.
I don't recall ever doing a full throttle acceleration. The most I've pushed it was probably about 70%, once or twice.

I try to use as much local highways than interstates to have more varying speed, going through few stop lights and signs but never noticed the rough shift until the other day.
I'm baffled as to why the transmission would behave this way all of a sudden unless there was an issue with the hardware?

It sounded to me that a service tool (Xentry?) is required to initiate a forced relearn period, so I wonder if the copilot recommendation would work but I'll give it a try nevertheless.

Cheers

 

Was there a recall for the W223 similar to the GLE, the recall too recommend the mentioned standstill and forced adaptation, if I recalled correctly, they instruct to do such adaptation a couple of times not just once.

 

Hi @nearwater4me :

Yes, you'd actually need Xentry to do the Forced Adaptation the proper way. However, the steps that our forum colleague shared above are definitely wroth trying. Given how common this issue in all cars with the 9G transmission for years and years now, I bet that you'd need to at least do Forced Adaptation.

Also, as far as your driving style, I would not use that as an argument to "normalize" this issue. We can "normalize" many other design/cabin issues, but for this transmission issues I think you don't need to blame yourself for it or normalize it. It is certainly not your fault and dealer or mbenz should be able to address it or do something about it. No driving condition should ever lead to that. The forced adaptation will reset all your transmission learning point anyway and right after that adaptation is done u should be able to tell if it is a hardware issue or potentially something that can be addressed even for the next 10K miles with forced adaptation.

 

Daniel,

Here's the entire chat thread with Copilot from yesterday. It is very VERY long but provides all the steps mentioned above. You can scroll through to get the gist of the convo with Copilot:

If you scroll through, you'll see that I pasted in your comments on MBWorld to help ground Copilot. Then a bit later I qualified more by telling Copilot the age of your car.

Start of Conversation with Copilot:

Yesterday

You said:

in a mercedes w223, what is the procedure for the car to forget - relearn shift points for the transmission?

Copilot said:

CopilotOn the Mercedes-Benz W223 S‑Class (9G‑TRONIC 725.0 series transmission), there isn’t a single button or explicit “reset/relearn” menu exposed to the driver like older vehicles sometimes had. The transmission control unit (TCU) is adaptive and continuously learns driver behavior and clutch fill times.

However, you can force or accelerate a relearn process in a few ways, depending on what you’re trying to accomplish.

✅ 1. Natural Relearn (No tools required)

This is the standard Mercedes-approved approach.

Steps:

1. Warm up the car fully
   • Drive until transmission temp is normal (10–15 minutes).
2. Drive smoothly through all gears
   • Light throttle (10–25%)
   • Allow every gear to engage (1 → 9 and back down)
3. Use varied driving conditions
   • City stop-and-go (important for low gear adaptation)
   • Highway steady cruising (for higher gears)
   • Gentle deceleration (to relearn downshifts)
4. Avoid aggressive inputs initially
   • No hard acceleration or kickdown for the first ~30–50 miles
5. Continue mixed driving for ~100–200 miles
   • The system will refine clutch pressures and timing

👉 This allows the TCU to relearn:

• Shift timing
• Clutch fill pressure
• Torque converter lockup behavior
• Driving style adaptation

✅ 2. “Soft Reset” via Driving Style (Quick Adaptation Change)

If the issue is just odd shift behavior caused by prior aggressive driving:

Do this:

• Drive very gently for 20–30 minutes
• Keep RPMs low and throttle consistent

👉 The transmission will begin shifting earlier and smoother as it adapts to a “comfort” profile.

✅ 3. Battery Disconnect Reset (Not ideal, partial reset)

This may clear some learned values, but not all adaptation tables.

Steps:

1. Disconnect negative battery terminal
2. Wait ~15–30 minutes
3. Reconnect
4. Perform the “natural relearn” drive above

⚠️ Notes:

• On modern W223, many adaptations are stored in non-volatile memory
• This is not a full reset, just a partial clearing of volatile behavior

✅ 4. Proper Reset with Diagnostic Tool (Best method)

This is the correct way to fully reset and relearn shift points.

Tools:

• Mercedes XENTRY / STAR diagnostic system
• High-end scan tools (Autel, Launch, etc. with MB capability)

Procedure:

1. Connect diagnostic tool
   
2. Go to:
   
   Code:

   Control Units → Transmission (VGS / TCU)

3. Select:
   • “Reset adaptation values”
   • Or “Erase learned values”
4. Perform guided relearn routine, which typically includes:
   • Controlled accelerations
   • Specific RPM/throttle targets
   • Sequential gear engagement

👉 This resets:

• Clutch fill times
• Shift pressures
• Engagement timing
• Torque converter lockup behavior

✅ This is the only method that truly “starts from zero”

⚠️ Important Notes About W223 Behavior

• The 9G‑TRONIC is highly adaptive and constantly learning
• It can take:
  • ~30 miles for noticeable improvement
  • ~150+ miles for full adaptation
• It adapts to:
  • Driving style
  • Terrain (hills vs flat)
  • Load (passengers, cargo)

🧠 Common Misconceptions

❌ “Floor it a few times to reset it” → wrong
✔️ That actually teaches it to hold gears longer

❌ “There’s a pedal trick reset (gas pedal holding)” →
✔️ That does not apply to W223 / modern Mercedes

✅ When You SHOULD Reset Adaptations

Do this if:

• You replaced:
  • Transmission
  • Valve body
  • Conductor plate
• You have:
  • Harsh shifting
  • Gear hesitation
  • Incorrect shift timing
• You want to remove learned aggressive behavior

✅ Quick Practical Recommendation

For your situation:

Start with this:

1. Warm the car fully
2. Do 30–45 minutes of smooth, steady driving
3. Avoid hard throttle inputs
4. Repeat over a few days

If it still feels off →
👉 Use a scan tool for a full adaptation reset + guided relearn.
If you want, I can also give you a very specific Mercedes-style relearn drive cycle (step-by-step throttle/RPM targets) like technicians use after repairs.


THIS IS WHERE I PASTED IN YOUR EXPLANATION ON MBWORLD FOR COPILOT TO ANALYZE:

You said:

So during the long road trip over the weekend, I noticed the 3 to 4 upshift was acting funky. I could hear and feel the rpm jumping ever so slightly between gear 3 & 4 as if it was slipping. This was with light throttle (I rarely accelerate hard - I would say 20% throttle or less most of the time.) The next day on my way back home, it starts to sort of slam into 4th, jerking, compared to the slipping sensation. I've tried with different throttle positions and roughly 50% throttle position seem to smooth it out but I could feel that the gear is not happy when engaging. All other upshifts into other gears is buttery smooth.

Copilot said:

CopilotWhat you’re describing is actually very characteristic of either adaptation drift or early clutch fill / pressure control issues in the 9G‑TRONIC—especially isolated to a single shift (3→4).

Let me break this down cleanly so you know what you’re dealing with and how serious it is.

🧠 What Your Symptoms Point To

1. Initial “RPM flare / slip” (Day 1)

slight RPM rise between 3→4, light throttle
That usually means:

• Clutch for 4th gear is not applying fast/firm enough
• TCU doesn’t yet have the correct fill time or pressure

2. Followed by harsh “slam” (Day 2)

now it jerks into 4th
That’s the key tell.

👉 The transmission detected the slip and compensated:

• It increased clutch pressure
• Now it’s overcorrecting, causing a hard engagement

3. Feels better at ~50% throttle

That also fits perfectly:

• At higher load, the transmission:
  • Uses different (more stable) pressure maps
  • Locks clutches more decisively
• So it masks the underlying adaptation issue

✅ Most Likely Causes (Ranked)

🥇 1. Adaptation values are off (MOST COMMON)

Especially if:

• Long highway trip (steady-state driving)
• Mostly light throttle usage (like you described)

👉 The TCU “learns” based on conditions, and sometimes:

• It becomes too optimized for cruising
• Then struggles when it needs precise clutch timing again

This exact pattern (flare → slam) = classic adaptation drift.

🥈 2. Early clutch fill / valve body wear (still possible)

If adaptation tries to correct but can’t stabilize:

• Slight wear in:
  • Valve body
  • Solenoid response
  • Clutch pack clearance

👉 Still very minor at this stage if isolated to one shift.

🥉 3. Transmission fluid condition (often overlooked)

If fluid is:

• Slightly degraded
• Aerated
• Or just past ideal condition

You’ll see:

• Inconsistent clutch engagement (exactly what you felt)

🚨 What It’s NOT (Based on Your Description)

• ❌ Not a full transmission failure
• ❌ Not torque converter (you’d feel it in multiple gears)
• ❌ Not a global pressure issue (only 3→4 affected)

✅ What You Should Do (In Order)

Step 1 – Force a Controlled Relearn (Do This First)

Go do this exact drive cycle:

🔧 Relearn Procedure

1. Warm the car fully (important)
   
2. Find a flat road
   
3. Perform 10–15 repetitions of:
   • Light acceleration (~15–25% throttle)
   • Let it shift naturally 1 → 5
   • Come to a smooth stop
4. Then do:
   • 5–10 runs at ~40–50% throttle (like you noticed works better)
5. Include:
   • Gentle deceleration (let it downshift on its own)

👉 This helps the TCU re-balance:

• Fill times
• Pressure curves
• Shift timing

Step 2 – Evaluate After ~50–100 miles

You want to see:

• ✅ No RPM flare
• ✅ No harsh engagement
• ✅ Smooth transition like other gears

Step 3 – If It Persists → Do a Proper Adaptation Reset

This is the real fix if Step 1 doesn’t clean it up.

At a dealer or with a capable tool:

• Reset transmission adaptations
• Perform guided relearn

👉 This will:

• Remove the bad learned values
• Rebuild them correctly

Step 4 – Check Fluid (If Still Not Right)

If the issue remains:

• Inspect transmission fluid condition/level
• Consider service if near interval

⚠️ When to Take It Seriously

Watch for these:

• RPM flare getting worse
• Hard shifts spreading to other gears
• Delay when engaging Drive or Reverse
• Grinding / shudder feeling

👉 If any of that happens → stop and get it checked sooner

🧠 My Read on Your Situation

Based on everything you said:
This feels like a textbook adaptation overshoot after a slip event—not a mechanical failure (yet).
Especially because:

• It started as slip, then became harsh
• Only affects 3→4
• Improves under medium throttle

✅ Bottom Line

You’re likely dealing with: 👉 Bad learned shift adaptation, not hardware failure

Best next move:

1. Do the relearn drive cycle I outlined
2. Monitor over the next ~100 miles
3. Reset adaptations if it doesn’t normalize

If you want, I can also map exactly which clutches are involved in the 3→4 shift in the 9G‑TRONIC and what that tells us about potential wear patterns—that gets very precise for diagnosis.


I THEN TOLD COPILOT ABOUT THE AGE OF YOUR CAR

You said:

my car is about a year old - take that into consideration

Copilot said:

CopilotThat additional context (only ~1 year old) is actually very important — and it shifts the diagnosis more confidently away from hardware and toward control/adaptation behavior.

🧠 Updated Take (Given 1-Year-Old W223)

At that age, this is almost certainly NOT wear-related (clutches/valve body would be extremely unlikely unless there’s a defect).

👉 So now your situation becomes:
A control/adaptation issue that got “out of calibration” during your trip

✅ Why This Happened (Very Plausible Scenario)

Based on what you described:

• Long highway drive
• Very light throttle usage (your normal driving style)
• Sustained steady-state operation

👉 The TCU likely:

• Adapted heavily toward low-load efficiency
• Reduced clutch apply pressure slightly to optimize smoothness

Then when conditions changed:

• It under-applied the 4th gear clutch → RPM flare
• Detected slip → aggressively corrected → now over-applies → harsh shift

That exact sequence:
Slip → compensation → harsh engagement
…is basically textbook adaptive overshoot.

✅ The “1-Year Old Car” Conclusion

Given age + isolated gear + your driving pattern:

👉 ~90% chance this is adaptation distortion, not a physical issue

⚠️ Important Insight About Mercedes Adaptation

On modern Mercedes (especially W223):

• Adaptation is very sensitive and aggressive
• It learns fast, but can also:
  • Overcorrect quickly
  • Take longer to “unlearn” bad values

So once it goes out of balance, it often:

• does NOT self-correct quickly without intervention

✅ What I Would Do If This Were My Car

🔧 Step 1 — Do a Deliberate Relearn (Don’t just casually drive)

You need to “teach” it back into balance:

Do this exactly:

• Fully warm the car
• Find a flat road
• Do 10–15 cycles of:
  • 15–25% throttle acceleration
  • Let it shift 1 → 5 smoothly
  • Come to a complete stop

Then:

• Do 5–10 runs at ~40–50% throttle
  • This is key since you said that load behaves better

Then:

• Include coasting downshifts
  • Lift off throttle and let it downshift on its own

👉 This specifically targets recalibration of:

• 3→4 clutch fill time
• Pressure modulation
• Shift timing

🔧 Step 2 — Short-Term Evaluation (Important)

Over the next 30–80 miles, watch for:

✅ RPM flare disappears
✅ Harsh engagement softens
✅ Shift starts matching the “buttery” feel of others

🔧 Step 3 — If It’s Still There

At this point, don’t keep “hoping it fixes itself”

👉 Go straight to:

• Dealer or good indy shop
• Request:
  Code:

  Transmission adaptation reset + relearn

This is a 5–10 minute procedure with XENTRY.

🚨 When I’d Escalate Immediately (Even at 1 Year)

Even though failure is unlikely, don’t ignore:

• RPM flare getting worse
• Delay before engagement
• Noise during shift
• Issue spreading to other gears

👉 That would justify:

• Fault code scan
• Possibly a warranty check (you’re well within coverage)

✅ One More Subtle but Important Clue You Gave

“All other shifts are buttery smooth”
That’s huge.

👉 If this were mechanical:

• You’d usually see multiple gears affected
• Or at least related gear pairs

Instead:

• You have a single shift event (3→4)

That strongly points to:
A single adaptation table being “off” — not a mechanical failure

✅ Bottom Line (With Age Included)

👉 Your car is almost certainly fine mechanically.

What you’re experiencing is:
An adaptive logic imbalance triggered by long, light-load driving

✔️ Best Path Forward

1. Do the structured relearn drive (not just normal driving)
2. Give it ~50–100 miles
3. If not resolved → reset adaptations (quick + definitive fix)

If you want, I can go one level deeper and show you:

• Exactly which clutch packs are used in the 3→4 shift in the 9G‑TRONIC
• And what their behavior tells us diagnostically

That’s how you can tell with high confidence whether something is electronic vs hydraulic.

 

@S_W222
Thank you very much for sharing the knowledge you have acquired over the years.
I feel like I can now talk to the service manager as if I know a thing or two about the transmission issues, which can be very helpful in getting the correct remedy.

@Mem30306
I appreciate you taking the time to dig up all the information. I went through the whole results from Copilot.
It's amazing what AI can do nowadays.

I'm surprised the transmission is that aggressive to adapt to driving styles.
I also assumed the transmission had a preset matrix of shift parameters depending on the variables - engine/trans temp., throttle position, vehicle load, etc.
I guess I'll leave this one out of my Friday's appointment and give it some time before mentioning it to the dealer then.

So then here's my question : does this mean that the 'learned adaptation' will frequently go out of whack every time I take it on a long road trip?
How do we prevent this? Occasional WOT? lol

 

It truly is amazing what AI can do...

 

I fed Copilot your response - It was feeling overly verbose - but see its response below:

Copilot's response

You’re not wrong—there is a base “matrix” of shift logic (maps for throttle, load, temps, etc.). But on modern Mercedes (especially 9G‑TRONIC in the W223), that’s just the starting point. On top of that, there’s a very active adaptive layer that continuously tweaks:

• Clutch fill time
• Apply/release pressure
• Shift overlap timing

👉 Think of it as:
Static maps + real-time self-learning corrections

🧠 So… will this happen every road trip?

Short answer: No — not normally, and not repeatedly.

What happened to you is more like:
An edge-case where conditions pushed adaptation too far in one direction
Specifically:

• Long steady cruise
• Very light throttle (your style)
• Minimal gear transitions

👉 That combination gives the system very narrow data, so it “optimizes” too aggressively for that scenario.

But under typical ownership:

• Driving is more varied
• The system keeps a broader adaptation baseline
• It doesn’t swing as far

So this isn’t something you should expect every trip.

✅ Why it doesn’t usually go out of whack

Mercedes builds in:

• Adaptation limits (guard rails)
• Decay logic (it slowly forgets extreme values)
• Multiple learning layers (short-term vs long-term)

So normally:

• A long highway drive won’t fully override your “normal” driving memory
• It’ll bias things slightly—not break a single shift

👉 Your case likely hit a threshold where:

• One clutch (3→4) needed a very fine balance
• And the system overcorrected

😄 Now… about your “occasional WOT” idea

You’re joking—but you’re also accidentally onto something.

Not WOT specifically, but:

👉 Varied driving = healthy adaptation

✅ Best Way to Prevent This (Real Answer)

You don’t need to “reset” anything regularly. Just avoid feeding it overly narrow data sets.

✔️ What helps:

• Occasional moderate acceleration (30–60% throttle)
• Letting it run through multiple gears, not just cruising in 8th/9th
• Some stop-and-go driving mixed in

✔️ After long highway drives:

• Do 5–10 minutes of normal city-style driving
• A few smooth accelerations from a stop

👉 That’s enough to “rebalance” it naturally

❌ What you DON’T need to do:

• No need for WOT pulls
• No need for aggressive driving
• No need for frequent resets

🧠 Key Insight (This is the important part)

The system isn’t fragile—it’s overly precise.

That means:

• When everything lines up → incredibly smooth (what you usually feel)
• When one learned value drifts → you feel it in a very specific way

👉 That’s why:

• Only 3→4 is affected
• Everything else is perfect

✅ What I would do in your shoes

Your plan is actually spot on:

✔️ Don’t bring it up to the dealer yet
✔️ Drive it normally with a bit more variation
✔️ Keep an eye on it

Then:

• If it smooths out → you’re done
• If it lingers → quick adaptation reset and move on

🔧 One practical “middle ground” habit

After a long road trip, just do this once:
2–3 moderate accelerations from 0–60 with smooth throttle (not aggressive)
That alone:

• Exercises multiple clutches
• Re-centers adaptation
• Prevents exactly what you saw

✅ Bottom line

• No, this won’t become a recurring problem
• Your transmission isn’t “unstable” — it just got over-optimized
• You don’t need to drive it hard — just drive it with variety occasionally

If anything, the bigger takeaway is:
These transmissions are incredibly refined—but they’re also very honest about when something is even slightly off.
And that’s exactly what you felt.

 

Awesome! Thank you, Mark!

 

I’m not trying to be cute here and I wish the OP & others with this issue the best of luck in finding a remedy. That said, can we even imagine trying to explain any of this to the vast majority of MB owners who are experiencing this issue? Can we even imagine a dealer service department even thinking of going through any of these very time consuming procedures, when they are short of qualified techs and they have their hands full just trying to get much lesser tasks completed?

As someone who has experienced very similar transmission issues on THREE successive S Class sedans, I have seen how the dealers will basically “treat” the complaint by giving you a nice loaner for a day or two, washing your car and then saying something like “unable to duplicate,” or “operating as designed.” On one occasion, they “said” that they actually replaced the transmission & torque converter (I didn’t believe it) and the issue actually got WORSE! It certainly does make one wonder how virtually every other automaker can get “Automatic Transmissions 101” perfect, while MB has been floundering with horrible transmission issues for at least six years now. It’s time for MB to outsource their transmission needs to ZF.

The transmissions in our 2019 SL450 and 2019 E450 Wagon work perfectly and always have. WHAT happened starting in MY20???

 

Just to reinforce the OP's original request:

 

It takes a couple of tires and patience, the technician needs to show patience as well, I seen reported that the adaptations does help (in the GLE thread as well, there is a recall for the GLE that also states these adaptations should be performed, it was also mentioned they need to do it several times in a row).
To answer your question...Regulations and the pandemic might have changed things.

 

I think switching to ZF us a good solution, but I still believe that finding an ultimate solution for current owners should be a priority. I think OP, with help from the right technician and dealer, might be able to improve or fix this issue, especially with adaptation even if it needs to be re-done once a year with oil changes.

Yeah I’ve seen the in the GLE forum some okay results for Adaptation, but they only last until the next oil change cycle; am I wrong?

I know Mbenz said they have been working on a solution; it’s been 6-7 years now, so it makes me wonder if the official solution is emission related and they can no longer re-certify these cars for emissions? Or if it’s costly to do so for existing generations.

 

Sadly, MB will never discard their transmission business, there good MB transmissions though at least on the sporty side such as the MCT, that is great transmission, no, it isn't known for its smoothness but it has a lot of character for this amg folks.

 

AMG folks love it and complain “less” I think. Owners can confirm. The OP has a non-AMG and it sounds like he is looking for a comfy drive characteristics that we all expected when we invested in our S class, so I think those concerns should still be taken seriously even if the sport ride group driving AMGs are happy with it, but u bring up a valid point. If the hardware was designed with AMG performance in mind, could it be the reason that it causes very harsh drive in the regular non-amg models? OP observation is note unique, it’s very common, so hopefully he could find a solution.

Really curious if adaptation can fix this for a few thousand miles…

 

I totally understand that.

 

My thoughts, based on dealer reactions when I was dealing with these issues and reading articles, led me to believe that MB COULD fix these issues, but they would jeopardize their EPA certifications, as fuel economy ratings are, in some ways, based on transmission shift points, etc. It would be interesting to know if owners are experiencing these issues in countries where fuel economy regulations might be a bit easier to meet.

 

My 2020 GT53 shifted perfectly. My 2021 W223 had a horrible downshift on occasion. Makes me scared to get the facelift.

My wife's week old 2026 GLE seems to be shifting fine so far

 

yeah I found my GLS to shift fine too, but it has the inline-6 not the V8, to be clear. There are less complaints in the SUV forums than sedans which is interesting, but definitely still relatively high even for the SUVs, so am not trying to even normalize this at all for SUVs. Interesting part is that many other brands are facing the same exact thing. Driving some lexus suvs this weekend, they were shifting really harsh, like it was really terrible, so the entire industry somehow is experiencing transmission shifting issues and it makes me wonder about the accuracy of the emissions and certifications issue. Am so glad we at least stopped going for small engines, at least within mbemz and kudos to them, but the EPA regulations are becoming tight and tight and it’s ruining some of these drivetrains.