My dealer was able to duplicate the sometimes head snapping jerky acceleration on another 2010 AMG E63. This was quite the revelation. The dealer stopped looking for the problem in my car. Now this poor performance was considered "nominal".

Here is what happens during normal driving, I notice it most when the engine is cold or still not up to full temp. It can happen in "C" or "S+" modes, but more common in "C". To me it feels like the Auto clutch simply stalls in its engagement. You press on the gas and nothing, engine revs, clutch finally engages, then it throws you back into the seat. If it happens with passengers, it is rather embarrassing. What seems like an eternity is likely a half of a second to a full second.

I have complained about this since taking possession of the car over a year ago. They kept it for several weeks, made some transmission programming mods and told me it would "learn" and get better. It didn't. I took it in again when other strange things started to occur eventually resulting in a dead battery one morning. Prior to that it was doing some real weird things. Occasionally it would not shift out of park. Start, Stop, tried reverse, forward etc. Only way to get the car to move at that point was to shut it off, open the door, (to reset the CPU) then restart. Another little glitch was it wouldn't let me turn off the car w/o putting into park, not every time, just occasionally. This stuff went on for a few weeks then the car went dead one morning. Dealer diagnosed as bad battery, replaced and the other funny things went away. The road side assistant tech thought all of the problems could be tied to the ignition module, but my dealer dis-agreed. It would have been nice if all the problems were fixed.

Battery issue and other quirks now fixed the dealer turned their attention to the Jerky acceleration issue which they experienced for themselves. They tried many things, looked for vacuum leaks, made sure it had the latest updates - it had, then they reproduced the problem on another 2010 E63 and gave up.

The dealer suggested I call the customer assistance Center, which I did both times.
Evidently I am the only person with this vehicle to complain, yet it has now been proven that the problem exists in multiple vehicles.

Please let me know if you have experienced this, and if you haven't yet done so, call MBZ and complain. It will not get fixed from one disgruntled customer.

Don't get me wrong, I love most everything else about the car's performance, it rocks. I just want it to behave and respond appropriately.

 

Hi, welcome... This is a known issue... Hopefully you are new to forums, but before starting a new thread please do a search...

I remember reading that sprint booster paired with the latest software alleviates most of the problem... Personally I don't mind the jerky transmission, but it would be great if it was always smooth and there was a fix... i know iknow 100k car shouldn't have these problems... all cars have problems... but again yes a fix would be nice and I complain to MB every chance i get...

 

I did search and did not see the same type of problem documented. For my car it is most pronounced when accelerating from a dead stop. Engine revs, then drops into gear with a jerk. On one occasion I was on a hill and almost rolled backwards into the car behind me.

According to MBZ. No one else has complained about this issue. So starting a new thread will give increased visibility to the problem. If there is a very similar thread, that documents similar problems with the W212, feel free to provide the link. All info provided would be most appreciated. Thank you very much for your reply.

 

I absolutely complaiend to 2 different dealerships both of which kept the car a day and said its fine. I didnt call corporate however. What is the number? I will do so.

 

I have the same issue with my e63 as well. The car is at the dealer now. I will update this post when I get it back.

 

Customer Assistance Center 1(800)FOR-MERC 1(800)367-6372

 

Here are a few suggestions:
1. Make sure they document your complaints in detail at time of drop off.
2. If they report that they are able to reproduce this intermittent problem, make sure that they document that on the repair ticket. I had to make them go back into the system twice to clarify it in writing. All they initially wrote up is what processes they tried to fix customer complaint...
3. Ask the Service Manager to follow up with MBZ corporate on this problem, provide link to this forum or others that help to support your complaint.
4. After they fail to fix, call the customer assistance center to complain. This second channel, I have been told gets more attention than what comes in thru local service.
5. When you get the survey. Answer it honestly. I gave my dealership high scores on most everything except actual results, and then I was brutally honest. I know this hurts the people that work there, brownie points and all, and frankly I no longer care. I played that game on a BMW 550I with SMG tranny that was a lemon for 4 years and got no where being nice.

By doing this, you will end up with three points of information flow back to corporate.

 

i WISH i could lemon my E63 and get something else instead with the normal transmission. My car was produced in 2009 - the first batch, so it is as ****ty as it can be. I complained several times to service and they said that jerky transmission is OK, "cause it's a sports car with a big engine" ( BS!!) and offered me complimentary detailings so i would shut up.

For now the only relief is sprint booster.

Would be nice to hire an attorney for this and split the cost and knowledge with others.
Anyone interested?

 

I am curious what problems you are having, similar or different from what I have described. I feel somewhat ignorant, but I will ask anyway, what is "Sprint booster?"

There are ways to return any car under the Lemon law, I am not at that point, I really love this car, it flat out kicks ***. I will likely just put up with the quirks and continue to hope that MBZ will pull its head out of its @$$ and fix the problem.

This is a world class car, it puts BMW and Cadillac to shame, its refined and its power is stealthy. I like that. I used to get grief driving my NSX to work because it was ostentatious as business owner, not one complaint from anyone on the benz even though it is significantly more expensive.

It suffers from being able to transfer this power elegantly, and consistently when driving normally. When pushing the car after warm up, I have found that it rarely exhibits the jerk/tranny slip when you are getting on it.

Besides, I hate everything having to do with lawsuits, the only ones who win are the attorneys. The power of the press and negative publicity are our best tools to achieve change.

 

Sprintbooster is an small adapter that goes between gas pedal harness and wiring. It "amplifies" and takes out throttle response lag. This lag is somewhat contributes to the transmission jerkiness, it makes it even worse. So sprint booster minimizes it. It has a cable from adapter (cable can be disconnected) with a button. You can select between: bypass, comfort , sport.
Give it a try. It should help a lot. Installs in like 15 mins, plug and play and cheap - $320.

I have exactly the same problem as you described.

I am waiting till the new M5 comes out in Spring, and will get it. I am also thinking about S8 or next S class AMG.

The only reason I am keeping E63 is 1. I don't see any alternative right now. 2. I have really low monthly payment. $920 per month w/ sales tax included.

I know, lawyers always win...

 

Interesting, maybe that is why the problem is less pronounced in S+ mode. So where does this gizmo reside? In the cabin or engine area?

I would steer clear of the BMW. It is widely known that they have some significant issues with their various electronic components not always communicating well with each other. I had my 550i in the shop many times, and they re-programmed the car several times. Each time was a several day process.

The service Mgr of the MBZ is friends with the Service Manager of sister BMW dealership and confirmed this. they have several bays with dedicated techs just to re-program cars. Also the SMG Tranny in BMW's are P.O.S. Jerkiness is way more pronounced.

I have never shared the following on-line, but if it can save you from making the mistake on a BMW perhaps its time I share: One Sat morning on the way to work in my 550i, I was in first position waiting at a light, when it felt like I got hit from behind and pushed into the intersection. I check behind me and the closest car is now 15' or so behind. I look down at pedals and check floor mat, it was secure when all of sudden engine revs to full throttle. I am able to keep car from moving by standing on the brakes. Intersection fills with the acrid smoke of the clutch disintegrating. scared the living crap out of me.

BMW eventually was persuaded to buy "Christine" back from me after validating that the recently replaced clutch was ruined and that there was no way I could have staged it. that and my final response to their initial denial was to destroy the car on National television if they didn't buy it back - I could never live with myself if I sold that car to a dealer or unsuspecting buyer. I bought the E63 before BMW made up its mind. They repurchased under the California Lemon Law.

I have never driven the S class AMG, as the E Class fit my needs for size and ultimate performance. I have heard some nice things about the Audi, but I could never get beyond Audi's ugly grills mho

Try driving the E63 in S+ and see if problems are less noticeable

 

$920 a month on a new E63? Wow that is really cheap, how much did you have to put down?

 

i got E63 27K off MSRP. And 5K down. They had some special last year around june, july, august.

I ll post pictures tmrw of the sprint booster installation, location. It's behind the pedal. (my car is in the service today due to problems with battery, it keeps dying on it's own somehow)

 

That is an amazing deal. I got mine at factory invoice and then got another $2000 off part of International CEO discount for specific companies, my company happened to be a subsidiary of. But 27K is way below that.

My battery was just replaced and seemed to solve a number of little electronic quirks I mentioned in the beginning of this string. They might also look at the Ignition (or was it engine) control module. Interesting that these batteries have no liquid/acid in them, they are dry, and in my case did not last more than 1.5 years.

I am looking into the sprint-booster thing, I found the other thread on this, very intriguing. I noticed you were one of two with an AMG to try, all other posters were E350 and E550.

I understand how it functions, similar to the S+ mode that decreases the lag time from throttle inputs by a factor of 20. I just don't see it solving the problem of the MCT to move from neutral to 1st gear from a dead stop or the lag between gears. both of these happens intermittently.

I do like the idea of faster throttle response while in "C" mode to aid in better mileage by shifting gears faster in normal commuting.

Curious what the controller for this looks like and where you put it.

 

this is interesting to me; similar to the other thread here.
I have not percieved the jerkiness to interfere with my enjoyment of
my 2011, July build, E63. I have been operating under the assumption
that this is how the vehicle behaves. in the last several days alone I have
learned (somehow) how to better handle the power of my car......and it's quite
amazing....
this is my first car of such performance and it has taken me a while, since August, to learn how to drive it.....and I am expecting the free day at the academy will really, really help a lot......to better understand...
I really enjoy the amg mode obviously, and I even enjoy the regular sport mode sometimes too. and like to turn the traction off because it seems a hair louder when I do that, might be imagining that.....
yeah, I really feel like I'm 'getting the hang of it' now........

 

Traction control has nothing to do with sound, motor etc, it simply partially disables the traction control. I disable when wishing to slide around corners.

I like Sport Plus, aggressive shock setting on too. I always drive with the active seat bolsters on full too. I always let the car warm up before getting into it and love the sound of the stock exhaust. Having driven high performance cars for 16+ years, I have a special appreciation for what this car can do. It is nothing short of amazing.

Now to just work out this intermittent jerking/slipping tranny problem

 

Been several months, Thought I would update anyone interested. I did get the Speedbooster many months ago. It does improve throttle response significantly and does marginally help the "jerky" tranny issue. I only use it in the "Green" mode, its crazy in the Red mode and you lose the last gears while in Sport Plus and in Red. So I simply leave in Green mode.

Like other poster's to similar thread report. If you drive it hard and then back off it seems to behave better.

 

late to the party but>>>>


My W212 2010 E63 was jerky too with the lower gears but my 2012 CLS and E63TT's are not jerky at all.

Maybe Benz updated their TCU software or the M157 engine behaves differently than the M156?

I just dealt with my 2010 Jerky63

 

So you have the new 2012 E63? According to Car and Driver it has the same tranny, so whats the real difference? I think you might be on to something in that the ETC may be the culprit behind the problem

Changes for the 2012 E63 bring it in line with its platform mate, the CLS63 AMG, which was redesigned for 2012. It starts with the aforementioned M157 5.5-liter V-8, which makes 518 hp and 516 lb-ft of torque in the E, or 550 hp and 590 lb-ft when equipped with the AMG Performance package (the extra grunt is mostly due to an increase in boost pressure from 14.5 to 18.8 psi). In base trim, that’s the same horsepower count as the 6.2-liter it replaces, but an increase of 51 lb-ft. The car is limited to a top speed of 155 mph, or 186 mph with the Performance Pack.

Behind the 5.5-liter, AMG continues to use the E63’s seven-speed Speedshift MCT automatic, which uses a clutch pack instead of a torque converter. Mercedes forecasts 0-to-60-mph times of 4.4 seconds in base trim and 4.3 seconds for Performance pack cars, but the last E63 we tested did the deed in four flat. So even without the optional extra boost, the 2012 E63 should turn in a time somewhere in the high 3s. Still think you’re going to miss that 6.2?

 

I have same fact pattern with mine. Mostly when the engine is cold before it gets up to temp. I get a little throttle blip at idle as well when i'm standing on the brake pedal. Notice that when that happens right before I'm about to step on the gas, I get the same slightl lag. On another note, I was in a parking lot last night and started the car...it barked then it died. Twice it happened. I opened the door, stood harder on the brake pedal and it started and kept humming.... no idea.....sorry dont mean to jack this with a new issue.

 

I had a very similar issue, could not turn off the car until I "opened the door" then the ECU reset itself. happened a couple times over a two day period. Even took a video of the event and showed it to MBZ service. The next day my battery died. They replaced the battery and the problem has not happened again. For a while, they thought the two problems might be related, but alas not.

 

lol i think everyone has the same problem....

 

If we complain do you think AMG will offer a manual trans?

What I noticed is getting back on the gas after letting off causes the jerkiness.
Rolling stops are what seem to confuse the MCT.
At slow speeds just keep steady throttle and tip in lightly, as if driving a manual.

 

Hi all,

I am considering buying a new E63 but I am having second thoughts because of the MCT transmission. The MCT mated the previous 6.2l N/A engine seemed to have suffered a lot of issues with jerkiness especially in cold start or out of junctions. This is a deal breaker for me as there is a lot of stop/start and low speed crawling traffic in Hong Kong. Have these problems been eradicated in the 2012 E63 with MCT mated to the new 5.5l twin-turbo engine?

 

You should see if a forum member in HK will let you take an extended test drive.
Its harsh calling it a problem as its more of a characteristic.
Its good that others post here to share their experience with it, because without that most would chase their tails trying to get it fixed.
However, I'd guess the people having trouble with it dont know how to drive a manual trans car either.
Its really not a concern, even on a M156.
I might venture to say that Shortys and a Wisetec tune helped by giving more low end torque and allowing less throttle application in low speed driving.
That would probably apply to the ulta torqe M157 also.
For people who dont want to shift manually the MCT is great.
Id rather have a manual though, any day, and even in HK.