Note to all DIYers on Transmission Fluid Change
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Junior Member
Joined: Feb 2019
Posts: 37
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From: New Jersey
C207 E550
Note to all DIYers on Transmission Fluid Change
Just completed transmission fluid DIY on my 2013 E63 on a Sunday afternoon on my driveway.
What appeared to be a 1~2hour job turned out to take over 6 hours due to the mistakes I made.
Writing this note for other DIYers who plan on changing their transmission fluid at home.
1. Have sufficient fluid ready
Although I knew that only 4~5 liters of the expensive fluid were needed as long as I don't drain the torque converter, I bought the full 10 liter kit from FCP Euro which was a life saver. You will need some back-up fluid in case something goes wrong.
2. Make sure to remove the auxiliary oil pump for transmission (2012+ cars with ECO Mode have this)
This pump only has 3 screws and 1 electric connector which can be removed in a few minutes.
On the first try I skipped removing this pump as it did not seem necessary which was a huge mistake.
3. Make sure that the gasket sits properly (which is not easy) until the last moment when all 6 screws are being tightened.
The gasket is pretty soft and easily moves around while the pan is re-installed especially with the transmission fluid lubricating the grooves where the gasket is supposed to sit.
Double, triple, check to the last moment that the gasket is sitting properly before torquing the bolts or the pan will spit out all of the fluid you just pumped in.
My mistake of not removing the auxiliary transmission oil pump resulted in gasket not sitting properly where the pan meets the pump as I could not see the seal and fluid leaked out like it was pouring out of a can after I had pumped almost the whole 5 liter container.
I had to remove the pan once again since I had to re-align the gasket after it started leaking. This made a mess on my driveway and myself. Had to clean this up for almost an hour after all was done.
Lucky I had almost half a liter left from my first container and a full add'l 5 liter container that I could use on the second fill after my gasket leaked.
4. Transmission fluid change on jack stands/ramps in challenging.
I first put the car on 4 jack stands which I felt unsafe so I decided to buy a pair of ramps and back into the ramps and then jack up the car from the front center jack point.
This was not successful as now with the back lifted, the front was too low to clear the jack even though I had a Low Profile Jack. Maybe a Long Reach Low Profile Jack would have helped but I did not have this.
Eventually I decided to just lift the car with ramps on the front which proved to be challenging as the transmission pan sits towards the middle of the car.
Front part of the pan had enough clearance but rear part of the pan had less clearance for me to see properly what I was doing.
Obviously also the pan was not level to measure exact fluid so I may have overfilled/under filled to some extent.
Ideal situation would be to have access to a lift for the job to be 10 times easier.
What appeared to be a 1~2hour job turned out to take over 6 hours due to the mistakes I made.
Writing this note for other DIYers who plan on changing their transmission fluid at home.
1. Have sufficient fluid ready
Although I knew that only 4~5 liters of the expensive fluid were needed as long as I don't drain the torque converter, I bought the full 10 liter kit from FCP Euro which was a life saver. You will need some back-up fluid in case something goes wrong.
2. Make sure to remove the auxiliary oil pump for transmission (2012+ cars with ECO Mode have this)
This pump only has 3 screws and 1 electric connector which can be removed in a few minutes.
On the first try I skipped removing this pump as it did not seem necessary which was a huge mistake.
3. Make sure that the gasket sits properly (which is not easy) until the last moment when all 6 screws are being tightened.
The gasket is pretty soft and easily moves around while the pan is re-installed especially with the transmission fluid lubricating the grooves where the gasket is supposed to sit.
Double, triple, check to the last moment that the gasket is sitting properly before torquing the bolts or the pan will spit out all of the fluid you just pumped in.
My mistake of not removing the auxiliary transmission oil pump resulted in gasket not sitting properly where the pan meets the pump as I could not see the seal and fluid leaked out like it was pouring out of a can after I had pumped almost the whole 5 liter container.
I had to remove the pan once again since I had to re-align the gasket after it started leaking. This made a mess on my driveway and myself. Had to clean this up for almost an hour after all was done.
Lucky I had almost half a liter left from my first container and a full add'l 5 liter container that I could use on the second fill after my gasket leaked.
4. Transmission fluid change on jack stands/ramps in challenging.
I first put the car on 4 jack stands which I felt unsafe so I decided to buy a pair of ramps and back into the ramps and then jack up the car from the front center jack point.
This was not successful as now with the back lifted, the front was too low to clear the jack even though I had a Low Profile Jack. Maybe a Long Reach Low Profile Jack would have helped but I did not have this.
Eventually I decided to just lift the car with ramps on the front which proved to be challenging as the transmission pan sits towards the middle of the car.
Front part of the pan had enough clearance but rear part of the pan had less clearance for me to see properly what I was doing.
Obviously also the pan was not level to measure exact fluid so I may have overfilled/under filled to some extent.
Ideal situation would be to have access to a lift for the job to be 10 times easier.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Feb 2014
Posts: 6,190
Likes: 1,549
From: MA
2008 E350 4Matic, 2011 E350 4matic
You can also buy the ATF 134 FE from a shell distributor. I think it's a little over $65 for a case of 12 quarts. Pretty much cheaper than any online store. I suppose the good thing with FCP euro is that you won't have to buy the fluid again so I guess maybe you break even by the 3rd or 4th fluid change.
https://www.shell.us/business-custom...r-locator.html
It's listed on MB's 236.15 spec sheet, same as the Pentosin but the Liqui Moly is not. Liqui Moly only recommends their fluid where 236.15 is called for, it's not an MB approved fluid.
https://bevo.mercedes-benz.com/bevol...236.15_en.html
https://www.shell.us/business-custom...r-locator.html
It's listed on MB's 236.15 spec sheet, same as the Pentosin but the Liqui Moly is not. Liqui Moly only recommends their fluid where 236.15 is called for, it's not an MB approved fluid.
https://bevo.mercedes-benz.com/bevol...236.15_en.html
Senior Member
Joined: Aug 2022
Posts: 376
Likes: 122
E63 AMG
Just completed transmission fluid DIY on my 2013 E63 on a Sunday afternoon on my driveway.
What appeared to be a 1~2hour job turned out to take over 6 hours due to the mistakes I made.
Writing this note for other DIYers who plan on changing their transmission fluid at home.
1. Have sufficient fluid ready
Although I knew that only 4~5 liters of the expensive fluid were needed as long as I don't drain the torque converter, I bought the full 10 liter kit from FCP Euro which was a life saver. You will need some back-up fluid in case something goes wrong.
2. Make sure to remove the auxiliary oil pump for transmission (2012+ cars with ECO Mode have this)
This pump only has 3 screws and 1 electric connector which can be removed in a few minutes.
On the first try I skipped removing this pump as it did not seem necessary which was a huge mistake.
3. Make sure that the gasket sits properly (which is not easy) until the last moment when all 6 screws are being tightened.
The gasket is pretty soft and easily moves around while the pan is re-installed especially with the transmission fluid lubricating the grooves where the gasket is supposed to sit.
Double, triple, check to the last moment that the gasket is sitting properly before torquing the bolts or the pan will spit out all of the fluid you just pumped in.
My mistake of not removing the auxiliary transmission oil pump resulted in gasket not sitting properly where the pan meets the pump as I could not see the seal and fluid leaked out like it was pouring out of a can after I had pumped almost the whole 5 liter container.
I had to remove the pan once again since I had to re-align the gasket after it started leaking. This made a mess on my driveway and myself. Had to clean this up for almost an hour after all was done.
Lucky I had almost half a liter left from my first container and a full add'l 5 liter container that I could use on the second fill after my gasket leaked.
4. Transmission fluid change on jack stands/ramps in challenging.
I first put the car on 4 jack stands which I felt unsafe so I decided to buy a pair of ramps and back into the ramps and then jack up the car from the front center jack point.
This was not successful as now with the back lifted, the front was too low to clear the jack even though I had a Low Profile Jack. Maybe a Long Reach Low Profile Jack would have helped but I did not have this.
Eventually I decided to just lift the car with ramps on the front which proved to be challenging as the transmission pan sits towards the middle of the car.
Front part of the pan had enough clearance but rear part of the pan had less clearance for me to see properly what I was doing.
Obviously also the pan was not level to measure exact fluid so I may have overfilled/under filled to some extent.
Ideal situation would be to have access to a lift for the job to be 10 times easier.
What appeared to be a 1~2hour job turned out to take over 6 hours due to the mistakes I made.
Writing this note for other DIYers who plan on changing their transmission fluid at home.
1. Have sufficient fluid ready
Although I knew that only 4~5 liters of the expensive fluid were needed as long as I don't drain the torque converter, I bought the full 10 liter kit from FCP Euro which was a life saver. You will need some back-up fluid in case something goes wrong.
2. Make sure to remove the auxiliary oil pump for transmission (2012+ cars with ECO Mode have this)
This pump only has 3 screws and 1 electric connector which can be removed in a few minutes.
On the first try I skipped removing this pump as it did not seem necessary which was a huge mistake.
3. Make sure that the gasket sits properly (which is not easy) until the last moment when all 6 screws are being tightened.
The gasket is pretty soft and easily moves around while the pan is re-installed especially with the transmission fluid lubricating the grooves where the gasket is supposed to sit.
Double, triple, check to the last moment that the gasket is sitting properly before torquing the bolts or the pan will spit out all of the fluid you just pumped in.
My mistake of not removing the auxiliary transmission oil pump resulted in gasket not sitting properly where the pan meets the pump as I could not see the seal and fluid leaked out like it was pouring out of a can after I had pumped almost the whole 5 liter container.
I had to remove the pan once again since I had to re-align the gasket after it started leaking. This made a mess on my driveway and myself. Had to clean this up for almost an hour after all was done.
Lucky I had almost half a liter left from my first container and a full add'l 5 liter container that I could use on the second fill after my gasket leaked.
4. Transmission fluid change on jack stands/ramps in challenging.
I first put the car on 4 jack stands which I felt unsafe so I decided to buy a pair of ramps and back into the ramps and then jack up the car from the front center jack point.
This was not successful as now with the back lifted, the front was too low to clear the jack even though I had a Low Profile Jack. Maybe a Long Reach Low Profile Jack would have helped but I did not have this.
Eventually I decided to just lift the car with ramps on the front which proved to be challenging as the transmission pan sits towards the middle of the car.
Front part of the pan had enough clearance but rear part of the pan had less clearance for me to see properly what I was doing.
Obviously also the pan was not level to measure exact fluid so I may have overfilled/under filled to some extent.
Ideal situation would be to have access to a lift for the job to be 10 times easier.
Super Member
Joined: Aug 2018
Posts: 697
Likes: 172
From: Seattle, WA
2019 M5 Comp, 2005 Ariel Atom 2
I can attest to the Liqui Moly not working well, this was in my GL63 but also a 722.9 transmission (just one w/ a torque converter and not MCT) - that fluid caused a flare, after changing again to Pentosin it went away. To the OP - if you can, have another liter handy and do a level check when you can get the car level. These can be very picky on proper fluid level!
My last piece of advice would be to get an IR temp gun for the pan, I use that in addition to what my scan tool says the temp is to compare, just more added accuracy to avoid getting the level wrong.
My last piece of advice would be to get an IR temp gun for the pan, I use that in addition to what my scan tool says the temp is to compare, just more added accuracy to avoid getting the level wrong.
