2015 E63 gearbox issues

[46thedoctor]

As above has anybody had any issues with this gearbox, my car has covered 5k miles and the gearbox is driving me insane! It's very harsh from cold but the concerning issue is a fault when warm. Occasionally whilst driving along in a 30mph area in 4th gear, the car will literally slam itself into 3rd really abruptly. The first time it happened I honestly thought I'd ran over something on the road! It's been into mb and they did a software update - no different at all. RS problem is so intermittent naturally it never does the harsh downshift when they have it. Only ever from 4th down to 3rd. Anybody shed any light on this please guys? I love my e63 but the gearbox is slowly making me become a non fan of this car!

 

[st13phil]

Occasionally whilst driving along in a 30mph area in 4th gear, the car will literally slam itself into 3rd really abruptly.

When it downshifts, are you on a level road just cruising along or is it when you open the throttle?

FWIW, after the last software update on my gearbox the 4th to 3rd downshift when under load can sometimes be a little harsh, but it's not so abrupt as to be a real issue.

 

[46thedoctor]

Either flat road or slight incline, it's usually in a 30mph zone when the car decides it needs to downshift rather than me opening the throttle to accelerate. It's the same sort of noise you would get from a manual gbox If you were to accidentally knock it out of gear when the box is under load, deffo more than just an abrupt gear change, I suspect it's the box actuating and pulling it out of 4th before the clutches have disengaged fully - its back In at the stealers on Thursday for its second round of investigations, my worry is that with the dealers generally they only act upon something if they see/feel it for themselves and given that it doesn't do it all the time it'll never get resolved, knowing my luck the gearbox will poo itself once out of warranty!

 

[HB]

Just refuse to collect the car till they replicate the issue and it does it intermittently. Make sure you ask them for a hot courtesy car while yours is in.

 

[GordonTarling]

A few years ago, I had something similar with a Volvo V70 that I owned. The dealer could never replicate he problem so, eventually, I left the car with them and told them I didn't want it back until it was fixed. Two days later, they asked me to collect the car after they'd fitted a new gearbox. Didn't fix the fault though!

 

[46thedoctor]

lol I've thought of doing that but it scares the crap out of me leaving it with them for some snotty nosed technician taking my car home every night to thrash round!

 

[bluestreak]

My gearbox seems to respond to level changes and downshifts on both inclines and declines at steady throttle. I'm guessing there could be software issue when throttle input enters race condition with level inputs. My car certainly feels like that sometimes. I find that committing to throttle more makes it easier for gearbox to make decision.

 

[daveenty]

Not sure of the answer here, but which mode have you got the box in when it does this?

Before mine was modified it was pretty much silky smooth in both C & S modes, though a bit more jumpy in S+. If it's happening in all modes it may be worth asking the dealer if they can re-adapt the transmission to make sure the changes are happening at the right times. This could be done yourself with some enthusiastic driving around for a while, though it will take a bit longer this way and must be done in S or S+. I don't think that you'll ever get smooth seamless changes with the MCT transmission though as, without a torque converter, it will never be as smooth as a normal automatic, and "positive" shifts tend to be the nature of the box.

 

[46thedoctor]

Only ever encountered it in comfort mode, I get the rough shifts that you are mentioning however the 4th down to 3rd one I'm referring to is not just harsh, I feel and hear a very loud clonk, so much so the first time it happened I actually looked into my rear view mirror to see what I had just ran over, it felt like I'd run over a piece of wood!

 

[Chrisb735]

Hey All, first post on MBC !

Just picked up an E63 this evening and its my first Merc after a life time of M cars, yea I know lol

So the gearbox is literally miles away from the DCT box in modern M cars and I know and expected it to be different.

Is there any way to manually reset the shift parameters yourself or is it a dealer only job ?

 

[daveenty]

Hey All, first post on MBC !

Welcome.

Just picked up an E63 this evening and its my first Merc after a life time of M cars, yea I know lol

So the gearbox is literally miles away from the DCT box in modern M cars and I know and expected it to be different.

Is there any way to manually reset the shift parameters yourself or is it a dealer only job ?

The gearbox will adapt itself to your driving habits given time, usually a thousand or so miles, though it will only do this in S mode. the dealer can do it for you but it will be a chargeable item and they will use a set of standard parameters. You'd be much better letting it adapt itself.

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

Welcome to MBClub, and congratulations on your new car.

Some members here and on other forums may suggest that you reset the transmission, by turning on the ignition (but not starting the engine) and pushing the accelerator to the floor and holding it there for 10 seconds.

This does NOT reset the transmission, it just fools some cars into thinking that you've been driving like a loon for 10 seconds, and so the car sharpens it's responses to other driver inputs, and for example may shift down more quickly, hold gears for longer, etc.

Drive like a loon for long enough and the gearbox adaptations will maintain it's sharp responses, until you start to drive normally again, when it will start to adapt to ...well ...adapt to driving normally again!

 

[Tuercas viejas]

For info there is a download re-flash for that.
Followed by a road test to set the change trims.
Get it right and you will hardly feel the changes.
I use Autologic Assyst for that job!
Probably the best Independent scanner on the planet.
Amistrades
Tuercas Viejas

 

[MarkACLS]

Perhaps there is nothing wrong with the transmission. Perhaps there is a problem with the potentiometers / acceleration pedal sensors? The accelerator is flybywire, so some kind of faulty input reading may lead to other systems acting wrongly.

I have an E63 from 2014 and it doesn't exhibit the symptoms you have described - so I'd conclude that what you feel is not normal and you should have the dealer do all they can to replicate the fault and spend time in diagnosis - however long that takes.

Have you joined the AMG private lounge? If you are getting nowhere raise the issue in the AMG PL and they can help you escalate it. They will ask you to contact MB Customer Support. https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&s...yVu6b9LFKpJVcGW1g&sig2=lPBo1ecVzT7nRnTaiBBjLw

There is a process that Mercedes calls TIPS which refers to their "overall internal data processing system for the worldwide exchange of technical information, knowledge and solutions through all service levels." which can bring extra knowledge and support into the mix beyond the normal domain of the dealer.



Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk

 

[Badvgood]

Hi, when we get cars in where we cannot reproduce the fault, rather than take the car for a few weeks to drive it loads, we rig up (with the customers consent of course) a dash cam.

In this situation, we would want it to have visibility of the dash clocks themselves, maybe a bit of the road to gauge incline etc and the pedal gear, so we could see what is going on as if in the car.

We would also make sure the time and date is correct on the dash cam and GPS was activated. Our next dash can we want will have the g force meter and stuff in it to gauge if the car is being driven harsh or not.

Then you ask the customer to use the car and when it happens, use the 'save' button on the dash cam. After three occurrences or more we would review the footage and the logs from the car's ECU's cross referencing times dates etc. Sometimes this is a little tricky as cars often count in hours and minutes of engine run time from the last instance!

Generally with this, we have enough info to make an informed decision on what to do next or be able to replicate the fault ourselves.

Just a thought if they find nothing on the next visit.

 

[Tuercas viejas]

Perhaps there is nothing wrong with the transmission. Perhaps there is a problem with the potentiometers / acceleration pedal sensors? The accelerator is flybywire, so some kind of faulty input reading may lead to other systems acting wrongly.

I have an E63 from 2014 and it doesn't exhibit the symptoms you have described - so I'd conclude that what you feel is not normal and you should have the dealer do all they can to replicate the fault and spend time in diagnosis - however long that takes.

Have you joined the AMG private lounge? If you are getting nowhere raise the issue in the AMG PL and they can help you escalate it. They will ask you to contact MB Customer Support. https://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&s...yVu6b9LFKpJVcGW1g&sig2=lPBo1ecVzT7nRnTaiBBjLw

There is a process that Mercedes calls TIPS which refers to their "overall internal data processing system for the worldwide exchange of technical information, knowledge and solutions through all service levels." which can bring extra knowledge and support into the mix beyond the normal domain of the dealer.



Sent from my Pixel XL using Tapatalk

Yes
Its called SCN coding on many component sub sections.
I use a J box and pass through for such things as the latest transmission changes and sub component systems like NOx sensors & upgrades on diesel engine applications.
Tuercas viejas