7G Transmission judder

[RoddersC4]

Hi all
I have a 2005 E280CDi Saloon with 115k miles and FMBSH,Ive owned this since 2008/29k miles,I have had the ATF changed at 35k miles and recently at 114k miles,since about 100k-ish miles Ive noticed a slight judder when its in 2nd and climbing a slope,at first I put it down to needing an ATF change and thought that I'd wait until it was due a service to get this done,anyway it seemed to cure it but after a few hours of driving it returns,there doesnt seem to be a problem when the box is cold,so I am hoping as this isn't happening at all times its hopefully something a bit simpler rather than the Glycol mixing(I dont know if I have a Valeo or Behr rad btw,anybody have an idea as to what its possibly being caused by?

btw its used as a Taxi by myself and so can't be off the road for too long as its my only source of income,luckily the local Mercedes Dealership have a £50p/h labour rate for Licensed taxis

 

[panason1c]

Carrying out a glycol test is a priority, the longer its left the more damage will be done.

 

[Druk]

I thought that by 2005 and the 7G the glycol issue was resolved?

 

[RoddersC4]

would the MB agent not have carried out some sort of check on the ATF when it was changed? or do they only do this if there is an evident problem thats been reported?

FWIW there doesn't seem to be any sort of transmission whine/noise

 

[panason1c]

I thought that by 2005 and the 7G the glycol issue was resolved?

Could still be a rad failure, even a Behr or any other rad could conceivably develop a one-off fault regardless of year of manufacture and allow contamination of fluids

 

[jaymanek]

I doubt it will be a glycol issue on the 7G box... however this box does have its own issues.. just search on here!

I believe there are some MB contributions towards problems on these boxes.

 

[moosehead]

Apart from the usual software updates the electro hydraulic control unit in the gearbox can be a problem with the 7G box. Mine failed at around 45K miles and there have been several other reported failures. I'm told it's quite an expensive part - around £1000 + labour. Fortunatley mine failed in the last month of warranty.

 

[vanHunks]

I have a 2006 ML350 with (I believe) the 7G gearbox and about 35000 miles on it. The gearbox (?) has been playing up for a few months, getting steadily worse. It's been to the dealer twice and goes in tomorrow again, this time to a main dealer. The symptoms are 1) When traveling at low speed and pushing the throttle to the floor (thus activating the kickdown) the drive disappears, the whole car lurches, the engine revs flare and power disappears. The car creeps along for a while then seems to recover. The second symptom (I presume related to the same problem) is the engine revs flaring when changing the gears manually. On the most recent visit to the dealer the diagnostic machine reckoned two of the cam sensors were faulty but their replacement has made no difference - if anything, the problem is worse. The engine light is coming on although only after the car's been driven for a while. I thought at first it might be the "glycol in the torque converter" problem but am coming around to the idea it's something to do with the engine/gearbox electronic management. If anything useful transpires from tomorrow's visit I'll post the details in this thread. In the meantime I welcome any suggestions as to what the problem may be. I don't have a lot of faith in the local (Cape Town) dealer workshops, who seem to be slaves to their diagnostic computers, particularly when, as in this case, the car is covered by a DB service plan.

 

[christopherwk]

luckily the local Mercedes Dealership have a £50p/h labour rate for Licensed taxis

Oooohhh!! Where?!?! Does that include private hire? Does it have to be plated in that area?

 

[vanHunks]

Regarding the problem with the gearbox on my 2006 ML350, a new gearbox is being supplied and fitted, at a cost to my maintenance plan of about SAR 160 000 - about £15 000, which seems a lot.