c43 grinding noise in P and N

[Lenny63]

Good call mate

 

[zaen1]

Had a visit to MSL in the morning at their stratford rd branch and and have been told its the gearbox and will need a re build..have been quoted by MSL between £1000-£1200 depending on how bad it iswith a 12month warranty so eft the car with them to have it fixed..

 

[Lenny63]

Good job pal - worth it

 

[noogieman]

Had a visit to MSL in the morning at their stratford rd branch and and have been told its the gearbox and will need a re build..have been quoted by MSL between £1000-£1200 depending on how bad it iswith a 12month warranty so eft the car with them to have it fixed..

why don't you buy an e55 tranny from a newer car at scrapjard for less pennies than a rebuild?

 

[zaen1]

Didn,t really think of that but then wouldnt have that piece of mind buying a second hand gearbox not knowing what it,s had done to it. Are the e55 tranny,s more reliable than the c43 or are they both the same?

 

[noogieman]

Didn,t really think of that but then wouldnt have that piece of mind buying a second hand gearbox not knowing what it,s had done to it. Are the e55 tranny,s more reliable than the c43 or are they both the same?

722.636 trannies are much stronger than c43 trannies.
only thing to swap over to e55 from c43 tranny is the 3 finger flange at the end of the tranny, e55 has 4 finger which can not be used on c43 if you don't do a heavy modification with other parts from e55 like driveshaft swap.

junkyards offers 1 year warranty on low mileage trannies, these are cheaper to buy than repairing your tranny for 1200 quids

 

[zaen1]

Ive been searching the net and it is very hard to find a e55 gearbox..no one is currently selling one and i think if it was available it would be £800+ and on top the labour cost but saying all that if i was mechanically minded and a e55 tranny was available i would definately go with that option. Wish i had stuck with my 4 speed c36 now.

 

[Lenny63]

go with the rebuild - peace of mind counts for a lot of $$$

 

[zaen1]

Yep Lenny,your right,peace of mind is what i need if im going to be keeping this car. Previous owner had owned this car for 12 years trouble free motoring,either he was psychic or just my bad luck on this one

 

[Lenny63]

just bad luck mate - mine is on 180k and gearbox still great (*touch wood) though who knows if its the original

I suppose if the oil has not been changed on a regular basis that could be a reason why

I actually think £1200 is a really good price as these gearboxes are complex

 

[DRBC43AMG]

By the way, is your c43 à 98' model? That year the gearbox had some problems with needle bearings inside. The 99' year versions are bullet proof normally if the ATF and filter are changed regularly. You can get the box rebuilt with upgraded and stronger parts.

 

[zaen1]

Its a 99 V reg. After going through all the service history again i have just realised their is no mention of the ATF or the filter being changed. The car has 128k on it now with me only doing about 500 miles in total.Dont know why i was under the illusion that it was changes at 90k. Oh well damage has been done now.

 

[DRBC43AMG]

Oh dear, sounds like the gearbox has never been flushed or treated to new ATF. Have you tried getting in contact with http://www.mbclub.co.uk/forums/members/blackc55.html ? He is very knowledgeable with the C43.

 

[zaen1]

Oh dear, sounds like the gearbox has never been flushed or treated to new ATF. Have you tried getting in contact with http://www.mbclub.co.uk/forums/members/blackc55.html ? He is very knowledgeable with the C43.

No i have not and the only reason being is the distance of 160 miles as did not have the means to transport the car that far so i have taken it to MSL who also specialise in mercedes and they are just a couple of miles away from me,hoping for some good news tomorrow as they think it might not be as bad as they first thought it is.

 

[Lenny63]

Hopefully just a conducter plate or something relatively simple and a good flush and ATF

 

[zaen1]

Fingers crossed,their may still be light at the end of the tunnel yet lol

 

[streethawk]

No i have not and the only reason being is the distance of 160 miles as did not have the means to transport the car that far so i have taken it to MSL who also specialise in mercedes and they are just a couple of miles away from me,hoping for some good news tomorrow as they think it might not be as bad as they first thought it is.

It's in good hands there as the guys know there stuff.

 

[zaen1]

update today, the main gearbox shaft has had it and MSL have passed it on to a gearbox specialist firm, just waiting on what they are going to say cost wise

 

[noogieman]

update today, the main gearbox shaft has had it and MSL have passed it on to a gearbox specialist firm, just waiting on what they are going to say cost wise

did they tell you it will be an expensive repair when they told you gearbox shaft is broken?

your car has covered approx 128K that's 204800km's.
my 99 c43 has only covered 110000km's.
it's almost half of your car's mileage.

mine is manufactured as a late 1998 sold as an early 1999, the facelift version.
I wonder if I have the updated tranny and if I have to worry about future tranny failiure?

many years ago, I red the MB Enthusiast magazine buyers guide for c36/c43, there was an article about George Fraser an MB specialist, he said that if car has covered approx ~ 140000km's w/o any issues this gearbox should be ok w/o tranny problems as long as it has been maintained properly.

what month your is your c43 manufactured?

 

[zaen1]

My car is registered December 99, they have not given me a figure yet as to what it is going to cost but have said its not cheap which does not help much not knowing what the final bill is going to be. Will give them a ring later on today as i do not have a blank cheque book to my disposal.