Retrofit paddle shifters to W204 C250 CDI

[CitizenKane]

Hi

I have a C250 CDI with the 7 speed auto, but without paddle shifters. Is it possible to retrofit this myself and if so can it be done just by installing a wheel with paddles on it, or will it also require some coding or anything like that?

Thanks

 

[Petrol Pete]

Not sure , but take it from someone who has paddles shifters on his C55 V8 AMG , you will soon get bored of them and not use them much. Your car arguably has a better transmission than mine but less power so being able to shift ratios yourself might be a plus.

It's highly unlikely it would be a cheap mod even if possible. Good luck.

 

[CitizenKane]

Not sure , but take it from someone who has paddles shifters on his C55 V8 AMG , you will soon get bored of them and not use them much. Your car arguably has a better transmission than mine but less power so being able to shift ratios yourself might be a plus.

It's highly unlikely it would be a cheap mod even if possible. Good luck.

Thanks mate. I know what you’re saying, I’ve had paddle shift on lots of cars, including my M4 and even on that I didn’t use it much after a while.. I’d just like to have the option, particularly with the way the “manual” mode is operated on this car - pushing the gear knob left and right to upshift and downshift is really counterintuitive to me! I don’t care enough about it to spend a lot on it, but if it’s a reasonable cost or DIY job I’d like to do it.

 

[Petrol Pete]

If you have the 'manual' gearshift function (as mine does) it might be possible to DIY paddles . Someone will be along soon who knowns more about it .

 

[DSM10000]

The gearbox response will not improve if you retrofit paddles.

 

[CitizenKane]

The gearbox response will not improve if you retrofit paddles.

That’s ok, I wouldn’t expect it to.

 

[ALFAitalia]

I had paddles on my Audi A8 4.2 V8......I used them on the way home from collecting it, out of curiosity mainly.......then never touched them again! With less power they might be a bit more useful....but I doubt it!

 

[slade1]

Have had lots of cars with various auto gearbox modes, tried them once and that's it.
Stick in 'D' and let the gearbox all the work.

 

[SpikyMikey]

I found them useful to force it to drop a gear or two when additional engine braking was desirable.

 

[Petrol Pete]

I must admit to paddling it down very occasionally to scrub off a little speed without braking . But lets face it , thats what the brakes were designed to do. I did use them on my last rental car just for a laugh now and again... but it was a 9 speed Dodge Charger.

 

[CitizenKane]

If anyone’s interested… I finally got around to trying this. I installed a replacement steering wheel that already had paddle shifters on it and it works perfectly with my car. It was a straight swap, I didn’t need to swap over the contact plate from my old wheel or do any sort of wiring or coding or anything. The replacement wheel was taken from the exact same model and year of car (except that it was from a Sport Plus rather than a Sport), if that makes any difference.

 

[rf065]

If anyone’s interested… I finally got around to trying this. I installed a replacement steering wheel that already had paddle shifters on it and it works perfectly with my car. It was a straight swap, I didn’t need to swap over the contact plate from my old wheel or do any sort of wiring or coding or anything. The replacement wheel was taken from the exact same model and year of car (except that it was from a Sport Plus rather than a Sport), if that makes any difference.

How long before you stopped using them though?

 

[DSM10000]

If anyone’s interested… I finally got around to trying this. I installed a replacement steering wheel that already had paddle shifters on it and it works perfectly with my car. It was a straight swap, I didn’t need to swap over the contact plate from my old wheel or do any sort of wiring or coding or anything. The replacement wheel was taken from the exact same model and year of car (except that it was from a Sport Plus rather than a Sport), if that makes any difference.

Has it improved the driving experience?

 

[CitizenKane]

How long before you stopped using them though?

Dunno, I’ll let you know!

 

[CitizenKane]

Has it improved the driving experience?

Well yeah it’s nice to be able to shift manually when the occasion warrants (without having to do so with the weird lateral gear stick movement).

 

[rf065]

Well yeah it’s nice to be able to shift manually when the occasion warrants (without having to do so with the weird lateral gear stick movement).

I only use it to go up a gear in the interests of fuel economy. The old CLK could do the same by hitting the gear lever, so either way is fine for me.

 

[Petrol Pete]

Well done Kane , nice to know some changes can be made to an MB without having to buy an new ECU and the car to be plugged into STAR for days on end.

Bored with them yet ?

 

[CitizenKane]

Well done Kane , nice to know some changes can be made to an MB without having to buy an new ECU and the car to be plugged into STAR for days on end.

Bored with them yet ?

Yep I was a bit surprised it worked tbh.

As for being bored with them yet… I’ve only driven the car with them once so I’ll let you know in a few days…

 

[simmon01]

Yep I was a bit surprised it worked tbh.

As for being bored with them yet… I’ve only driven the car with them once so I’ll let you know in a few days…

I don’t think it’s particularly good long term, for your transmission, to use downshifting,