W208 CLK Gearbox problem (Continued)

[Oli]

I posted before about the gearbox being weird on my CLK230K, it would be like it was inbetween gears if you accelerated anything more than gently and then find a gear again, it also went into limp home mode once and displayed the EML.

Got the codes read on STAR today and they were:

P2001 Component N15/3 (ETC[EGS} control unit is defective
P2500 The Transmission has an impermissable transmission ratio
P2502 The Gear is inplausable or the transmission is slipping
P2602 The Voltage Supply of the valves is faulty

The person who plugged it in thought this indicated an issue with the plates/clutch/torque converter as opposed to being low on fluid (which was ok) or being a problem with the conductor plate.
Does this sound about right?, I'm unsure wether to get the gearbox thats in it looked at or get one that's selling on Ebay £200-300 ish with a torque converter and get someone to fit it, while putting new fluid and filter in at the same time.
Any advice would be much appreciated.

 

[Trickythemerc]

I would stick with the box you have for two reasons, firstly you have the codes, secondly you have no idea of the condition of a £300.00 Ebay purchase. The devil you know is better than a complete unknown.

 

[Oli]

That's a fair point, I'm just undecided as stripping and sorting out the box could be very expensive ( I had to have a new/recon box on a Range Rover Sport years ago which was £2.5k). It's of an age that spending £500 on it is realistically half the value of the car at the moment, which I'd be prepared to do but if it gets to much over that I'd really have to ask myself if it's worth it, especially as I need to sort out rusty wings and rear arches too.

 

[andy27168]

Hi,
Are you 100% the oil level is correct?
Have you looked at the GB ECU?
There is a common issue on the 722.6 GB where GB oil can leak and wick up the wiring loom and contaminate the GB ECU.
The connector plug replacement is reasonably easy and cheap to do, once replaced remove the ECU and wash it out with lighter fuel and a brush.
Not a 100% sure of the symptoms it can cause, but as the codes appear to be with control/selection of functions and the ECU is specifically mentioned in one of the DTCs, and facing the alternatives you are considering I think this well worth a try.
The connector plug can be replaced by just jacking the car as high as possible on the driver's side and you only lose about 0.5-1 litre of oil.
The ECU is in the passenger side foot well fixed to the back of a silver plate secured by 3 x 10mm plastic nuts.

 

[Oli]

Hi Andy,
That is a valid point, I think probably the best thing to do is have a Merc gearbox specialist look at it and go from there.
It’s actually ok shifting up and down of driving gently it’s if you go over about 3000 rpm or sort of misses a gear for a few seconds almost like it’s in neutral then it gets drive again and is ok.
It did go into limp mode once and wouldn’t change up and down.

 

[Petrol Pete]

Oli, everything that can be services 'easily' on your 722.6 transmission is all over the internet and the parts are cheap (compared to buying and fitting a used gearbox of unknown provenance) , you can even buy complete kits including conductor plate, TCU plug, fluid , gasket and filter .

I get your point on 'is it worth it' when you take into account the condition and age of the car. Only you can answer that. The thing is if you go for a fairly cheap gearbox service you may as well get the conductor plate and TCU plug done at the same time as the conductor plate is right in front of you once the pan and filter are out.

Follow Andy's advice in post #4 , replacing the TCU plug first, easy (and cheap) to do as a first try .

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Buy febi bilstein 36332 Plug for automatic transmission control unit, pack of one at Amazon UK. Free delivery on eligible orders.

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Or get one from MB .

 

[andy27168]

Hi
From memory the plug has been superseded many times normally indicative of solving known issues and improvements as it is a cheap part I would go OEM to ensure the latest derivative.

 

[Oli]

Got it looked at, burned oil, loads of metal filings in sump, water in transmission,completely lost drive on the way to drop it off,sadly it seems another W208 going off for scrap.

 

[Petrol Pete]

Another one bites the dust. I hope you did not loose too much on it Oli.

 

[Trickythemerc]

With that news a good second hand box with known history may be the better bet.

 

[Justintyme]

Hi,
Are you 100% the oil level is correct?
Have you looked at the GB ECU?
There is a common issue on the 722.6 GB where GB oil can leak and wick up the wiring loom and contaminate the GB ECU.
The connector plug replacement is reasonably easy and cheap to do, once replaced remove the ECU and wash it out with lighter fuel and a brush.
Not a 100% sure of the symptoms it can cause, but as the codes appear to be with control/selection of functions and the ECU is specifically mentioned in one of the DTCs, and facing the alternatives you are considering I think this well worth a try.
The connector plug can be replaced by just jacking the car as high as possible on the driver's side and you only lose about 0.5-1 litre of oil.
The ECU is in the passenger side foot well fixed to the back of a silver plate secured by 3 x 10mm plastic nuts.

If you are going down the connector plug replacement route ( and its a good idea ) take care as its very easy to bend the connector pins with everything in situ,,,,with the trans sump off, its a much easier job to do.

 

[Petrol Pete]

If you are going down the connector plug replacement route ( and its a good idea ) take care as its very easy to bend the connector pins with everything in situ,,,,with the trans sump off, its a much easier job to do.

Have a look at post #8 , might not be happening

 

[Oli]

Another one bites the dust. I hope you did not loose too much on it Oli.

I’m not sure yet, can’t see it being worth more than 300/400 as is, thanks for your advice all the same btw.

With that news a good second hand box with known history may be the better bet.

Sadly I just don’t think it’s worth doing, by the time I factor in labour costs as auto box work isn’t something I could really DIY.
Sadly just a case of a dishonest seller again and 500 or so down the toilet.

P.S. anyone want a W208, everything works except it’s ability to actually drive anywhere under its own steam .

 

[Petrol Pete]

If you have the space to break it up you might make a few quid on some bit's and then weigh in what's left .

 

[Oli]

If you have the space to break it up you might make a few quid on some bit's and then weigh in what's left .

Sadly I haven’t the room and don’t want to piss off my neighbours, plus the only bits anyone ever wants off a W208 are the wings and boot and they’re already rusty .

 

[Justintyme]

Have a look at post #8 , might not be happening

Yes, looking like a scrappie, unfortunately