Really strange problem on a 270 cdi.
Hi Guys.
I have had a problem with my 270cd 2005i for quite a while.
The first issue was epc light came up when i did the kick down in 75mph. The only thing that happened was restricted power.
The light stopped after parking the car, and we found out it was probably a sensor located near the gas pedal.
After a week or so, the light came on again, and this time teh gearbox went into "reserve(?)-mode. Almost locked to third gear. This happened in a long hill, so the engine got warm. maybe 85 celsius.
So after a while we found out that the waterpump for the water in the intercooler(only 270cdi) was broken. Changed this one.
But still the the gearbox goes into reserve. So we had a look at the radiator(s), and found out they were filthy. So we cleaned them gently with high pressure water(?), and lots of filthy came of them.
Now the car stays a bit cooler, but still the gearbox goes into reserve, and it goes into reserve after approx 20 min driving. The strange thing now is that the gearbox goes into reserve on flat road, with engine coolant at 65 celsius and engine 1800 rpm..
So our idea of the gearbox going into reserve because of lack of cooling is no longer valid. It seems like something turns hot after a while and that the gearbox gets this message..
The only thing we can do now is to shut of the car when the gearbox goes into reserve, turns it on and drive again without the gearbox being a problem for the rest of the ride(at least 50-60km).
The one thing i notice now is that the gearbox might be a bit strange, and that it does wait a bit too long to change gear when accelerating.
Ps. Nothing comes up on the diagnostic tool at the mercedes-specialist.. :(
Anyone have a clue? Gearbox, engine, or cooling system?
you can buy the Behr radiator directly from Behr stockists. it's the same as sold by MB, but with the Mercedes star removed, and less than 1/2 the price (about GBP £300 in UK). Don't by a Nissen radiator. They are definitely not the same quality. I did and returned it straight away,
if you find that you have a leaking radiator with possible engine coolant entering the gearbox, I would advise to drain and re-fill the gearbox oil (it is now recognised to be a service requirement anyway at 60,000 km). The oil has to be purchased from MB as it is a specia, long-life, type (made by Esso) and you may have to dtrain and re-fill at least twice. The capacity is about 8 litres, but you can only drain about 4 litres at a time as the rest remains in the torque-converter and that has no drain-plug, unlike the older gearboxes. You will also require a dip-stick to be bought from the dealer.
There was an issue with these gearboxes whereby the auto-gearbox oil, under pressure could enter the electric cable, through the electric connector plug on the gearbox and then the oil would travel along the inside of the cable sheath and enter the electronic control unit, causing problems. Disconnect the electric connector plug on the side of the gearbox and check that there is no oil leak from there. MB have a repair / upgrade kit for this problem. (But if your car is a 2005 model, that problem should have been sorted by then.)
Would you clarify a point for me that I don't follow? When you mention the gearbox goes into reverse; that sounds dangerous to me if it is exactly that, what happens or do you mean to suggest the gear changes down into third gear rather than reverse.
I would firstly have the gearbox oil level checked out and replenish as necessary.
Regarding the delayed gear shift under acceleration; this is dependent on whether you are 'hard' accelerating in which case the gear shift has a slightly longer delay in upshift under those conditions to allow the revs to build up. Light acceleration has a shorter delay in upshifts.
So the question here is how long is long?
Would you clarify a point for me that I don't follow? When you mention the gearbox goes into reverse; that sounds dangerous to me if it is exactly that, what happens or do you mean to suggest the gear changes down into third gear rather than reverse.
Hi Rakesh
He said the gearbox goes into RESERVE not reverse, as in it wont change up the gears but retains only one or two gears which is part of the 'limp home' mode. That was my understanding of it anyway.
My advice would be to have it hooked up to a proper MB diagnostic system that will be able to re-set the ecu and clear out any glitches that may be there or as Arnie says you may actually have a physical fault causing your issues which you will need to find.
Thank you for the clarity Big Block, and I concur that it does need hooking up to see what faults come up. I going to conjecture it would be a speed sensing or rev sensing fault preventing the upshift or causing the downshift.
From a scenario my cousin experienced, they had a faulty Merc come in and after all thier diagnostics it was found to be a wrong gear ratio in the diff for the spec of vehicle. Apparently some one changed the diff ratio and ended up with a further fault that they passed on.
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I might be closer today. Might be the oil cooler in the radiator leaking, and making problems both in radiator and in the gear box.. Luckily i have some spare money..