Hey Graham,

The solenoid is removed by unscrewing the large hex bolt. The coil is actually within the body of the solenoid. The hex bolt is hollow and contains a spring loaded sliding pin that moves to open or close the fluid passage in the trans. The source I referenced in my earlier post (Sun Valley Mercedes Dismantlers, Sun Valley CA.) for a replacement solenoid was the result of quite a bit of my time and effort spent to try and find the correct part for a reasonable price ($50). These guys rebuild MB Transmissions for a living and know their stuff. I was able to find 2 other sources, but both quoted me prices well over $100.00, and who knows if their part would be correct?. I'm sure that if the part was available from MB it would be at least $150.00 or more. No disrespect intended, but take advantage of my experience, order the part, install it, and unless there are other trans issues, it should solve your problem.

Tom

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1972 280SE 4.5