My 1999 E300 is showing an error code of P0700 which is a transmission controller error.
The car sometimes will stay in third gear and is slow to shift to reverse. Turning the car off and re starting clears the problem for a while.

The engine also dies and is hard to start after driving for about a mile when the engine is cold. I know the transmission has some control over the engine power so perhaps it's part of the same problem.

Anything I should check before going to the dealer to be robbed?