My '82 300SD always starts in first. I actually count the shifts ( almost every time.)

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1982 300SD " Wotan" ..On the road as of Jan 8, 2007 with Historic Tags

My 84 Australian delivery 300d starts in 2nd unless facing uphill or a lot of acceleration. My 80 Australian delivery 300d (parts car now) started in second unless loaded.

Is it turbo or NA? Does the engine turns backwards in the southern hemisphere?

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1977 300d 70k--sold 08
1985 300TD 185k+
1984 307d 126k--sold 8/03
1985 409d 65k--sold 06
1984 300SD 315k--daughter's car
1979 300SD 122k--sold 2/11
1999 Fuso FG Expedition Camper
1993 GMC Sierra 6.5 TD 4x4
1982 Bluebird Wanderlodge CAT 3208--Sold 2/13

My 83 300D starts in 1st from a dead stop.

Note: Always has.

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Charles
1983 300D, bought new, 215k+ miles, donated to Purple Hearts veterans charity but I have parts for sale: http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/mercedes-benz-cars-sale/296386-fs-1-owner-83-mb-300d-turbo-rebuild-parts.html

This is a most interesting thread. I wish I had a driveable 722.3

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daw_two
Germantown, TN

Links:
Sold last car --- 05/2012 1984 300D Light Ivory, Red interior
Cluster Needles Paint
New Old Stock (NOS) parts

Past:
3/2008 1986 300SDL "Coda"
04/2010 1965 190D(c) "Ben"
& many more

It would be more interesting if folks actually understood the meaning of "starts in second" and were able to provide a reliable response. When things are working properly, the 2-1 downshift when moving off from a stop occurs so quickly and is so subtle that the average operator would never realize that it has occurred. The fact that one can count three shifts when moving off does not prove that the vehicle did not start in second gear.

"Starting in second" does not necessarily mean that the shift sequence is 2-3-4. In fact, it should be 2-1-2-3-4 when moving off under load.

In the 722.3 Repair / Rebuild manual circulating around (which is for the G Class) it states which versions of the transmission start in which gear, and when they switch to that gear.

-Jason

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1991 350SDL. 230,000 miles (new motor @ 150,000). Blown head gasket

Tesla Model 3. 205,000 miles. Been to 48 states!
Past: A fleet of VW TDIs.... including a V10,a Dieselgate Passat, and 2 ECOdiesels.
2014 Cadillac ELR
2013 Fiat 500E.

Keeping TangoFox's post in mind, my '83 starts in first every time, as near as I can tell. Not so the 250. The 240D starts in whatever gear I put it in.

Second gear start seems to me to be one of the dumber ideas Mercedes put into production. That and failure to offer manual transmissions in many of their U.S. market models.

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Whoever said there's nothing more expensive than a cheap Mercedes never had a cheap Jaguar.

83 300D Turbo with manual conversion, early W126 vented front rotors and H4 headlights 400,xxx miles
08 Suzuki GSX-R600 M4 Slip-on 22,xxx miles
88 Jaguar XJS V12 94,xxx miles. Work in progress.

The transmission only remains in second if the load is such that downshifting to first is not required. What is dumb about that concept?

Since the auto transmissions only have four gears, using one as a "granny" gear is a terrible waste. It would have made a great deal more sense to use a first gear start and a higher rear end ratio in order to achieve decent accelleration with reasonable cruise rpm.

Counter question: What makes you think it's a good idea?

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Whoever said there's nothing more expensive than a cheap Mercedes never had a cheap Jaguar.

83 300D Turbo with manual conversion, early W126 vented front rotors and H4 headlights 400,xxx miles
08 Suzuki GSX-R600 M4 Slip-on 22,xxx miles
88 Jaguar XJS V12 94,xxx miles. Work in progress.

the 1980 300D i have when i first got it started out in second, and like others only went down into first if the car was at rest and the pedel was floored

when we over hauled it ( the trans - no reverse ) and it turned out to be an out of adjustment reverse band -- the OH kit that came had a reprogram kit for the valve body said to improve the driveability

it now starts out in first and i like it better as it is not a turbo car

But the valve that controls the low second issue can be adjusted with shims, ( how long it drives in first gear ) its controlled by pressure from the rear pump in the trans Via the governor unlike the front pump it does not make pressure till the car is moving ( its in the tail section and only moves with the driveshaft ) so my guess some of the units leaving in first have had modded valve bodys -

their is more but most will be lost as it is a strange way the dirvert oil pressures and alike -- jz

Brian, Why in the %^&* did you start this thread? I've followed along, spent twenty minutes going up and down hills and find I have to change my response:

Normal driving from a dead stop with only slight pedal, I count 3 shifts.

Facing downhill and letting the car roll, I can manually shift down 1 gear. Must have started in 2nd. Tried again and count only two shifts.

I'm satisfied with explanations given that this is the way it was intended to work.

Any more questions or polls on things I've never thought about or wondered about?

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Charles
1983 300D, bought new, 215k+ miles, donated to Purple Hearts veterans charity but I have parts for sale: http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/showthread.php?t=296386

Is it turbo or NA? Does the engine turns backwards in the southern hemisphere?

Kerry,

NA, Mercedes Benz never brought the turbo to Australia, wasn't considered reliable enough for Australian conditions.

When you have a 300d with 800,000+ miles on the original motor, you may comment further.
Down here we are so far ahead, when you get up in the morning we have already done a days work and are home ready to go to bed. When you finish your days work, we are getting up for your tomorrow! We might need to run motors backwards some times to let you catch up.
When man first walked on the moon, NASA had to use an Australian tracking station because you were going to sleep the night before.

Just remember its not the hair on your head that counts!!! LOL

If Charles, the original owner of a 26 year-old 300D, believed for all those years (and miles) that his transmission started in first, it's a very safe bet that a lot of his fellow "believers" are just as mistaken as he was.

Charles, thanks for spending the time to learn the truth and sharing it.

See, here I go and get you the data...........and you decline to accept it.........calling the intelligence and capability of the poster into question..........

I'll do some experiments with the SD and see if I can confirm your thesis on this matter.