DIY R350 Transmission Service - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

tgmiller77 · #1 01-19-2011, 01:51 PM

I am the new owner of a 2007 R350 with 66k miles. This is about my 5th Mercedes and I am still getting used to the "newer" ones. I have always done work on my cars myself so a transmission service is not a big deal. I have had 2 cars with the 722.6 transmission. I am a little surprised to see the there are very few owners actually tackling maintainance on the r-class. The vehicle is off-lease, and the previous owner did nothing in the way of maintanance except an oil change every 20K. The tranny needs to be serviced ASAP and the dealer wants about $450 for the fluid and filter change.
Has anyone out there done this on their own? I see that you fill the tranny thru the drain plug and fill it till it overflows, get it up to 40 C and check again. What kinds of pump do you need to fill the tranny. Is this a DIY or should I bite the bullet and go to the dealer. Any help would be great.
Greg

ILUVMILS · #2 01-20-2011, 12:16 PM

Check out this thread.

Transmission fluid change

tgmiller77 · #3 01-20-2011, 02:26 PM

I guess, after research, I will take the R350 to the dealership and have them change the fluid. I hate the fact that I will not be able to do it myself because it looks like a fairly simple process. You just need the special pump to get the fluid in.
I don't trust the dealership to do this job any better than myself. I have had arguments with the parts department for giving me the wrong hydraulic fluid before for my 99 e320 wagon. I just hope the dealership is as competent as the members of this forum. To further make my point, the "service managers" at the local dealership are young females who don't know squat about automobiles.

ILUVMILS · #4 01-20-2011, 07:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tgmiller77

....To further make my point, the "service managers" at the local dealership are young females who don't know squat about automobiles.

Thank goodness the Service Managers' don't need to know anything about cars! The SM's job is running the business, not fixing cars. Getting the job done correctly is the responsibility of the Technicians and Shop Foremen. Making sure the price is fair is up to the SM.

tgmiller77 · #5 01-20-2011, 07:57 PM

True, but they should have a clue about what service is due when and what is covered in the service, since they are the face of the service department. A television salesman does not need to know how to fix a tv but they should a good clue how to operate and explain the features of the TV. That was my point.

mbdoc · #6 01-24-2011, 08:35 AM

Yes, depending on the size of the car dealership a service manager should have basic car knowledge.

However the bigger the dealer....the less they really know!

You can buy a nice filling system from AST tools for just over $200.
All newer MB's have that trans & REQUIRE trans service every 40K miles.

Takes less than an hour to service!

tgmiller77 · #7 01-26-2011, 03:57 PM

Thank you mbdoc, I just ordered the transfer pump from toolsource and I will update everybody with the results.

mbdoc · #8 01-27-2011, 08:16 AM

When removing the pan & then reinstalling, MAKE sure to use new bolts!

They are one time use aluminum bolts.

tgmiller77 · #9 02-05-2011, 03:55 PM

I did the transmission service this morning and everything turned out great, so far. The R350 runs great after the fluid change. My car has 67,000 miles with no service yet on the tranny. The fluid was black and the pan had a good layer of swarf. I dropped the pan and replaced the drain tube, filter, gasket and pan bolts. I measured out the fluid and got about 4 quarts so that is what I replaced with my new trusty pump. I did not drain the torque converter and am really not sure if there is a drain. Pumping in the fluid could not have been easier. It is about 35F here in Tennessee and my infrared thermometer read 40C and I got a little tickel of fluid out of the drain tube when I did the overflow measure. Putting in the amount I got out, I figured I could not be more than 1/4 quart off from what was in there before the change.
Not a difficult job, but I did spend about $350. I do have enough fluid for the next service and the pump, so the next time I might spend 40 bucks. While I was at it I serviced the diffs and the transfer case, which on a Mercedes is simple. I plan on doing this again at about 100k.
Thanks again mbdoc for the tip on where to get a fluid pump they are pricey but necessary for the job.