PLease do not think that I do not think what you did was impressive and cool.
I guess I see what you are saying on cost. Since you already payed for it I guess it is cheaper. If you bought a whole car. But you do not have to do that unless you want to try and install the whole system from that car.

A shifter costs about 50.00 my system costs 1200.00. That can be used with any ecu. And gear ratio. To install it takes about 3-4 hours. If the transmission is in the car already. Set up in the software takes about 30 minutes tops. Then maybe an hour or two to drive around and set shift points. Maybe an hour or two to fine tune some shifts for an application like this.
Wiring up a factory ecu to work is about 10 wires as well. Still needs to be done regardless of which way you go with the transmission.

The factory stuff requires and entire other car to be disassembled and the wiring removed. The differential needs to be removed and or replaced and in his situation new axles that bolt on so tone rings can be installed. Maybe a custom differential for the correct gear ratio. And maybe custom mounting brackets like yours to mount a differential that did not belong in the car. Just removing all the stuff to get to and the wiring from the donor car would take at least a day. If you sold all those parts for enough to cover just your labor time for removing them and posting and selling them, then you could count that time as free.
Now you have to install it in the new car. Lets say another day if you are moving.

But you are right you could buy a whole E or c or something that has everything you need for a couple of thousand dollars. But if you need a new key or any new parts for anything that has to do with the DAS system ever. guess what. You have to buy a whole car again or find someone parting one that you can get those as a set. Or make a whole new set. None of it is cheap.

It is not like I do not know how long it takes to work on these cars. I have been doing it every day for 20 years. I have taken countless cars completely apart for various reasons. And it takes a huge amount of time. And I have work instructions for anything I do not already know how to do at a couple of clicks on a key board.. And any tools that anyone could possibly need.

Today I just made this all easier.. I am no able to run the factory tcm without traction control. So far this is just for newer cars as I have not tested the older ones yet. But they are actually easier to appease.

I have a 1997 E320 with all the harness, key, etc, that I am using for a donor car. I have the subframes out and I'm trying to determine what wires I need from the harness. Obviously I need the engine and transmission harness and ECU. Unsure how many modules on the body I will need.

I'm planning on swapping the m104 and trans in. If I need the rear end pickup for it to shift that's something I am willing to address once I have the engine and transmission in.

My posts 14 and 36 outlined what you need to do for a 97 with ME 2.0 / 2.1 . This isn't complicated if you use everything from the same car. If piece meal, at minimum the RFID key / DAS box / ECU must be from the same car.

Roncallo did a V12 swap into a R107, electrically the swap was more complicated than it needed to be due to his refusal to use aftermarket parts. Specifically a speedo fooler / ratio adjuster so the ABS / Trans controller sees the proper rear end ratio. He ended up doing a lot of extra work to swap in the V12 differential.

An aftermarket ECU / trans controller will add $$$ for about no gain on a stock engine / trans. Last I checked a basic Halltech FI is $ 1,500 + wiring time + adding speed sensors + lap top SW and a PCS trans controller is $ 1,200 + the Mercedes programming + lap top SW.

Or one could get all the OE stuff needed to run the engine / trans for sub $ 150 at a u pull and have very little wiring to do.

Please do not quote prices of my products and then add + + behind it. There is no +. The system includes the basic programming and the software.
Also you are grossly oversimplifying this process. Unless you have done this project then you are leading someone down a path that is very time consuming and difficult to get to work properly on conjecture.
If someone wants to do this then it can be done but modifying the signal is going to be hard unless you have something that is mathematically near perfection. And you have to have both rear speed sensors or signals for sure. And the signal needs to be acceptable without fault.
Also as I am sure I have said. and everyone seems to ignore on these projects is what are you going to do when you need a new key or Ecu or any DAS component. Nothing you are going to go buy another donor car to replace them all. Or spend thousands of dollars to do what I did and buy key programming equipment. But that still does not get you around the ecu and other DAS components. If I could have bought an ecu for a few thousand or 5 thousand to run my engine in the aftermarket I would have and it would have been cheaper.

I posted " last I heard ". What is the actual pricing, what is included in the package / needed in the field and is there an adder if someone wants to go beyond basic programming?

While I haven't done a 97 swap, I have heavily researched the ME 2.0 / 2.1 system on the 97 C280 , SL320 and E320. ( I have all 3 cars ) Wheel / drive shaft speed is the only thing standing in the way of making the 97 system think it is still in the original car.

The wheel speed signals go to the ABS controller then ABS talks to the ECU over CAN.

I'd place a sensor on the drive shaft then manipulate the signal with a speedo converter / frequency converter from there. Some research would be need to determine an acceptable tooth count as not to out run the converter.

Non ASR 97 C280 cars have 3 channel ABS and only one rear speed sensor that reads from the rear end pinion so this isn't new ground. If a 97 E320 can be had without ASR / 4 channel ABS, use that ABS module. If no 3 channel E320 , I'd feed one signal to both rear channels or even all 4.

$ 90 for a speedo converter ( frequency converter )
Universal Speedometer Signal Interface

I know 100% that the key / DAS box and ECU are the only parts tied together for anti theft. I've moved this setup from car to car with zero issues. If one part fails, get all 3 from another donor car or at least the DAS and ECU then burn a key as I've outlined below.

You don't need any key programming if you pull what I've listed from the same car. Someone on E bay used sell a reader / programmer for the DAS system. it was about $ 75 . The MCU chip was pulled from the DAS box, read then a PCF7935 / PCF7930 RFID chip burned. I have one and it works.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Generic-Mercedes-Benz-Key-Programmer/dp/B00GB7O480 ( Yes I know it is out of stock, from what I recall the MCU chip is a 68HC05 )

Our guy has a complete running E320 that I bet he paid sub $ 500 for. Even if he went to a salvage yard, he could get a the key / DAS / ECU for $ 150. That sure beats $5,000

I reread the rest of this from a year ago. Some things have changed but the basic plan is still the same. Yes I will need the key, das, and ECU as a group. This is fine. This is why I bought this 97 for $400. It's the OBD2 M104 722.6 combo I wanted. It runs and drives so I can make it work but I might be hooking up extraneous parts. I'll probably spend some time unhooking stuff from the car until it stops working properly. It does seem to be a simple ABS system that doesn't need the pump or wheel sensors to be hooked up. I haven't tried unhooking the diff yet.

Before buying converters I'd probably just modify one of the R107 diffs I have and install the pickup ring and sensor. There is a small shop where I work.

Be sure to save the title so you can get replacement keys if needed. A clipped head pocket key was $ 45 last I checked.

Be sure to save the E320 until the R107 is running and driving, never know what you might need. My target for the 97 E320 swap is a 91 SL, this and owning a 97 SL320 and 97 C280 , is why I've done so much research.

I'm semi tempted to use the entire E320 harness in the 91 SL rather than just the engine side. The SL is going to be a street legal track day car so things like AC / ABS and power top are not an issue.

Pull all wheel speed sensors / just front / just rear / one side then drive the car to 4 th and 5 th gear and see if you hit limp. I'm expecting ASR to disable if it looses continuity to front speed sensors. I'm hoping the trans will work with the fronts but this needs to be confirmed. Regardless, the speedo converter I previously posted a link to has 5 outputs so one vehicle sensor could feed all 4 of the ABS. At some point you will need a second converter to drive the R107 speedo. ( if electronic )

You need the wheel speed sensors and the ABS computer to be working, this feeds speed data to the trans computer. The trans will go into limp at 4th gear without a signal. The ABS computer is the silver box attached to the engine computer.

You will need a signal converter so the ABS sees the proper sped signal ( the ratio between engine RPM in direct and wheel speed ) . If the speed signal ratio isn't what the trans computer expects, you will hit limp in 4 th gear.

Also, you need to get wiring diagrams for the E320 and study them. This is an absolute must, no diagrams or study = certain failure.

So you are saying that there is a C280 with a 722.6 without two rear wheel speed sensors? That is cool. I have never seen that before. I would love a vin number on that car.
So to address somethings. I am simply saying that until you have done it dont preach as though it is gospel. There are companies and many people who have failed. I know exactly what it takes to run the 722.6 with the factory tcm. With or without the factory ecu. I have actually done that. I can run a Jeep wrangler 4wd tcu in a Mercedes and all sorts of different combinations. So nothing I say is without actual experience. I also sell standalone tcms to a handful of people every year that think they can get this stuff to work. They all have varying problems with them.
The tcm definitely needs both rear wheel speeds. It averages them together. It has to because one can move faster than the other and this would change the math on calculated driveshaft speed, which is actually what it cares about. It compares this to the turbine speed sensors that it also does math to to get a calculated input shaft speed. Engine RPM has nothing to do with this process. Engine RPM is and input though over CAN as well.
So for the signal generator. I think it is a cool idea. I am not sure off the shelf units will work reliably though. I do not think you will get the resolution required. When calculating ratio within a certain slip ratio a really small amount of difference will push you outside your window. Also the signal itself needs to be acceptable. The computer will be programmed to accept a certain signal type, frequency, voltage range, etc.
Again, I am not saying it wont work but that until there is a proven setup it is conjecture. I can tell you that the tcm is picky. When I do the math on my setup it is within a 1% accuracy.
And keys again, I did not say you could not use the computers from the car. I said that you would have to source a new setup from another car if you needed anything. Etc. etc.
And you cannot order keys at the dealer unless you own and can drive the car itself to the dealer. You need registration and id and most if not all dealerships require the car to be there or you to be with your car with the vin to receive the key. Although different dealers enforce these rules slightly differently.
Finally I would like to say that there is no gospel on any of this. The cars change a lot over the years. What they need to work and how that goes is different. For instance I recently found out that N/S is actually hard wired on some older benz models with the 722.6 rather than CAN.
Also to the OP you might be able to find someone to disable Immo on your ecm. Older ones were different than newer ones and they can do it on the om606 ecus. Worth a try.
And good luck on your project. I hope any info that is gotten from this discussion is helpful.

I don't have it handy however, look for a non ASR 97 C280 ( and probably C230) The non ASR will have 3 channel ABS ( 5 brake lines on the pump ) and a sensor on the diff pinion.

Have a look here , ABS Sensor for Differential Housing (Rear) https://www.pelicanparts.com/catalog/SuperCat/3562/MBZ_3562_BRKHYD_pg4.htm#item13

PP isn't showing sensors for 4 channel ABS / ASR , a MB catalog should.

The 97 C SL E ME2.0 2.1 M104 is unique as it is the first year for the 722.6 and metal key with a RFID chip.

98 C / SL / E got a smart key and dropped the M104 , The 97 - 99 S320 supposedly used ME2.0 / 2.1 until 99 but I have not verified this. Supposedly the late 90's SLK used the ME 2.0 2.1 but that is veering off far away from the intent of using everything from one car.

I'll type more later.

So you have a C280 with a 722.6 and a single speed sensor in the diff reading the pinion?

Ok, So I found one for sale and ran the vin. It seems this is actually a real thing. Weird the things you do not notice working on these cars for a living for a few decades. I will have to keep my eye out for one. I still am having a hard time believing it. So this would totally make this easier. You would just need to have the correct pulse count on your differential pinion. So a 3.07 ratio differential with ABS. That actually exists in the world for most models.

I know I'm getting way off topic here, but have you seen the sprinter version with the boss in the rear of the case, where an output sensor would be, with a block off plug installed instead? Piqued my interest...

__________________

90 300TE 4-M
Turbo 103, T3/T04E 50 trim
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A2W I/C, 40 LB/HR
MS2E, 60-2 Direct Coil Control
3" Exh, AEM W/B O2
Underdrive Alt. and P/S Pulleys,
Vented Rear Discs, .034 Booster.
3.07 diffs 1st Gear Start

90 300CE 104.980
Milled & ported head, 10.3:1 compression
197° intake cam w/20° advancer
Tuned CIS ECU
4° ignition advance
PCS TCM2000, built 722.6
600W networked suction fan
Sportline sway bars
V8 rear subframe, Quaife ATB 3.06 diff

Yeah sprinter and g wagens had the speed sensor in the rear. I looked into this years ago for my kits. Huge money in parts. I think that some tcms could probably be hooked up to almost full discrete wire setup. There is reason all those extra pins are in there and there is circuitry tied to them.