No, all 6 cylinders start in second gear up until 1992. Then 1992-1995 start in first gear.

ALL V8s and V12 start in second gear up through 1995. There IS ONE EXCEPTION: The 400E/E420 from 1992-1995 all start in 1st gear from the factory.

All Turbodiesels in W126 and W123 variants start in 1st gear.

Satish- any progress on those other MB decals from Germany?

:-) neil

I'm a little confused about the 'switch'?

Do you add the "S/E" switch (as you show in your pic) and that is what engages - disengages the Berg Control Module operating with factory (or user) set points for 1/2 gear??

I've edited a photo of my shift gate by adding a "S/E" switch and the 'S' and 'E' letters. Is that were it ends up?

PS: The two letters were air brushed into the pic by me. Just so no one is confused that that Euro function is really there.


Carl replied to my email and said:

Thanks for the email. We have not yet tackled the E/S switch issue on W140's. It's a different shift cover plate than the W124 and R129's. Assuming your gearshift selector indicator is stock, it was clearly made to handle an E/S switch. I assume that the E/S was covered up before you changed to the burlwood shift plate and that it is in fact a Euro design. If that's the case, it was made to accomodate the E/S switch and should require no modification or replacement.

My guess is that we'd need to supply you the E/S switch and the transparent plastic cover over the E/S that has a slot for the switch, but I can't confirm with out researching the Euro parts list.

Do you know which W140's came with the E/S switch? I'm assuming it was Euros during this period, but perhaps there was a U.S. option as well that brought the E/S switch with it. I'll take a look at my sources and see what I find.

If you want a completely OE look, I'd retrofit the E/S switch and use the child window lock switch to control Winter and Sport modes. Either switch for either purpose. If you only get a Basic or Security version, you'd only need one switch.

-Carl

For me it looks like the easist way is to convert the "child switch" to the E/S function. No young kids around these days!

__________________
Regards . . . . JimF
-------------------
'94 S500 Cpe

Visit my Mercedes Web Page

Correct, we add the s/e switch by replacing the shifter plate for a factory European plate which has the S/E designation and cutout. Then we wire up our module to work with the factory switch. Nice because it is illuminated at night.

Satish

Neil,

Is that red button the one you press when you want to engage the rocket launcher to move cars out of your way?

__________________
Paul S.

2001 E430, Bourdeaux Red, Oyster interior.
79,200 miles.

1973 280SE 4.5, 170,000 miles. 568 Signal Red, Black MB Tex. "The Red Baron".

The S/E switch turns on/off 1st gear start.
The RED button turns on/off the "SPORT" shift pattern, which in my case is programmed to hold 1st gear to about 2800 RPM (normally 1800 RPM); and downshift to 1st gear at about 7mph (vs. 2mph).

A couple of hidden buttons runs the rocket launcher and rear-bumper oil-spray . . .

:-) neil

Excellent.

__________________
Paul S.

2001 E430, Bourdeaux Red, Oyster interior.
79,200 miles.

1973 280SE 4.5, 170,000 miles. 568 Signal Red, Black MB Tex. "The Red Baron".

The E/S switch can be used to control either Winter Mode (FGS on or off) or Sport Mode (higher speed upshift point).

To avoid installing a new switch in the wood, some folks will be converting the rear window lock button to control the second function not controlled by the E/S switch.

We will also have a round black button available shortly instead of red.

Lastly, the E/S switch retrofit kit is sold as an upgrade to the FGS Module since it's not required. It comes with instructions for installation and can be used to control any on/off electronic circuit (i.e., radar detector, etc.).

Don't mean to be commercial here, but just want to make sure the right facts are out there.

__________________
-Carl
Principal, BergWerks

Can the 'sport' mode (programmable 1st gear up/down shift) be wired into the E/S switch so that sport mode is enabled whenever 1st gear start is?

__________________
Glen Tokuhara
Beauty & the Beast and the wagon that could!

Glenn,

Yes. If you leave Winter Mode off, you'll have First Gear Start all the time. Then you're either in Basic Mode or Sport Mode based upon the Sport Mode switch position. You can be in either one whenever you want for as long as you want.

Upshift speeds are programmable for both Basic and Sport modes. There is only one downshift speed setting however which is also programmable.

-Carl

__________________
-Carl
Principal, BergWerks

Carl- what's the safest speed range to have 1st gear downshift? Anything below 15 mph?

:-) neil

The safest speed range is 11mph and even that depends on your modulator settings. Ideally, 2mph-5mph is the recommended range.

-Satish

WOW, that's a loaded question Neil. The answer depends a whole bunch on other factors. If you're going down a windy, icy mountain road, I'm not sure I'd recommend 15mph.

Kidding aside, for daily use, I would keep the downshift point programmed to a speed where you just notice (or just don't notice depending upon your preference) any engine braking from the 2-1 downshift. I'm not sure what that speed is on the 500E. We set the speed quite low as you know (near a complete stop).

I'm not sure how engine braking would wear on the engine and tranny but you could be creating it a whole lot depending upon your driving habits. I wouldn't program it above the just noticeable/unnoticeable speed for daily driving and reprogram it for track/autocross use with a higher speed when need.

__________________
-Carl
Principal, BergWerks

Or what Satish said much more clearly and concisely. ;-)

__________________
-Carl
Principal, BergWerks

Here is a picture of European W140 with the E/S switch there. This is from the S-class LaCollection book page 23

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