1990 420SEL starts out in 2nd gear

[goertz]

my 420 SEL starts in second gear. always has since i've owned it. i'm sure this isn't normal. it actually seems normal, and if you didn't know the difference, you could never tell, but if you put the shifter in 1st, it will start in 1st. but if left in drive, it will always start out in second gear from a stop. shifts fine through all the gears, no slips, etc. if you accelerate normally, it shifts from 2nd to 3rd, and so on. if you floor it from a stop, it will start out in 2nd gear, then when up to about 15 mph, downshift to 1st. the car has 235,000 miles on it. I don't think the trans has ever been rebuilt, although i couldn't be sure. any ideas?

[lino]

What is it you're after? Do you want to make it start out of 1st gear? You should count your blessings that your tranny works well. My original tranny in my 1989 300ce only saw 118,000 miles before it blew. I just bought a new one and it'a 2nd gear start as was the original.

[sixto]

Uh... by chance have you read the owner's manual?

The only thing odd about your 420 is that you can put the shifter in first. The MB shifters of that vintage I've seen only go down to second But yes, putting the selector in second while at a full stop will engage first. It will engage first if you put enough load on the engine or sent the accelerator pedal into the kickdown switch.

www.bergwerks.com offers a first gear start kit.

Sixto
95 S420
87 300SDL

[goertz]

sorry, no manual in the car. wasn't sure if it was normal, or not. sure felt normal, but seems rather odd they would do it that way. ok, well one less thing to fix!

[lino]

It apparently was designed this way to make the occupants feel like the car didn't shift much to give the impression of a smooth ride uring stop and go traffic and also to help with traction in slick and snowy conditions. It makes the car a slouch off the line. I'm used to it now though. When I want to have fun I jump into my manual transmission BMW.

[Bigpete123]

So I checked out the bergwerks link, and I see that they have two 1st gear start versions. The valve body section is under construction, and the Bergwerks control module only shows the E500E... no 300ce anywhere to be found!!

[fahrgewehr2]

Originally Posted by sixto

Uh... by chance have you read the owner's manual?

The only thing odd about your 420 is that you can put the shifter in first. The MB shifters of that vintage I've seen only go down to second But yes, putting the selector in second while at a full stop will engage first. It will engage first if you put enough load on the engine or sent the accelerator pedal into the kickdown switch.

www.bergwerks.com offers a first gear start kit.

Sixto
95 S420
87 300SDL

Didn't the V8 126 cars have a 'B' selection in the shift gate?