Recently I have been having a rather loud whine noise coming from the drivetrain while the vehicle is at a complete stop, in gear, such as reverse or drive and everything it at operating temperature. I took it in to my independent mechanic and had the fluid and filter replaced. Last time I had the filter and fluid replaced was within or right at 40,000 miles. They drained the fluid and said it didn't look too bad, not too dark. I test drove it and it made the exact same noise and they have come to a conclusion that the oil pump for the transmission is making that noise. They have checked everything that they could have underneath, making sure bolts are torques to spec and there is good pressure and that the pump is operating properly but making this noise.

The next step is to get some pricing on the pump and labor time to replace it. They informed that that fortuantely they won't have to remove the transmission from the car as this pump is accessible through the bell housing...

Anyone ever had this before? The transmission has been running perfectly fine before the noise and currently so it is apparent that there hasn't been any serious damage within this transmission and there were metal particles found in the fluid that were mentioned.

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#dieselFLEET
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'97 E300
'99 E300

When in gear, does the whine increase/ change pitch with higher RPMs. Do you hear the whine in park and Neutral and while driving.


There is no automatic transmission that I know off were you can remove the main pump with the transmission in the car. If the tech in fact said so I would take my car out of that shop.

[QUOTE=C32AMG]When in gear, does the whine increase/ change pitch with higher RPMs. Do you hear the whine in park and Neutral and while driving.
QUOTE]

The noise occurs when the engine is at full operating temp and in a gear such as drive or reverse. The noise occurs when the vehicle comes to a complete stop. If you let off the brake and let it coast a few mph it gradually fades out and dissapears. If I give it some throttle from a total stop the noise will increase lightly with the rpm then after a few mph, under 5mph it will totally fade out and go away.

When the engine is cold it will rarely do it or it will do it for a second, not as loud as when it is warm then go away...

I will try to make an MPEG on my digi cam and post a link to it so ya'll can see what I am talking about...

*** must say that this noise is not exactly consistent at all times. It is more consistent when the car is at operating temps and everything fully warmed.... it occurs about 9 out of 10 times... when completely warm

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#dieselFLEET
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'97 E300
'99 E300

A transmission winning noise in gear at a stop is usually a defective toque converter. The torque converter can be change without disassembling the transmission, but the transmission has to be removed from the car.

Before you do any repairs get a third opinion.

I was thinking the torque convertor myself.... I'll take it step by step and will report back.

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#dieselFLEET
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'97 E300
'99 E300

Included is a screen shot from the w210 Technical Reference CD that I have...

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#dieselFLEET
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'97 E300
'99 E300

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#dieselFLEET
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'97 E300
'99 E300

what i have found causing most noises as you describe is item #15, the planetary gear set (see above picture). i have dissasembled several 722.6 core transmissions that have them damaged, one even had all the gears shattered. does the noise sound loudest below the center console area? depending on your mileage, you may be better off getting a mercedes factory rebuilt unit we have never had any issues with them.
you may be throwing your money away by just replacing the pump, especially if it is the planetary gears.

I called my indy today and spoke to the owner (father), as it's a father and son business and he replied to me that it might be the torque convertor or the pump. It's difficult to say without removed the transmission and bench testing various components and diassembling to take a look at what is goin on.

The noise does not appear to come from the center console, it appears to be coming more forward, such as the bell housing area. With the hood open and the noise occuring, it's impossible to determine where the noise is coming from as it sounds like it's coming from everywhere....

The noise only occurs at idle when in gear and totally warm. Ocaasionally after the filter and fluid replacement it has become more intermittent. For now I'll wait it out and expect a fully rebuild sometime in the future. Since the transmission will need to be removed to diagnose it, I'd rather just replace everything else that would need replacement as well, hence a rebuild and also have the bronze bushing in the planetary gear set updated with the appropriate bearing like they have in the newer '00+ 722.6's...

I'll keep ya'll posted and try to get a video online...

__________________
#dieselFLEET
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'97 E300
'99 E300