Is this good Tranny advice? 300ce - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

Bigpete123 · #1 10-09-2006, 12:45 PM

Hi all,

Some of you may have read my previous post about whether or not my transmission job is a DIY. Well, I decided i'd rather save up the money and have it done by a pro rather than buying a rebuilt one and putting it in the car myself.

I just called around for a bunch of quotes. I got two differing opinions, and I need your help determining which one is better. The two shops I'm comparing are highly recommended by people on this board and both have clean records on the better business bureau.

To start off, my car shifts fine in all gears. I just lost my reverse gear. When I shift into reverse, it's as if I'm in neutral. My 1990 300ce is 16 yrs old with ~200k on the clock. The tranny has never been rebuilt (to my knowledge).

Here were my two differing recommendations:

1) Only fix the parts causing the problem, and the various clutches etc. $1,450 including labor, before taxes. ~$1,600 after taxes (not counting oil and tranny flush). This mechanic says he's done this to cars as old as mine that have run great for another 10yrs without tranny problems. Again, he comes very highly recommended. It's a full-service MB shop.

2) Do a full rebuild. This is a Transmission-only shop that focusses mostly on German cars. This would count labor and a rebuilt torque converter. He would charge $1,895 (or 2,100 after taxes), not counting oil or tranny flush. When I asked him if he could just fix the broken parts and clutches, he said "We don't do band aids".

I'm not terribly mechanically inclined, and this is the only car I've ever owned. So I don't necessarily need any technical advice. I just want you guys to help me determine the best course of action. Thanks for your input!!

david s poole · #2 10-09-2006, 01:32 PM

go with the second for the diff in price.if anything goes wrong with the first i can hear it now"that's caused by another part that we didn't touch because there was nothing wrong with it" also the first guy is too expensive. that job should only cost $1000 at the most.

Bigpete123 · #3 10-09-2006, 06:43 PM

Thanks, man. Anybody else? I'm leaning towards just coughing up the money to do the full deal. My wife and I both take the bus to work and we have two cars, so I could just garage the thing until I have the cash I guess...

Paying for a wedding and buying a condo in the last month has been quite a draw on my savings!!

POS · #4 10-09-2006, 08:09 PM

Do the whole thing and get it done right by someone who knows how to do it. If you scimp here, it'll come back and haunt you, and you won't want to pull the tranny twice.

Secret Squirrel · #5 10-09-2006, 08:24 PM

First job is too much $ - the tranny specialist in my hometown said it was a $1600-1800 job for a full rebuild. The other place in town said they just bring in a whole rebuilt unit for $2400 from California because it ends up being more reliable in the long run than anything they could rebuild.

jhodg5ck · #6 10-10-2006, 12:31 PM

I'd wager it's the inner reverse clutch seal that went on your car, literally a 5$ part. But that aside, given the mileage I would go through the whole transmission..besides, you go through a lot of clutch housings etc to get to the worn seal so why not replace those etc while you are at it?

I just did a trans from a 93 300CE, the box only had about 60K on it but on my way to the seal I reaplaced all the clutches/seals etc just because I was there.

Jonathan

Bigpete123 · #7 10-10-2006, 04:08 PM

Thanks for the advice. The right choice seems very clear now.

Man, the owner of that '93 must've wanted to kill him/herself. There was only 60k on it? ouch!

gmercoleza · #8 10-10-2006, 04:11 PM

Go with option #2.

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