Hi,

My 2002 E320 has developed a problem over the past two weeks that I'm a bit worried about. When I put the transmission into "drive" for the first time each morning and then press the accelerator pedal, I hear the engine speed up slightly, followed by a slight "jerk", as the car begins to move. This event occurs in about 1/2 to 3/4 of a second. If I wait a few seconds after putting the transmission into "drive" before pressing the pedal, I still experience the same event. This only happens at the first time that I drive the car each morning. It never repeats until the following morning.

This problem began about two weeks ago and coincides roughly with the installation of a new alternator. Even though I was alerted to the failure, I continued to operate the car until the battery ran down, at which time all of the electrical, climate control, audio and other systems shut down in series. The engine then died and I pulled to the side of the road to await the roll back - gross stupidity on my part. My indi replaces the alternator, cleared the fault codes and sent my on my way. Prior to this, I never noticed a momentary lag or "slip" when accelerating.

The transmission fluid and filter was changed, (using MB & filter), at about 65,000 miles. The car now has about 78,000 miles on the clock. I don't know of any issues other than the one described in this post.

Should I be concerned?

Thanks,

Steve

Of course a fluid level check & scan of the trans would be a starting point.

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My experience is that these cars need a 100% battery.
If the battery is original I would replace it.

Know that when my MAF semsor went bad the transmission lagged.
When my battery was working at less the ideal capacity I had myriad driveability issues.

Thanks, Guy. I'll call my indi.

Cheers,

Steve