E320 CDi Auto Box in Emergency Mode

Hi all, just joined the forum as I am now the proud owner of a new Mercedes E320 CDi saloon in silver.

Well, I say proud owner but thats not strictly true - although I technically own the car I don't actually have it yet, and I'm not particularly proud of it at the moment either.

I went to pick the vehicle up this afternoon in Slough, Berkshire, paid over the money and happily drove off. In 2nd gear. And it stayed in 2nd gear. Bugger.

I filled it with diesel thinking it MUST be my driving style and it just hadn't gone fast enough yet - but another mile down the road convinced me there was a big problem.

I checked the manual that came with the car, and under the auto box section there is a section entitled 'Emergency Mode'. Apparently if the electronics detect a fault in the gearbox, it is put into this mode to allow the owner to drive home but limit any damage. 2nd, reverse and Park can be selected but nothing else - advice was to return the car to a Mercedes dealer.

Since I'd purchased the vehicle from a 'Car Supermarket', I returned it there and they had a quick look, only to inform me all they could do was book into a dealer to get it checked. So I had to leave without the car - urrrghh.

So the questions;

What would cause the gearbox to enter this mode?
Is it likely to happen again if the box is reset?
What is involved in resetting the box?
Is this a common problem with the MB 5 sp tiptronic box?
How long should I expect MB to look at the car?
Should I accept the car once it is fixed or should I get some kind of written report on why this happened?

Just to clarify - the car is brand new, UK spec, imported from Belgium with delivery mileage (9 miles on the clock).

Peter Nixon.
London, UK.

[mbdoc]

There are many items that can affect the transmission & cause it to go into the "LIMP" mode. Some are simple & others are costly, so you must have the transmission computer checked for codes to ascertain the real problem.
Erasing codes won't fix any problem, however it will get the trans out of "limp" mode.

OF course the new car warrany should cover ALL expenses.

Just spoken to the garage again, apparently the code suggested that the 'Selector Seal' had gone and this is now being replaced.

What does the 'Selector Seal' do? Is it possible that it wasn't fitted correctly in Stuttgart?

Peter N.