Gene Horr, thank you very much for your immediate reply. sometime in '05, the dealer replaced an electrical connector and added about a quart of fluid. then just last week, truck @ almost 95K miles, dealer adviced to replace the connector again 'coz according to them there was a leak on the electrical connector area. however, only a spacer & lock pin was changed and a quart of tranny fluid added. i don't like the way the truck shifts now, looks like there's more trans fluid than the recommended amount. i'll check the level in a bit and drain if there is more than what is necessary.

btw, been changing my '92 (190E 2.6) trans filter & fluid religiouly every 30K and it still runs excellent w/ almost 184K miles. first off, the fluid from the pan is drained out thru the plug. when pan is almost empty, the pan bolts are removed & filter changed. i never tried draining the torque converter.

is it possible for me to use the same method in draining the trans fluid and changing the filter? of course, w/ the ML class, i would still use the synthetic tranny fluid aka MB 001-989-21-03-10.

just trying to save some money and at the same time have this wonderful feeling that the maintenance was done w/ personal & loving care to the vehicle.

thanks again for any input from you guys who make this forum very helpful.