Column or floor shift??

The reason for this problem is always the same.... piss-poor driving habbit of constantly resting the right hand on the shift lever while driving. Probably the original owner who softened up the bushings by never letting go of the shifter and treating it like a hand rest.

Underneath there are rubber bushings that are easy to replace. If it's column shift, then there are nylon sockets forward of the firewall that will need to be replaced.

My guess is the tranny is okay, but it would be good idea to get an experienced MB tech to install linkage bushings - because rod lengths might require fine adjustment after all the abuse they've seen.