Hi,
My '83 300d is shifting into 3rd at very high rpms and very hard at that, and then it wont shift into 4th at all. I removed the vac line to the tranny and that made no difference. Can anyone explain how I can troubleshoot this situation to determine if I need to replace the transmission or if it could be another issue?
Thanks,
greenjed

reach under the accelerator pedal and unplug the kickdown switch. see if that helps. sometimes they stick or otherwise malfunction

__________________
1981 NA 300D 310k miles

tried the kickdown (didnt know I had one)
no effect
I topped off the atf, it looked a little low, also no change
thanks
greenjed

The vehicle has a cable that runs from the throttle linkage to the transmission. You can find this cable under the hood. It arrives from the passenger side and connects to the linkage via a ball and socket joint. There is a rubber boot right before the joint. Disconnect the ball and socket joint so the cable is detached from the linkage. Pull the cable out and slide it back and see if it moves freely within the sheath.

If the cable is binding and won't retract with the linkage, the transmission will shift late in all gears.

hi guys

when describing trans problems, lot of people use term "flaring"
as English is not my 1st lingo,please let me understand that term as it is
for me now "noisy" ... am I wrong?

tx

.

__________________
w126 500SEC gen II euro, powered by OM617 turbo stolen from 84 300SD 2.88 diff,EGR blinded
next wish/project: w114 coupe OM603 powered

"Flaring" is a false neutral between shifts. Instead of shifting 2-3, the transmission goes 2-neutral-3. The time in neutral is variable depending on the transmission. Sometimes it is a fraction of a second.............sometimes it's one second...........sometimes it's unlimited until the driver lifts his foot and "assists" the shift.

2-3 is the most common flare. Sometimes it also flares on 3-4 if the transmission is in bad shape.

Thanks B. for the detailed explaination !!

now,beside I learnt what the term "flaring" means also I discover that my
transmission is in not so good shape as I have to very often lift a bit my foot to help "jump" to 3-rd shift. bugger!!


.

__________________
w126 500SEC gen II euro, powered by OM617 turbo stolen from 84 300SD 2.88 diff,EGR blinded
next wish/project: w114 coupe OM603 powered

That's a common problem on older transmissions.

You might help yourself quite a bit with reducing the vacuum to the modulator. Depending on the VCV that you have, it might be able to have a downward adjustment.

Being as I'm an American and uncertain of European English usage, could you please elaborate on the meaning of that word?

__________________
1977 300d 70k--sold 08
1985 300TD 185k+
1984 307d 126k--sold 8/03
1985 409d 65k--sold 06
1984 300SD 315k--daughter's car
1979 300SD 122k--sold 2/11
1999 Fuso FG Expedition Camper
1993 GMC Sierra 6.5 TD 4x4
1982 Bluebird Wanderlodge CAT 3208--Sold 2/13

LOL mate, I definitely do not like what I see on:

Definition of bugger | Synonym.com

but wiki comes to rescue

Bugger - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia


.

__________________
w126 500SEC gen II euro, powered by OM617 turbo stolen from 84 300SD 2.88 diff,EGR blinded
next wish/project: w114 coupe OM603 powered

B. thanks again ... found great article, considering that issue

Mercedes-Benz Transmission, Steve Brotherton, ImportCar, February 2002

will try to tune it up a bit....


.

__________________
w126 500SEC gen II euro, powered by OM617 turbo stolen from 84 300SD 2.88 diff,EGR blinded
next wish/project: w114 coupe OM603 powered

I checked the cable and it doesn't seem bound up, it moves easily within the sheath.
So... is there anything else I should check before pronouncing the tranny a goner? I do happen to have an old transmission laying around, and it doesn't look like a very difficulty transplant, but I'd like to be certain before operating... any/all suggestions very welcome.
Thanks!
greenjed

you mentioned that you pulled the vac line and nothing changed.. well what if there was no vac to the trans in the first place? did you track everything down.. make sure the modulator at the trans holds vacuum..follow the line back, make sure its not broken.. then test the VCV on top of the injection pump... keep following the lines back and testing

i thought my trans was broken but it was never getting any vacuum.. even like 5" of vacuum makes it shift worlds better

__________________
1981 NA 300D 310k miles

I read in other posts that if you pull the vacuum, the tranny will still shift, albeit roughly. Therefore if the tranny is not shifting when the vacuum is pulled, the conclusion is that the transmission itself has an issue. Is my understanding correct?
Thanks again!
greenjed

That all depends on the definition of "pull the vacuum."

__________________
When cryptography is outlawed, bayl bhgynjf jvyy unir cevinpl.