300TE wagon - tranny reluctant to shift until warm
 

90' 300 wagon- tranny reluctant to shift until it has warmed up- after that it is fine. Been doing it for two years. Anyone knows what the issue may be?

Also- why would the heat "stick" on full mode- and have to be reset? Electrical issue?

Thanks in advance.

On my 87 there is a cold engine sensor that makes the trans shift soft when cold. I unpluged it and it solved my problem. On the diesel it is located behind the water pump on the pasanger side. As the trans wears out soft shifts when cold are not desirable.

Just in case you have not done it recently: change your transmission oil and filter. This usually cures most common problems.

Thanks for the replies. I was asking because I am considering to purchase this car and the seller said that he had the transmission serviced about a year ago and the shop said that the transmission would soon need "attention" because of this. Perhaps they were wanting to take him for a ride? He said it has not gotten any worse.

Another mention was he said it had been running a little warmer than normal on the temperature guage, but not overheating. Installed a new waterpump, but with no change. Perhaps the cooling fans are in need of repair, or headgasket may be failing?

I guess I need to ask more questions about this.

Thanks again.

Thanks. He said the guage goes down when you turn the heater on- that was back when heat was needed. The car is a 90' 300TE wagon.

This was concerning a different car, but the rule still applies.

I had a vehicle that was starting to overheat. I replace the water pump...the t-stat, flushed the radiator, even new hoses....no joy. I called a repair shop (the mech actually spoke to me over the phone) I told him what I had done, and he asked me a very simple question. He asked, "is your radiator 10 or more years old?" The answer was yes. He said to replace it. He said do NOT have the radiator rodded out or serviced....just replace it.

I did, no problems since then :D

Thanks. He said that the guage has never went to the red warning (thank goodness). He said it did not really settle on a certain temperature, but rather "danced" around, or as he said it "swings wildly". He was thinking perhaps it was a sending unit or the guage itself, but the part where it goes back down with the heating on (in the winter) seems strange. Perhaps it is the radiator......

Does the "dancing" or "swinging" guage seem more like bad temperature sensor?

He said he was told by a fellow Mercedes owner that it was a sensors.