Hello All,
I have 1995 W124 E220 with 5 speed manual transmission 717.413. I had following issues with transmissions when I got this car.

1) Gear slippage and hard shift, usually when in second gear on rough roads gear would automatically drop to neutral and shifting to some gears required more force.

2) Rough gear shifts, when shifting from 1 - 2 I hear load thud and violent jerk, this happens from 2-3-4-5 but jerk strength diminishes as I shift higher. If I engage the clutch very slowly sound and jerk is negligible but this results in loss of power and pain to drive up hill. In addition vibrations (lever moves forward) can be felt if I hold the shift lever when decelerating (lifting my foot from throttle).


Took it to local Mercedes dealer, the first problem was diagnosed to synchromesh rings and got my gear box rebuilt, changed all bearings, synchromesh rings, shifter forks and main drive shaft. It’s almost a new gear box now and first problem is fixed.

For second problem the clutch and pressure plate was changed, but I don’t see any change second problem still persists, feel it is more than before, what could be the reason for this, flex disk ? Differential? What should I look for, any input would be of great help for me.

Thank you

That car has uses a dual mass flywheel that dampens the clutch engagement.

Sounds like that flywheel could be the problem.

However if the trans is "hard" to engage when sitting still, the clutch isn't completely being dis-engaged. Possibly a hydraulic issue.

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Thanks for the input, will have it checked.

I took the car to dealer, a technician took the car for test drive with his driving style the thud could not be herd or was minimal. He drove it on flat road for about 2-3 kms and shifted gears smoothly. He suggested that I should start throttle simultaneously while engaging the clutch, with this I could reduce the thud to minimal, but driving winding up hill still caused the jerk. Should I simply try replacing the dual mass fly wheel? Or is this related to some other issue.

P.S: Transmission engages smoothly when standing still, but there is issue with reverse gear not engaging 7 out of 10 times, unless I shift to 5 th or some other gear for couple of times(for which I have been suggested to replace the link rod).

Thank You

"bump"