Auto Gearbox problem, Not shifting out of 1st gear.

[awiserbud]

Hi everyone, I'm hoping someone might be familiar with my auto gearbox problem, it started just before xmas when we had a pretty bad snowfall which soon turned to ice, i had to drive home from work and needless to say i was struggling for grip in my CLK230K 1999, i had to switch the traction control on/off to get moving but because of the heavy traffic i never got above 10mph, I had over 4 hours of this but i should point out that i never over revved it, finally i got home, and a few days later took the car out again only to find it will now not shift out of 1st gear, reverse/neutral/park are all fine, and it will pull away whether it is in 1,2,3 or Drive, but it just wont change out of 1st gear, there are no nasty noises from the box either, i have topped the fluid level up, disconnected/reconnected the battery and checked all the fuses (unless there is a hidden fuse box elsewhere that might be worth checking.
Before i condemn the gearbox and start looking for a replacement is there anything else that might have caused this< is it possible that it is in a limp-home mode? and if so can this be reset without diagnostic equipment?
Any help would be much appreciated.

[mymini1]

Seems that we have the same problem, my 2002 C320 doesn't shift after a jump start, with the same issues like yours. I don't have any check engine light, no faulty codes. I was told that only mercedes Benz dealer or any other mercedes Benz shop will be able to get it out of limp mode, with the equipment they have. The electronics components needs to be reset.
I haven't taken the car to the dealer yet, buy I guess is the best thing to do at this point.
Good luck to you.

[Musikmann]

If there are transmission error codes you need a SDS (aka Star) that dealers or large independent shops have or something sophisticated like Carsoft to read and clear them. They usually do not show up on your dashboard as a fault like a check engine light.

[awiserbud]

I know a guy who has a snap-on solus scanner with mercedes software, assuming he has the correct diagnostic cable would this be able to read and reset the codes for the transmission? otherwise its looking like a mercedes job,
good luck with your 320 too,

[Musikmann]

A Snap-On Solus is not a scanner I remember reading about here but based on their good automotive reputation I'd say yes.

[awiserbud]

Originally Posted by Musikmann

A Snap-On Solus is not a scanner I remember reading about here but based on their good automotive reputation I'd say yes.

Snap-on seem to think the Solus is a scanner, what am i missing?

[awiserbud]

well today i stripped the gearbox sump off and removed the valve plate to check the speed sensors, no build up of debris there, and the oil looked very clean, i washed the filter out, cleaned the wiring harness multi-plug and rebuilt it putting fresh fluid in, crossed my fingers and took it out for a spin, no change
so i'm going to see if i can get the fault codes (if any) read and cleared, and if that doesnt work...start looking for a replacement gearbox.
one thing that bothers me, other than the box not changing gear, it appears perfect, extremely smooth, no silly noises, so if it is the gearbox that is faulty, which part?
Also can anyone shed any light on exactly what happens when these boxes go into limp-home mode, IE which gear will they become stuck in? i read somewhere on here that its normally 2nd gear? but mine is stuck in 1st gear.

[Musikmann]

Originally Posted by awiserbud

Snap-on seem to think the Solus is a scanner, what am i missing?

If you can put MB software into it I think it should be fine. Just make sure it can read the transmission codes. I thought limp-home mode is above 1st gear too, at least 2nd.

[keyhole]

Originally Posted by awiserbud

Also can anyone shed any light on exactly what happens when these boxes go into limp-home mode, IE which gear will they become stuck in? i read somewhere on here that its normally 2nd gear? but mine is stuck in 1st gear.

I have seen in the WIS somewhere (but I cannot find it today!) that in Limp Mode the gearbox stays in the last gear used. I'll take another look later.

[jay@prezentation.com]

I have a 2001, c220cdi with 110k on the speedo and am having the same problem. Started with occasionaly getting stuck in 2nd gear during the snow but after switching the engine off and on the car would reset to normal for a while. Last week this temporary fix also stopped and now its stuck in 1st gear it does 30mph at 3000 rpm max even with the car in neutral the engine does not rev to more than 3000 which I presume its in limp mode. On Tuesday my mechanic got the transmission error codes showing P0064-74-87-92 and P0093 He was very busy and didnt have the time to realise what they meant hopefully until next week but assured me that it wasnt the gearbox. No details of the codes on the web.
The problem might be with the TCU (transmission control unit)
I also have a 2005 e220cdi with 60000 miles which had a similar problem in december as its a newer model i suppose the car was going into limp mode and would change gears normally but would not go over 40mph with maximum 3000 rpm even in neutral. My mechanic told me it was the Air Mass Sensor which was at fault so he disconnected it temporarily and the car was working fine (temporary measure as it can damage the engine) As my mechanic was very busy and the chrismas shutdown so I had to very carefully clean it with electronic cleaner from Maplins £4 without touching the photocell sensor, reconnected and the problem is gone. I will replace the MAF sensor in due time.
Try disconnecting the MAF sensor, disconnect the battery for half an hour for resetting the ECU and if that doesnt take the car out of limp mode, get the codes read and analised, my mechanic charges £50 based in Harrow.