The transmission in my '72 250c seems to upshift to second very quickly. Accelerating normally from a stop, I'm only moving for a second or two before the transmission shifts up into second. If I accelerate more briskly, it delays the upshift longer, so that seems okay.
The transmission fluid and filter were changed along with the modulator valve about 3,000 miles ago. All of the shifts (both upshifts and downshift) seem very positive and crisp, so I don't think there's a problem with the friction bands slipping or anything like that. I also don't feel like the car's lacking for acceleration or bogging down immediately after the 1-2 shift, but I haven't driven any other 250's, so I don't have a useful basis for comparison.
Thye trans actually starts in 2,unless you are moving off up a hill or have a load in the car ,such as 4 passengers.
In normal driving ,if you push the acelerator right down it will work the kick down and make the trans move off in 1st.
Keeping your foot down keeps the transfrom shifting up,as you have described.the trans in any Merc is setup so that all you have to worry about is acelerating and braking.So unless it is slipping...don't worry ,be happy![:D][:D][:D][:D]
The previous owner also mentioned that with light loads, the transmission would "start out in second gear", but I'm not sure how that works, mechanically. If I'm stopped with the transmission in "drive" and the brake applied, should the transmission be in second or first?
If it's supposed to be in first, and then upshift almost immediately when I start moving, then that's exactly what my transmission is doing, and all is well.
If it's truly supposed to start off in second gear, and only downshift to first under hard acceleration or with a heavy load, then that's not what mine is doing.
Again, all the shifts are very positive and crisp, so I'm not really worried. This is my first old Benz, so I'm still learning all the "ins and outs", so to speak.
i kinda noticed that with my old benz. 67 250se coupe. i never feel 1st on the start. the kick from 2nd to 3rd is hard sometimes, at times it a smooth transition, at others it kick hard, jerks even. from 3rd to 4th is always smooth. downshift is smooth. i ran a super lube thru it, z-max. it accually helped smooth it out some after i changed the trans oil a couple times and kept the z-max up. car was parked for a number of years before i got my hands on it, so i did all that to clean it up. my shift point is at 2300-2500rpm. up hill is a struggle for me unless i hit it in 3rd.