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For those who HAVE/HAD the jerky Transmission

18K views 30 replies 26 participants last post by  Yazovets! 
#1 ·
YES, I've read all the posts about the jerky transmission problem when coming to a stop or at a stop. But have not really heard from the people that had this problem fixed by either reflash of the software or a updated valve body in the transmission, or other anaomly.

What I would like out of this post is to hear from the people who have actually HAD this problem ONLY!!! Please answer the following questions:

Who has had this problem, and has MB fixed it?

What did they do to fix it?

Did it work, or are still experiencing this?

Did this problem just go away after this supposed "self-learning transmission" learned to stop jerking itself?

I have a 2007 ML350, with less than 500kms, just picked it up on Saturday and it started doing this jerking business right off the lot.
 
#27 ·
I think rok1432 is describing a normal downshift and not the dreaded rough shift a lot of people had. All these cars with this 7G-tronic transmission will use engine braking when going downhill as you would if it was a standard transmission. This does not do anything bad to the tranny. In fact the transmission will never suffer from anything the driver throws at it since it only does what it is programed to do. You can rev at high rpms and paddle shift it to first gear. It will only do that when it is within the permissible rpm range.
As far as the rough shift problem is concerned, my dealer mechanic was reassuring to me that it made no harm to the transmission when it was doing that on my R class. It has been repaired by replacing the valve body and has been running problem free for two years now.
 
#29 ·
I purchased 2006 ML500 about three months ago. Perfect body, clean interior, low milage, almost perfect deal. After couple days, started to jerk at the stops, goes to limp mode several times a day. Took it back to dealer, they send it to MB service center, wait for 3 days, they said we upgraded the software, bla bla. Result is failure. Took it back two more times with no success. Dealer decided to fix it in their service department instead of sending to MB dealer. They changed (They said) Flow Sensor. Nicely done.
It's not jerking or failing anymore. It's been two weeks with no problems.
Is it upshifting smooth, YES. Downshifting smooth, NO. I use to drive E and C class 4Matic all the time. This is my first ML. I'm accepting the fact that, this is SUV. If it bothers me much, I consider switching back to Sedan.
BUT.... God blessing truth is, I love it so much. It's worth it.
 
#30 ·
My 08 ML350 had a jerky transmission. The problem on mine occurred below 35 mph when the accelerator was lightly pressed and the car was under a light load, such as going up a hill or pulling a small trailer. After a bunch of research, I thought it may need a new valve body or at least the controller. I was unable to determine if mine had the replaceable controller (VS2 or higher). I took it to a shop that specializes in MB and they told me it needed a whole new valve body for $2400 because at hard acceleration there was sufficient pressure in the trans to shift correctly, but under slight gas pedal, there wasn't.

I did a bunch more research and read online that the problem may be caused by the ATF being too low. Since there is no dip stick, it's not easy to check. The MB dealer told me the 722.9 transmission needs to be serviced every 40,000 miles. Since I'd only had the car about a year, I didn't know if or when this had been done.

In the past, I've only owned BMWs, Sevens, threes and X5s mostly. I do most of my own work on cars, but I haven't done much on MB. BMWs have a sealed transmission that NEVER needs messing with, so I wasn't used to something that needs to be serviced to the tune of $300 every 40,000 miles.

At any rate, I took it in and they replaced the ATF and filter and torqued the valve body bolts and now it shifts perfectly. I know this is an old problem and thread, but I read these old threads all the time and perhaps my experience can help someone else.
 
#31 ·
Our old 2008 ML320 CDI had the jerky 2-1 downshift problem.

After several complaints the dealer flashed the software which improved overall shifting except the main problem - the 2-1 jerky downshift.

The eventual solution came when the car was traded in for a 2011 ML350 Bluetec. :) This one does not do any jerky shifting even though now we've driven it just as much as the old car.
 
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