Gearbox dipstick

[wingco]

Help!

I would appreciate if anybody could answer the following questions:

W202 250TD with 5spd electronic box

1. How far does the dipstick go into the box? I have got the correct dipstick (checked with MB against my chassis number). When you stick it in it leaves about 8 inches sticking out the top.

2. How much fluid should you put in when you drain the box and torque converter? The Haynes dream book sais 5.5 litres for a fluid change, and 9.3 litres from dry - what does this mean? (it has just had the box and torque converter drained and 5.5 litres put in afterwards)

3. Will I have damaged the box by driving it with not enough oil in it?

4. Would a low oil level cause the following:

Gearbox slipping when cold, getting stuck in gear when hot (does clear if you switch it off for a while)

I have just checked the gearbox level on a hot engine/gearbox, in P, on level ground, engine running etc, and the fluid only came up to the 25c mark.

The box did have a new valve block, ECU, fluid and filters at 87K, now 129k (bearing in mind its supposed to be sealed for life)

Thanks for your help.

 

[RJR28/12]

Hi the 5speed electronic box does not come with a dipstick.You measure the gearbox oil level with a special tool which is what i suspect you have been given.You will know this by looking at the dipstick if it looks like a 2foot long spring with a red handle and a black end it is a mb tool.

If you have drained the box and converter you will need about 8-9 litres of oil (filling from dry means totally empty box and converter)

A low oil level will cause the gearbox to slip and also to change gear poorly maybe even thumping into gear.It will stay in one gear because of the low oil level the gearbox has gone into emergency mode..

 

[wingco]

RJR

Thanks for that. I am going to get more fluid tomorrow and check level + fill. Does switching off the ignition clear the emergency mode in the box?

The measuring stick I have is exactly as you describe, how far out of the box does it protrude when checking the level?

 

[carmaster98]

after gearbox went low on fluid

hi rjr2812, how do i get out of emergency mode, do i need a laptop or is there a simple way. regards carmaster98 :!:

 

[big x]

I'm surprised you didn't ask MB how to use the dipstick before using it. The whole idea of having a separate tool was to stop people tampering with the oil levels in the 5 speed box as the oil level is critical for correct operation of the box!
I'm under the impression that the 25 refers to the cold oil level I.E. 25 degrees and the 80 degrees the hot oil level. Warm the car up and set your oil level (using the correct MB supplied oil) to the top 80 mark.
The dipstick is of course pushed in till it stops. It sticks out to remind you to make sure the tamperproof cap seals the tube and not the dipstick left in.

adam

 

[RJR28/12]

Hi carmaster the only real way of getting out of emergency mode is to erase the faults in the control unit with a fault code reader.Sometimes the fault clears when you turn the ignition off and restart the car.The gearbox oil level is correct when it reaches the top mark (80)on the dipstick when the car is hot,the dipstick should be pushed all the way in until it stops which would leave about 2 inches hanging out the top.