losing drive on my e class

[montyv6]

after approx 500 metres of driving my 98 s e280 loses all drive (forwards and backwards) if i turn the engine off for 10 mins i can then drive for another 500 metres (back to the house) i,m going to have it diagnosed next week when im off work, but does anyone have any tips i can try out for this problem before i shell out my life savings


cheers Phil