Thread: I know they call it black gold, but......(non-LR)

if its the box I think it is...

$200 every 20K Km

OR...

$11K for a replacement box.

OR

$15K for an auto specialist to have a crack at it.


your call.

Originally Posted by sheerluck

Her ladyship's chariot, a Merc ML320, has been getting a little lethargic in the gearbox department just recently, so having had a nosy around various web fora, I've decided to give it a fluid and filter change.

It was supposed to be a "sealed for life" job like the D3 (though MB apparently revised their guidance as to what "life" meant. It was revised from outlasting a granite boulder, to just about outlasting a mayfly), but it can only accept MB proprietory synthetic fluid (or Chrysler - the same tranny was used in a couple of Chrysler cars). Many MB fora, and MB themselves tell you use alternatives at your peril. There are a number of horror stories out there where DIYers have used Dexron or other fluids and shuddered to a halt 200km later.

So I ventured into the MB stealer today, having been unable to find any decent aftermarket stockists in Aus, to buy 8 litres of the stuff (along with a handful of other parts)

TWO HUNDRED AND THIRTY BUCKS!!! IT'S OIL NOT A PRECIOUS METAL!

I did ask if I could have the one that came in a plastic bottle, and not the gold plated one, but I guess his sense of humour had been removed.

I'm certainly not going to be changing the fluid at 20000km intervals for that price!

Assuming your talking about the shift system, Its Pentosin fluid if you have the Sprint Shift manual.
As Dave said, its your call but you better have deep pockets.
If you use any other type of fluid, you will stuff the system, no question. The solenoid pack, the pump and the accumulator will all have seal failures.
The shift oil and gearbox oil are two separate systems, dont mix them and get them confused. The gearbox is a normal manual box, the same as the normal manually hand shifted box but has a hydraulically operated clutch and gearshift system.
The same setup is used in the Vito and Sprinter vans.

The shift system reservoir cap is green for a reason and has the specific oil type stamped on it for a reason.
You also need a specific bleed setup to purge air from the control circuit which generally you will only be able to get done at the dealer or a specialist MB independent workshop with the correct equipment.
But what do I know, I only work for MB here in Perth

Cheers

Andrew

8Ls for 250??? thats cheap,, the ZF oil for landies is at least 98 per letter,

and the new zf in the my10 cars, well if you have to ask, you cant afford

Originally Posted by sheerluck

Her ladyship's chariot, a Merc ML320, has been getting a little lethargic in the gearbox department just recently, so having had a nosy around various web fora, I've decided to give it a fluid and filter change.

It was supposed to be a "sealed for life" job like the D3 (though MB apparently revised their guidance as to what "life" meant. It was revised from outlasting a granite boulder, to just about outlasting a mayfly), but it can only accept MB proprietory synthetic fluid (or Chrysler - the same tranny was used in a couple of Chrysler cars). Many MB fora, and MB themselves tell you use alternatives at your peril. There are a number of horror stories out there where DIYers have used Dexron or other fluids and shuddered to a halt 200km later.

So I ventured into the MB stealer today, having been unable to find any decent aftermarket stockists in Aus, to buy 8 litres of the stuff (along with a handful of other parts)

TWO HUNDRED AND THIRTY BUCKS!!! IT'S OIL NOT A PRECIOUS METAL!

I did ask if I could have the one that came in a plastic bottle, and not the gold plated one, but I guess his sense of humour had been removed.

I'm certainly not going to be changing the fluid at 20000km intervals for that price!

Oh no. A car that was somewhere over $70,000 new.

$230 for some gearbox oil.

0.3% or less of how much the car cost to keep it actually driveable. What an unreasonable cost!

What will be next, it needs new tyres? Uh oh, they will make the oil look cheap!! But come to think of it, they cost about the same per km, is that an unreasonable cost too?

Cars cost to keep them running and maintain. Simple fact of life.

Agree with the others, its a Mercedes, the name alone brings dollar signs to the average person. Its gunna cost money to keep it running, especially as it gets older.

If you want something cheap(er) to maintain and service get a commodore or falcon.

I should point out that I'm not really whingeing about the price to maintain the car. As has already been mentioned, maintenance is generally cheaper than repair. There's enough horror stories about dying transmissions to make me feel the need to actually do the fluid/filter change.

The part that has made me shake my head a little is that MB has done a complete u-turn on it. To go from "aren't we great, we produced a gearbox that's sealed for life, no maintenance cost ever", to "actually when we said life we really meant 30000 miles. And to cap that, we'll make the fluid only available through dealers, and approve no other generally available fluid."

I know that everything that has the old three pointed star on the front is going to add a chunk of cost to parts, like I paid $150 for an accelerator cable. It's a fact of life, and one I knew when I bought it. It's a nice vehicle, though not necessarily better than, say, a Rangie.


Lovemyrangie - not sure which tranny you're describing, this one is the 722.6

And Seano87 - thanks for the sarcasm mate.

my money says its going to be about the same as aviation grade mineral hydraulic oil....

now if Only we new some people who work near/with aircraft maintenance people who could get hold of the leftovers in the open drums.

Cheaper than the Motul gear 300 - or whatever it's called - that Rick130's using, although a few less litres. To make up for it I'm sure he's making his changes at lower mileage.

Oh, and the extra $10 or so a litre on the top for analysis.