Not yet owning a Crossfire, does anyone know if the 5spd automatic transmission have an adaptive feature. Every Mercedes with this engine and transmission has it. It 'learns' your driving style and shifts accordingly. If your are quick on the gas and brake, the shifts 'firm up' and shift points are extended. If you are easy on the gas and brake, it loosens up for a creamy unnoticable shift at low rpm. The only problem arises when you've been loafing along and then decide to get aggressive with it. It's a little slow to respond but once it gets the message that you mean business, it will shift more crisply.

This transmission is probably the best automatic in the world. I've become familiar with it on several MBs in recent years. My favorite feature of the transmission is it's ablility to sense when NOT to shift to a higher gear...i.e. in a downhill corner.

If the trans is the same as other MB 320s, it is sealed system without a dipstick. Can someone verify?

 

Has any automatic owners tried out the Optimum Gear Programming feature? What's that, you say? Another MB feature of this transmission. If you hold the shift lever to the left for more than 1 second, it will automatically downshift as low as possible if you are entering a high speed turn and then apply full throttle on exit. It makes sure you get the best gear for the most acceleration. Try it!

 

Done it, works great.

It was featured in the Crossfire Test Drive piece on Speed Channel when the car was launched.