I have long felt that the 6-spd is clunky, especially into and out of first and second gears. After I experienced the "popping out of first gear issue" a couple of times, I took it into my dealer. They ordered a synchronizer which they had a difficult time getting tools, parts and installing. This resulted in very stiff 1st and 2nd shifts when cold. It was also making a ssh-ssh-ssh sound when moving. The dealer agreed it was not working well at all.

A new transmission was ordered and was installed last week. I hoped they had fixed the shifting difficulties but to my disappointment, it shifts as badly as it did after it got a new synchro when it's cold. I practically come to a stop shifting from first to second. When it's warmed up, it's about as clunky as the original transmission.

I've read that some owners have been satisfied with their new transmissions. How about others? I appreciate that Chrysler is handing out free transmissions but it doesn't appear to be the solution.

 

Ummm.. my tranny sux too. Sadly the service manager said i had one of the nicer feeling shifting tranny's out of all the crossfires he had been in. If mines the best, I feel real bad for everyone else.

 

Mine's been fine except for the occasional POP out... I'm holding off till the warranty is just about expired to have it replaced...

 

Call the Chrysler Customer Service Center, tell them that you are dissatisfied with the repair capabilities from your Chrysler dealer and you feel that they are not experienced or qualified enough to do the repairs properly, and then request that a Mercedes dealer do the repairs, and or replacement... DC will have to honor the service from a MB dealer if you make the call and place the complaint...

Make sure you get a TSB complaint # from them... Then just take the car to your local MB dealer and hope you get a mechanic that knows what the heck he's doing!!!

 

Good idea, you can't expect the chrysler mechanics to know everything about a model that is so foreign and new to them. I am sure they have some great mechanics but you wouldn't go to a dermatologist for a headache...
In time if the crossfire production continues we should have better luck at the chrysler dealer. It is just that this is old hat to the MB dealers...

Good luck

 

I'm just curious, since when will a MB dealership honor a warranty issue or work on a Chrysler product, even if the Crossfire is a SLK in sheep's clothing? The exception being is, if they sold you a used Crossfire off their lot.

OT - An observation on something I've found to be amusing for the short period of time I've been reading this forum. A lot of people here are too paranoid concerning the maintenance and forget the Crossfire is just a car. There is nothing all that unique about it. Owners here seem to go bonkers over the simplest things like an oil change (granted there was a small issue when the car first came out and the manual was soon revised on how much oil the engine took, but that got squared away in short order). A transmission or a rear end change is really no big deal and any trained mechanic should be able to do it. Remember, all Chrysler dealerships that sell the Crossfire were required to invest in tools, a minor parts inventory and training for at least two of their mechanics.

The airplanes you fly on are way more complex than any car. When their mechanics transfer from one kind of plane to another or major mods have been done on the airframe they are working on, they receive transition training, it's no big deal. The military is the same way. You may start out working on a forty year old B-52 and end your career on the newest airframe out there, often with four weeks or less of familiarization training.

I don’t mean to ruffle any feathers here, honest. It’s just that I get a chuckle now and then. Life is too short, relax and enjoy your cars. Find a qualified dealership/shop that you feel comfortable doing business with and take your car there. Sometimes changing service writers will even get you better service. And keep in mind, like all other professions, there are good and bad dealerships.


If you have a minute, check out my gallery. While the turkey was in the oven yesterday, I went out to the garage to take some pictures of my car to use as screen savers.

 

Ben47: Many of these mechanical issues discussed are minor and easily repaired by the DIY mechanic and I laugh at many as well... But have you noticed how many forum members have taken their cars to Chrysler mechanics with serious problems and had issues with the "REPAIR" or attempted "REPAIR" ? Heck, most here in LA, CA. haven't even looked under the hood...

I think that's how this thread was started... TSB, 1st gear syncho replacement, tranny is worse, or no better since "REPAIR" at the Chrysler dealership...

And yes, if you are dissatisfied with the "FIVE STAR" Chrysler Service or do not have access to a Chrysler dealership for this specific car... DC will authorize a MB dealership to do the repairs... You may have to scream a little bit, but it will be approved...

 

With my Crossfire, I had the popping out of first gear issue. It would happen a couple of times a month. So, I took the car to the dealership, they put new synchros in, and the popping out of gear syndrome GOT WORSE! Then, they put a new transmission in the vehicle, and I have yet to get the vehicle to pop out of gear in about 12,000 miles. Unfortunately, the 1st to 2nd shift resistance as you describe developed with the new transmission in a few hundred miles, which involved a sound of grinding on some shifts. But, I pretty much gave-up on the tranny. Does anyone know if a short-shift kit will cure this 1-2 shift problem?

 

Hi Everyone,
Just joined and want to say it's great to read posts from fellow owners!
I haven't had any problems with my CF except the headlight condensation thing (I live in the Pacific Northwest). My local dealer performed the service bulletin, but it didn't work. So they replaced the lamp assemblies. That's top service as far as I'm concerned.

 

My car was just lemoned after MANY attempts to fix the first gear issue. I think I had 3 different transmissions and synchros done 2 times on top of that as well. Time for a new SRT6 (well, if you consider 15 months on the lot still new).

 

Update: I sent Chrysler a letter via certified mail and got a call from the regional rep. He reviewed my paperwork and found that the dealer had filled the transmission with heavy-weight differential oil rather than the lighter weight transmission oil. I had it replaced Friday and now it shifts normally. Should be the end of my transmission woes.

 

That's F'ing hilarious... I hope you're kidding... If this is true, please save any written correspondence from the regional rep. This will give more ammunition to force warranty work be performed at Mercedes dealers...

upload any written documentation to the TSB forum... I'll start a thread called DC warranty work.

 

I wish I was kidding but it's true. I don't have any documentation from the regional rep. but I do have my service receipt showing the incorrect p/n for the original fluid used in my NEW transmission and the final service receipt showing "installed correct fluid - 5-20 oil."

 

Oh... I really thought that was a joke... I couldn't fathom a trained DC mechanic putting the wrong fluids in the gear box... I would expect it from a local service station...

If you would be kind enough to post this on the thread I started so we can keep track of this idiocy from Chrysler service mechanics, perhaps we can get enough info to force DC to allow MB mechanics to do the warranty service...

 

Wow. That's amazing. Its obvious that the mechanic didn't bother to RTFM before he worked on your car. I'll bet that none of the bolts are torqued to spec either.

 

Thanks, bobs. I feel much better now! As you would expect, it's shifting much, much better now. Cold gear oil doesn't flow very smoothly in a transmission... especially one that's already not-so-smooth.

 

Sorry, I didn't mean to freak you out, but from personal experience I learned that it the mechanic missed something that obvious, he most likely didn't pay attention to the technical manual, or he was having a bad day. Either way it was a bad thing for you. Luckily for you everything worked out, and hopefully the mechanic learned a lesson in the process. BTW, it is normal for Crossfire transmissions to shift hard when they are cold. There is a blurb in the owner's manual about that. My car is a relatively early production model ('04 s/n 1088) and my tranny is an absolute pain to get into reverse when its cold. The 1-2 shift is not much better. Once it warms up a bit it shifts very nicely. That's a trade off I can live with.
I have owned German-made (mostly two wheeled) machinery for quite a long time and I have found that each machine has it's own "personality"... BMW K-bike owners literally have to split their machines in half once every year or so to perform the dreaded input spline lube, but these same owners have had their bikes for well over 100K miles because they're sooo much fun to ride.

 

No worries, bobs. Mine is an early model too, s/n 0450, so I'm familiar with the cold weather shifts. It's about like it was new, still crappy but at least I don't nearly come to a complete stop shifting from first to second.

 

Check out TSB 21-001-05 "M/T gear grinding sound when shifting".

Sourced at www.alldatadiy.com/ for an annual subscription fee including, basically, the factory service manual.

 

Now that's a really great forum member... HEY HERE'S THIS GREAT LINK FOR TSB'S, OH YEAH, PS YOU GOTTA PAY FOR IT... If you read the TSB, that means you have it... So instead of being a dork, post it...