Hi everyone, I have an '82 Mercedes 300 SD that has recently started lurching while I am driving (i.e., I'm cruising along and the engine starts 'lurching' as if I'm alternately pressing down on the gas and then releasing). It only does this within about the first twenty minutes of driving, then it seems to go away. I have tried warming up the car for five minutes before driving it, but it seems to take about 20 to 30 minutes of driving before it goes away. Also, I have noticed that during this time the transmission doesn't "feel" right; i.e., when I change the car from Park to Reverse or Drive it doesn't seem to "pop" into gear like normal; again, this goes away after about 20 minutes of driving. Any ideas? Thanks in advance.

 

Anyone?

 

Could it be a faulty torque converter, or perhaps something with the fuel pump or fuel filter? Or possibly a transmission problem? Low transmission fluid? I'm grasping at straws, so if anyone has any insight, please post.

 

Does that happens just before gear change?
Sounds, like the problem I used to have with the same drive-train. Common for those transmission. I drove with it for about 30,000 miles and learned to back off the gas, when it happened.
Sold the car with it.

 

Yes, I have noticed that backing off the gas does help.
I feel a little bit better that you were able to drive your car for 30,000 miles that way, because my main concern was if I was doing damage to the vehicle by driving it in this condition and if it could get worse. Apparently not.

 

My parents have an 81 300SD and it has done that since about 100K miles or so. The car now easily has over 350K. Just drive it right and it should last forever.

 

I took the car to a mechanic and it looks like the problem was simply that it was low on transmission fluid due to a leak. He put more transmission fluid in and it ran great. He's gonna replace some seals to fix the leak.