Autobox fluid colour

[buggalugs]

Hiya,

I have an S204 C220, got it a few months ago. There's an invoice for an autobox service from August for about £250 however, the fluid looks a bit off to me. shouldn't it be red?
Or is the fancy merc stuff not red?

TIA!

[MX-5 Lazza]

Does it stay red?
I've never had an auto but in my MX5 I use Redline Synthetic oils in the gearbox & dif and they are (unsurprisingly) red when new but by the time I change it again a few years later it's green and resembles engine oil (apart from the unmistakable smells of gearbox oil).

[PositronicRay]

Mine red (320SL) might be worth getting a second opinion before discussing with the garage that did the change.

[smileymikey]

I would be a little concerned. If I had bought a car that the previous owner had just spent £250 on gearbox work and then put it up for sale pretty much straight away! Were you checking the oil as part of a service, or are you experiencing some issues?

[P.Nott]

My S204 C350 is coming up to its first gearbox fluid change at the 3 year old service and coincidentally I checked the fluid last weekend. It is very definitely still a translucent red colour.

[P.Nott]

Something I've just thought about. Was the gearbox service carried out by an MB dealers?
Reason for asking is that not all auto fluids are red in colour, so it may be the fluid and filter were changed, albeit using a different make of transmission fluid. I've seen some before that was a light straw colour, so might be worth contacting the garage who did the work to see what auto fluid they use and to make certain it is to the correct MB spec.

[PositronicRay]

P.Nott said:

My S204 C350 is coming up to its first gearbox fluid change at the 3 year old service and coincidentally I checked the fluid last weekend. It is very definitely still a translucent red colour.

Mine was ten yrs old (I think) and red.

[buggalugs]

Thanks chaps, think I'll change it again at next engine oil change. Red stuff is faster right?

[P.Nott]

Oh yes, red is always the colour of choice if you want fast!

Whenever I buy a used car I tend to change all fluids, oils and filters in engine, gearbox, power steering, brakes, differential and cooling system etc, just so I have a known starting point as it were. I never, ever trust the recorded service history on its own, so if you have any doubts at all, it's a good idea to change it and, personally, I would get it done sooner rather than later.
MB auto 'boxes seem quite sensitive to having the right transmission fluid.

Maybe that's just me being paranoid though!