I’ve a few with mine. I got it last Monday. I’m not going to do one of them stupid in depth analyasis of it compared to other models but i’ve three big problems with mine.
Gearbox(its auto),steering/handling and the digitach.
First the digitach. Now i take back anything good i ever said about them before. Its a right pain in the arse. Its the complete opposite to any digitach i’ve had before. It reverts to break if you switch the engine off or stop. How can that be right? I put it on work then drive, stop do some work only to find out its go on to break? I never put it on break. Then the clocks out an hour, and it measures 15 seconds as 2 minutes? I aint worried about losing driving time but its still a load of ■■■■■■■■.
The steering handles like a go kart with a flat tyre. Motorway ruts it handles very badly whether its empty or loaded. Mind you my steering wheel is not ‘square on’ so whether its someting not aligned up properly i don’t know but if you hear that a Merc has taken a lorry out in lane two then put some money on it that its me thats done it.
Gearbox, its auto. How can the clutch ‘go’ and not work and need a ‘visit to the workshop’ ? WHy when it ‘goes’ am i usually on the pad at Seaforth waiting to jump onto a bay with ten angry, keen trucks behind me waiting to do the same as they look at me like i’m a ■■■■■■■■ as i switch the engine off and wait for it to ‘reset’? Or it goes as i’m on the way out of Eldapoint in Kirkby with all the staff in their cars behind me, and again i have to switch off and wait for it to reset while someone comes up and tells me “you can’t stop there mate” !!!
How did i keep my DAF’s numberplate for more than six months but lose my new one in the first week?
I know i’m one of them guys with an answer for everything, but i have to admit there are some things i don’t know ! 
Ive always found that Merc wallow into corners and roll quite a bit,think its just getting used to Mercedes characteristics,I hated mine when I first had it.
Ive got a Siemens Digi Tach in mine which stays on the mode i leave it on,but have heard that some of the new ones go straight onto break.
you have to be careful with using POA too as it will take that as break and reset after 45 minutes your driving time even though you havent had an 'official’break on the bed symbol,hence why i dont use it.
as with the 2 minutes thing,if you start driving at 05:59.50 secs and drive for 20 seconds finishing at 06:00.10 secs then as you have been driving over the minute,it will take that as 2 minutes as it rounds it up.
also if you are stopped for less than 3 minutes and then start to move,it will add the stationary minutes (if less than 3 minutes)onto your driving time 
best thing to do is let the minute tick over and then move, for 20 seconds and then not move again for 3 minutes. 
Hope this helps
I dont understand what you mean about the clutch. If its auto how does it have a clutch. Is the truck new?
Merc, problems
I knew you’d tell the difference big time. 
ellies dad:
I dont understand what you mean about the clutch. If its auto how does it have a clutch. Is the truck new?
All the Auto trucks are not truly auto. Well tell a lie, they are in as much as you don’t touch a clutch. What we (or i do anyway) understand as ‘Auto’ usually has a torque convertor which is a fluid flywheel, and it is this along with the valves in the box that change the gears. The modern ‘auto’ trucks are actually a [insert number of gears] manual box with a proper clutch, what we understand as a manual clutch complete with friction plate and cover plate, its just that its operated ‘automatically’. End result is similar but its a big difference in operation. Truck is brand new.
Bikemonkey, i know the theory and practice,but its still ■■■■■■■■ !!
Dafmad i know why you love DAF’s !!!
Mike-C:
ellies dad:
I dont understand what you mean about the clutch. If its auto how does it have a clutch. Is the truck new?All the Auto trucks are not truly auto. Well tell a lie, they are in as much as you don’t touch a clutch. What we (or i do anyway) understand as ‘Auto’ usually has a torque convertor which is a fluid flywheel, and it is this along with the valves in the box that change the gears. The modern ‘auto’ trucks are actually a [insert number of gears] manual box with a proper clutch, what we understand as a manual clutch complete with friction plate and cover plate, its just that its operated ‘automatically’. End result is similar but its a big difference in operation. Truck is brand new.
Bikemonkey, i know the theory and practice,but its still ■■■■■■■■ !!
Dafmad i know why you love DAF’s !!!
■■■■ me-for someone thats not into trucks you know alot 
If it has a clutch pedal its not auto so im still not sure about the answer.
I’ll try anyway. if you have a clutch and its not going into gear you must wait for the clicks 
If you dont have a clutch and its not going into gear then you need to visit the garage. i have never had this problem with mine so somethings wrong.
As for the steering -well obviously you need to visit the garage for this too.
My taco is stoneridge and goes onto hammers as soon as i stop. Im told siemens are better but again you seem to be the exception.
Youre right about the number plate thou,■■■■■■ mercs 
i seen u the other day in ure merc goin down perimeter road (1 tha lead to greycourt) 1 day last week, i was in the work van so u wudnt have seen me, they do look nice my dad drives 1 for p&o an he hasnt had no probs with his although his is gearbox is the clicky 1 !
very occasionally on mine it will not give me neutral when i turn the ignition on.
it usually happens when ive turned the engine off for just a minute or two (ie , on a weighbridge etc).
if i turn the engine off then put the ignition back on then the neutral sign is on.
if i dont put the ignition back on the the neutral doe not show, but the display just flashes manual or auto.
the old merc autos did this quite a bit.
ive heard of similar problems with the powershifts and i think they have started having them back in to reprogramme the computer.
Don’t mention the Siemens digi tach in the Merc. What a pain everytime you turn the ignition off it reverts to break and you have to remember to change mode.It can be reset by an agent (about £30) we were told but our tight bottomed boss won’t spend the money.Therefore we get lots of beds showing on printout for 2 or 3 minutes.
Then when you want to restart you have to wait for the computer,if you try to start the engine to quickly it’s back to the beginning again hence lots of idling time which boss does not like.
No problem with gearbox though,it is a Powershift though.
Steering,I reported mine for pulling to left on 1st service,nothing done,it’s worse now.Nothing to do with camber I can be on right hand lane and it still goes left,beginning to give me RSI in right hand.
disgo:
Don’t mention the Siemens digi tach in the Merc. What a pain everytime you turn the ignition off it reverts to break and you have to remember to change mode.It can be reset by an agent (about £30) we were told but our tight bottomed boss won’t spend the money.Therefore we get lots of beds showing on printout for 2 or 3 minutes.
Then when you want to restart you have to wait for the computer,if you try to start the engine to quickly it’s back to the beginning again hence lots of idling time which boss does not like.
No problem with gearbox though,it is a Powershift though.
Steering,I reported mine for pulling to left on 1st service,nothing done,it’s worse now.Nothing to do with camber I can be on right hand lane and it still goes left,beginning to give me RSI in right hand.
Glad its not just me !! The ignition is a real pain in the arse. That tacho default to break is quite a serious problem i would say, its a real pain. How it can ‘default’ to a break is beyond me. I’m not suprised your boss doesn’t want to pay £30 to have it reset though, it shouldn’t need re setting. If it defaults to break then as far as i’m concerned that is a serious fault. Add to that the fact that it does not compute how the regs are it almost beggars belief how it can come up and warn you when you need a break and you don’t, or it doesn’t warn you and you do. I reckon someone with any nouse about them would have a field day in court if they where prosecuted due to one of them things !!
Anyway, off my soap box. Here’s what the clutch problem shows, this just ‘went like that’ when i was driving along in Eldapoint doing about 10mph with an empty skelly on the back.
Bear in mind, when it doies this it defaults to neutral and the only way out of it is to stop, switch off wait about a minute and restart. I just hope it doesn’t go when i enter a roundabout or pull out of a t junction. Told the gaffer anyway, no one else has reported it although a few of the lads have said to me they have the same thing 
He’s gonna speak to Merc about it.
As the sign says
VISIT WORKSHOP
ps. I dont know how those problems made it thru the trucks pdi. It looks very shabby to me.
Ellies dad:
These auto boxes DO have a clutch but DON’T have a clutch pedal.
What you have is a computer to make all the decisions for you and to work the clutch and gear change. Takes a bit of getting used to but once you do it’s great.
Hope that helps:)
When we got the new motors in 2004 several pulled left under normal driving & possibly (I can’t remember) steering wheel not straight.
The tracking was checked several times and always found to be ok. Turned out to be rear axle out of alignment. This would give you your over reaction to ruts problem too.
Ask Roadrange to get the laser alignment guy down.
Digi tachos are set to UTC time, so during the Summer it will show an hour out. You must remember to allow for this if making manual entries.
Don’t know about it constantly reverting to sleep, but sounds like the default mode record is wrongly set. (now i’ve read the thread to the end i see you’ve sussed that one mike).
see here: RHA
Santa:
Ellies dad:These auto boxes DO have a clutch but DON’T have a clutch pedal.
What you have is a computer to make all the decisions for you and to work the clutch and gear change. Takes a bit of getting used to but once you do it’s great.
Hope that helps:)
I was told that the clutch only comes into use when you start and stop. It powershifts thru the (matches the rpm to the gear speed) gears when moving.
I have had no problems with my powershift 12,yet 
Bloody German rubbish…
Ken.
Quinny:
Bloody German rubbish…Ken.
Agreed PMSL They still can’t get the hang of building anything any good.
You get a new truck and all you do is moan Mike
Okey-Didley-Dokely:
You get a new truck and all you do is moan Mike
the thread title says it all!
merc…problems! 
at least it aint an axor!
Haven’t got pwershift on mine, but they are very sensitive to any reduction in air. As soon as the gauge shows below 10 you can’t change gear (generally when reversing into a building ) - doesn’t look very good. Have to give it few revs or it gets very fussy.