Who currently makes the OEM Mercedes transmission fluids?

No, it could be very well approved by MB! Just because it has a different KV100 does not mean it is not approved. And the same manufacturer might make fluid for MB.
Castrol makes a new LL01 for BMW (5W30) that has completely different values from Edge 5W30 aftermarket oil that is also approved by BMW. It meets the minimum what BMW wants in order to be approved.
Have you seen UOA or VOA on this oil yet? It's even available in 5L jugs for $38 (83-21-5-A2A-F85).


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No, it could be very well approved by MB! Just because it has a different KV100 does not mean it is not approved. And the same manufacturer might make fluid for MB.
Castrol makes a new LL01 for BMW (5W30) that has completely different values from Edge 5W30 aftermarket oil that is also approved by BMW. It meets the minimum what BMW wants in order to be approved.
If it was approved by MB, it would be on the list that MB puts out. The current one out there says that there are only two approved 236.21 fluids out there.

 
Ok. I am talking generalities. That still doesn’t mean they are not making it.
They're basically making a non approved fluid that says it meets the requirement of the spec but it's not certified by the car manufacturer that it actually meets the spec. Or what they're really saying is that you can use this fluid in the application that calls for a specific spec but it's unknown whether that fluid actually meets that spec or not.
 
Good info... I am going to go with the MB fluids for technicality and some nostalgic satisfaction
My normal stock of oils were for the VW Passat I let go to the daughter and I will use that remaining STP Euro 5w40 (Amalie) to maintain that until my stock is gone

Why do so few of the major labels make a dual clutch fluid just figured it would be a little more common?? ..... some MB bottles look like Petronas and some are quite unique and then others literally look so generic it borders on looking "bootleg"

I'm off to research the coolant mine appears to be very dark green in the tester my research so far says it's supposed to be blue
 
Why do so few of the major labels make a dual clutch fluid just figured it would be a little more common?? ..... some MB bottles look like Petronas and some are quite unique and then others literally look so generic it borders on looking "bootleg"

I'm off to research the coolant mine appears to be very dark green in the tester my research so far says it's supposed to be blue
Probably because it's still somewhat new. Usually takes them a while to come out with new fluids as they just figure when it's new, most people just get it done at the dealer, once it's out for a while, then maybe they take it to an indy shop and that's when they're looking for aftermarket items. Or there just isn't enough volume to justify making it. That's one of the drawbacks of Mercedes, things like quickstruts are hard to find because there's no volume like you would have in an Accord or Camry.

As for the Shell fluid, you can get it from a Shell distributor or try and see if your local Shell station will order it for you. I used to get Shell ATF 134 directly from a distributor, they didn't mind selling directly to the public and it was much cheaper at around $5 a quart than the MB fluid at over $20 a quart at the dealer. Had to buy it by the case (12 quarts) though.

 
I recently bought a 2017 Mercedes GLC 43 and came across this threat as I was doing research on a tranny filter change. I live in Japan and was trying to source MB approved oil here and came across a German brand "Swag" on Amazon Japan. I had never heard of them but their bottles look almost identical to MB bottles, any thoughts? I wasn't able to find anything saying they are an OEM oil manufacturer but the similarity in bottles really caught my attention.

 

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If it’s not listed in the Bevo - it’s not approved by Mercedes. Might be fine. Might not. I would stick to products on Mercedes’ list, and not take chances.
 
I recently bought a 2017 Mercedes GLC 43 and came across this threat as I was doing research on a tranny filter change. I live in Japan and was trying to source MB approved oil here and came across a German brand "Swag" on Amazon Japan. I had never heard of them but their bottles look almost identical to MB bottles, any thoughts? I wasn't able to find anything saying they are an OEM oil manufacturer but the similarity in bottles really caught my attention.

That looks like Febi brand or the same blender as the MB bottle .....I ended up going with Liqui Moly
 
I've been looking at the bottles for the OEM Mercedes transmission fluids but don't recognize them. The gear oils are Castrol (they don't even relabel or rebrand them).

Here is an example of the bottle, the OEM 236.17 ultra-low viscosity ATF "FE" for the Jatco 9-speeds. Given that the list of approved oils for this spec is so small, I'm thinking it's made by Fuchs, Shell, Ravenol, or Sinopec....but it doesn't look like any of their bottles. The datasheet says it's made in Germany.

Oddly enough, that bottle design seems to be used by Vaico who I've never even heard of.
I did some poking around with this given my 2022 Nissan Frontier uses the Jatco built version of the MB 9G tronic 9spd. Nissan calls for Matic-P fluid for it. Of course Valvoline Maxlife is suitable for use where 236.17 is called for, which is the 9G tronic fluid. I realize this opens up all kinds of opinions, experiences, emotions, etc. LOL
 
That looks like Febi brand or the same blender as the MB bottle .....I ended up going with Liqui Moly
What made you go with Liqui Moly if you don't mind me asking?
I ask because I almost went with them as the price was very appealing (~10$ on FCP Euro vs ~28$ for the MB oil + and they're a reputable company), but since my GLC is pretty new (for me) and I might have it for little while (and paranoia usually makes me stick with oils/products approved by the manufacture in cars I car about) I ended up going with the MB brand oil but was lucky enough to find it on ebay for ~$16 a quart.
 
Original fill is Shell.
Vaico, Continental, and Febi were, and may still, be Fuchs/Pentosin in the bottle. The US importer of these brands was CRP when I checked with CRP last year.
Need to go to one of the MB forums, better info.
 
What made you go with Liqui Moly if you don't mind me asking?
I ask because I almost went with them as the price was very appealing (~10$ on FCP Euro vs ~28$ for the MB oil + and they're a reputable company), but since my GLC is pretty new (for me) and I might have it for little while (and paranoia usually makes me stick with oils/products approved by the manufacture in cars I car about) I ended up going with the MB brand oil but was lucky enough to find it on ebay for ~$16 a quart.
My main reason it was in stock at NAPA that being said I will most likely go with Amalie next drain and fill
 
I recently bought a 2017 Mercedes GLC 43 and came across this threat as I was doing research on a tranny filter change. I live in Japan and was trying to source MB approved oil here and came across a German brand "Swag" on Amazon Japan. I had never heard of them but their bottles look almost identical to MB bottles, any thoughts? I wasn't able to find anything saying they are an OEM oil manufacturer but the similarity in bottles really caught my attention.

I would strongly recommend to only use fluids for your MB that are approved. Always consult the Mercedes Benz Operating Fluids site. (Previously known as Bevo. You can still type in bevo.mercedes-benz.com, and it will redirect you to the site below.)

If you have spent the money to buy a Mercedes, for goodness sake, then spend the money to put quality fluids in it. Mercedes is very reasonable in what it charges automotive fluid companies, to approve their products, so there are plenty of Approved fluids available for Mercedes.

To put anything in a Mercedes that isn't approved is just a crap shoot. Just like Astro14 said, you may or may not get a good fluid. Why risk it?

You just spent, what, $35k - $40k on your GLC43? And now you want to buy non MB approved fluids, so you can save $30 - $40? o_Oo_Oo_Oo_O


 
I would strongly recommend to only use fluids for your MB that are approved. Always consult the Mercedes Benz Operating Fluids site. (Previously known as Bevo. You can still type in bevo.mercedes-benz.com, and it will redirect you to the site below.)

If you have spent the money to buy a Mercedes, for goodness sake, then spend the money to put quality fluids in it. Mercedes is very reasonable in what it charges automotive fluid companies, to approve their products, so there are plenty of Approved fluids available for Mercedes.

To put anything in a Mercedes that isn't approved is just a crap shoot. Just like Astro14 said, you may or may not get a good fluid. Why risk it?

You just spent, what, $35k - $40k on your GLC43? And now you want to buy non MB approved fluids, so you can save $30 - $40? o_Oo_Oo_Oo_O


Amen brother, good advice and you're preaching to the choir!

I wouldn't use that brand unless someone had some credible insight that it is the same company that made it for MB and it wasn't advertised/updated as such. On vehicles I care about, I'm pretty religious about using only OE/OEM parts and approved fluids (exceptions being brake fluid, performance brake pads/rotors, wiper blades, washer fluid/waxes etc).

After a while, I am finally in a place in life where I can afford not to buy the cheapest parts and I don't take that for granted. In the 90s in highschool and a few years after, I sold car parts in both aftermarket and dealerships for ~7 years and the quality difference from aftermarket to OE was night and day in most cases (exceptions for some suspension & brake parts that were pretty similar, so long as you don't buy the cheapest aftermarket option). Prior to working at the dealerships I would always use the cheaper aftermarket parts, but once I saw the quality difference of OE, I would always go OE/OEM when I could afford it.

I was lucky and got a steal on my GLC 43 when the Yen to USD rate was at its peak, it came out to $28k for a 2017 w/ 66k kilometers, all options but A/C seats, and in immaculate condition! That said, I would be hard pressed to be able to afford any of my MBs unless I did the maintenance on them myself.
 
Amen brother, good advice and you're preaching to the choir!

I wouldn't use that brand unless someone had some credible insight that it is the same company that made it for MB and it wasn't advertised/updated as such. On vehicles I care about, I'm pretty religious about using only OE/OEM parts and approved fluids (exceptions being brake fluid, performance brake pads/rotors, wiper blades, washer fluid/waxes etc).

After a while, I am finally in a place in life where I can afford not to buy the cheapest parts and I don't take that for granted. In the 90s in highschool and a few years after, I sold car parts in both aftermarket and dealerships for ~7 years and the quality difference from aftermarket to OE was night and day in most cases (exceptions for some suspension & brake parts that were pretty similar, so long as you don't buy the cheapest aftermarket option). Prior to working at the dealerships I would always use the cheaper aftermarket parts, but once I saw the quality difference of OE, I would always go OE/OEM when I could afford it.

I was lucky and got a steal on my GLC 43 when the Yen to USD rate was at its peak, it came out to $28k for a 2017 w/ 66k kilometers, all options but A/C seats, and in immaculate condition! That said, I would be hard pressed to be able to afford any of my MBs unless I did the maintenance on them myself.

You are so right. OEM parts are the way to go. And doing your own maintenance does make driving a Mercedes affordable. I personally enjoy working on my E350. I love discovering some of the engineering.

That is a smoking deal on your GLC43.
 
These are the only 236.17 approved oils as of Nov 19, 2021, per BeVO:


ProductnamePrincipal
Mercedes-Benz Genuine ATF FE MB 236.17Mercedes-Benz AG, Stuttgart/Deutschland
Fuchs TITAN ATF 9134 FEFUCHS PETROLUB SE, Mannheim/Deutschland
RAVENOL ATF M 9-G SerieRavensberger Schmierstoffvertrieb GmbH, Werther/Deutschland
Shell D971Shell International Petroleum Company, LONDON/UNITED KINGDOM
Shell Spirax ATF M 9Shell International Petroleum Company, LONDON/UNITED KINGDOM
Shell Spirax S6 ATF D971Shell International Petroleum Company, LONDON/UNITED KINGDOM
Sinopec Greatwall ATF-B.17Lubricant Company, Sinopec Corp., Beijing/P. R. of CHINA


The Fuchs fluid shows KVs of 17.5 and 4.1, which don't match the specs in the OEM datasheet (18.5 and 4-4.25, respectively). I don't think Fuchs/Pentosin is making it for Mercedes.
Regardless of Price which is the Highest Quality?
And Does the OEM MB Contain Detergent?
 
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