Originally Posted by BillGrissom

Just to clarify, my OM617.952 (1985 CA 300D) has "dry liners", as I expect all similar M-B diesels do. I replaced my liners. Lookup my post w/ photos. 1986+ engines have an aluminum block, so may be slightly different, though heating the block should help more with them.

Driving a cheap screwdriver between the liner and block from the bottom quickly splits a slot in the cast iron so you can peel it out (1 min job). As I recall, there is a lip at the bottom of the block that the new liner seats on and a recess groove at the top. To get the new ones in, I heated the block over a propane stove and chilled the liners in the freezer. Wasn't quite enough as I still had to use a sledgehammer to knock them down. I put a thick steel block on top of the liner to hit (not an idiot), otherwise you could crack it. When it seats, you know by the sound. If I did it again, I would sand the block more and use thin grease. I can't envision a liner shifting once installed, even with grease left between it and the block. The block surface isn't smooth and has small circumferential grooves.