First, you are most likely to damage the engine by messing about with the existing system -- the reason the MB engine is so quiet and smooth is the design of the pre-chamber and injector.

You cannot use a waisted pintle injector on a direct injection engine, it will promptly burn a hole in the top of the piston. DI engines use side hole nozzles OR some other system of directing the flame into a diffuser of some sort -- on the CDI engines this is a steel insert in the piston that performs the fuctions of the prechamber (high swirl and flame diffusion).

Removing the ball pin will result in failure of the prechamber tip, with resultant engine damage from chunks of hardened steel roaming around in there during operation.

The prechamber and ball pin DO NOT reduce the power, they actually increase power, reduce noise, and permit higher rpm operation. They are there to promote even combustion for the entire injection cycle with longer flame duration. The holes in the tip both diffuse the flame away from the piston crown and set up a high velicity swirl in the pre-chamber that causes high mixing and efficient burn of the fuel during injection, etc.

You can do whatever you want, but you won't improve much on the MB design, and modifications to the prechamber (like removal of the ball pin) will give you running problems or damage.

Peter

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1972 220D ?? miles
1988 300E 200,012
1987 300D Turbo killed 9/25/07, 275,000 miles
1985 Volvo 740 GLE Turobodiesel 218,000
1972 280 SE 4.5 165, 000 - It runs!