Came across a rod bender that had bent its rod today

[braverichard]

Yep. I was just driving down a section in town when I saw this clean looking W140 with an asking price of just $5999. Hmmm... I said to myself. I pulled into the car lot and right away the sales man correctly guessed what attracted me there. It was a used foreign car dealership. That W140 was clean and had all maintenance records from its first oil change at 2,900 miles. A clean 1995 S350 Turbodiesel. The car has just 171K miles and the salesman explained "the engine is dead." I asked him for details and he said he didn't know the exact details that all he could tell me was that the PO couldn't buy a new engine for it so he traded it in for a 1998 E-class diesel which they also had for sale. I got the owner's information, contacted him and he explained that not only did the car bend its rods, it has had a leaking head gasket for over 4,000 miles and finally nearly completely lost compression. He told me some other stories but basically, the engine was truly dead. The headgasket leak was caused by his son who drove the car while it was overheating - thanks to a defective thermostat. From all indications, this was a car that was perfectly cared for. He was the original owner and he wasn't too depressed about losing the car as he felt that over the 10 years he had owned it that he already got his money out of it. Anyway, really long story but overall this is one nice, car: black outside, tan inside, even has heated seats all around with a rear sunshade!

My question here is: can I get a used 3.0L I-6 Turbodiesel engine and put it in there? Will it work with the rest of the car? I'd hate to have to stick to that defective 3.5L engine. I might buy one only to have it bend its rods the next day. Has anyone ever tried this, or know someone who has? Thanks!

I'm going to go out on a limb here and say yes! I don't see why you could not put a 603 from 86-87 era in it. They are the same block basically and they are not as guzzied up with electronic crap!

Someone with the absolute answer will post, I'm sure!

[lietuviai]

Heck if a 603 would fit then why not consider a 617? It's the most reliable diesel engine that MB ever built and parts are plentiful, reasonable and you won't need to rely on a stealership.

[braverichard]

I'd love to have a 617 in there of course. However I don't know how the car would feel powering that heavy W140 chassis. The 617 won't have enough power for it. I think the 603 would be able to supply adequate power.

[H2O2]

If I came across a good deal on a W140 rodbender, I'd just locate another known good OM603.96 and drop that straight in. SDL donors can be had for fairly cheap these days. The only caveat would be the frightening level of electronics found on the rest of the car--very complicated.

I think an OM617 would have to struggle mightily to move that big hunk of steel around, and would no doubt return lousy fuel mileage.

[Brian Carlton]

I'm quite sure that the 603.961 engine will fit in place of that engine. Basically it's the same engine. There will be some electronics issues to deal with, I'm sure, but it shouldn't be a difficult thing.

I would question the transmission. I don't know if you need to keep the transmission from the 603.961 or whether you can use the trans from the W140.

I wouldn't give him $5K for that vehicle without an engine, that's for sure. I think it's worth about $2K at most. Anyone seriously contemplating replacing that engine with the proper engine is looking at about $8K to $10K. Nobody in their right mind would do this.

[ohcaptainron]

I looked at doing the same thing a year or so ago. Best case I think is to find a good 86-87 block then strip everything from the original engine including an updated head an you are good to go.
Ron

[Hatterasguy]

That W140 is probably worth $5k for parts alone. A rebuilt 3L 603 runs about $7k, I would imagin a 3.5 would be about the same.

$5k for the car +$7k for the engine + $1k for stuff = mint 1995 300SD for $13k. Heck you could sell it for more then that.

I would put another 3.5 in it because these engines are different and the extra torque of the 3.5 is needed in the W140. Not to mention with the new rods you shouldn't have a problem. I would have no problem owning a 3.5 with updated rods.

[braverichard]

Are you sure that the new rods are trouble free? Indeed, I could do this project just for the money I can make when I resell the car, but if I go ahead and do all this I will be keeping that car! The PO told me he never had to make a single warranty claim while it was under warranty. From what I saw in the receipts, not much was done in terms of repairs. I saw replacements of the alternator, power steering pump, seat motor and master cylinder and not much else from what I can remember. This could be a really nice, reliable car once the engine problem is solved. Plus Star Motors will charge me just $500 for the labor. Or I could help my friend who has been working on cars longer than I've been alive and we could do it ourselves and save that money, but I think I'd rather let the Mercedes specialists do it. So given all this, if I decide to go on with this project, I'd like a car I can own without worrying about any more rods being bent.

I checked with Adist and they don't seem to have any rebuilt 3.5L engines for sale. Where can I get some price quotes other than the dealer?

[300sdlguy]

Better ask if the A/C worked last he knew....if not your most likely looking at the $3000 evap replacement, and if that replacement was never done, its only a matter of time before it will be necessary, its defective in design and even the most pampered eventually need it replaced.

[mplafleur]

Originally Posted by Brian Carlton

I'm quite sure that the 603.961 engine will fit in place of that engine. Basically it's the same engine. There will be some electronics issues to deal with, I'm sure, but it shouldn't be a difficult thing.

I would question the transmission. I don't know if you need to keep the transmission from the 603.961 or whether you can use the trans from the W140.

I wouldn't give him $5K for that vehicle without an engine, that's for sure. I think it's worth about $2K at most. Anyone seriously contemplating replacing that engine with the proper engine is looking at about $8K to $10K. Nobody in their right mind would do this.

C'mon, a good bodied '86-87 SDL w/bad engine is worth $2k.

What do you need to do other than replace the con-rods, the head gasket, etc?

Doesn't sound all that expensive. (wait, plus the liners, or 1st over work) If I didn't already have an SDL to rebuild and a garage to build, I'd jump all over it. I'd love a w140 diesel.

[braverichard]

Originally Posted by 300sdlguy

Better ask if the A/C worked last he knew....if not your most likely looking at the $3000 evap replacement, and if that replacement was never done, its only a matter of time before it will be necessary, its defective in design and even the most pampered eventually need it replaced.

I'll check on that as soon as I can. Thanks for reminding me. I already forgot. I think I'll do some research and compile a list of all the W140 problematic areas and see how many have been attended to on this car.

[michakaveli]

sounds like an awesome buy and new toy, as long as the price is right.

What other electronics are in there? Is the engine in that w140 controlled as extensively through electronics like my '97 E300. For example I known that the injection pump on mine is mechanical but has the ECM controlling the fuel rate into the IP.

I personally would love one of those 350SD or 300SD's in the w140 chassis.

[H2O2]

This would be an excellent candidate for a Super Turbo project...

[Krawsczyn]

Originally Posted by mplafleur

C'mon, a good bodied '86-87 SDL w/bad engine is worth $2k.

What do you need to do other than replace the con-rods, the head gasket, etc?

Doesn't sound all that expensive. (wait, plus the liners, or 1st over work) If I didn't already have an SDL to rebuild and a garage to build, I'd jump all over it. I'd love a w140 diesel.

Usually when a car blows a head gasket it puts water in the oil and a lot of wear occurs.