Looking to make the 240D faster
 

I have heard there are some simple things you can do to get more power out of your old diesel mercedes, was wondering if anyone had any insight on this? *disclaimer* I am not trying to turn my car into a race car, I would just like it to drive as fast as normal cars off the line.

Alignment ,air in tires,cooling system flush and a big turbo ,no sorry ,the turbo is not possible for the 240.You could find a good 300d turbo and keep this one for long commutes.

Checking and optimizing the fuel supply pressure in the base of the injection pump will give you some additional power. Especially if it is substandard now. There is a pretty comprehensive thread on this in the archives.There are other possible benifits as well.

Some simple things like making sure when you press the pedal the injection linkage advances the lever on the injection pump to its stop. Common complaint as the linkages parts age.

A 240d has to be kept in optimum tune to be practical. It is one of those cars that basically you want everything that is avaialable powerwise. A 0-60mph timed run is a starting point on a flat surface to see if you are currently sub standard or relatively normal at present.

240D? I've got one... the best solution I've been able to come up with is a grapple hook on the front. Shoot it out to catch the trailer hitch of somebody going faster than you are.

Have you read the specs for your car? You are working with a third of the horsepower of many small modern ricers. Even with the gobs of diesel torque, you can't wish reality to go away.

Even if you bolt a low-pressure turbo onto an OM616, I very much doubt it will make much difference off the line. A 300sd with a five-cylinder turbodiesel isn't as quick as a modern car, with sophisticated computer engine controls, off the line.

A 300sdl or w124 300d with a six-cylinder turbodiesel with electronic engine controls, probably is.

You a driving a car with a normally aspirated diesel engine that is designed based on the state of the technological art in the late 1950s.

I understand what you want but you can't make melons out of oranges. If you have the wherewithal I suggest you keep the 240d as your 'special' car and look for a used VW Tdi as a daily driver.

Faster off the line? Put smaller wheels on the back!

As the others have said, the only way to get reasonable performance from a 240D is to make sure everything is absolutely perfect. Any lose of performance is very noticeable. My 240D auto is currently shifting early, which makes it unacceptable slow unless you shift it manually. I have it in the shop now, we are going to try swapping out the transmission valve body.

Over the years this is the ' AH HA ' moment people post about the most... pretty much free, a DIY job.....and if yours is not set right when you start the results can be dramatic.... some people stopped cursing at their 240 once they adjusted their linkage correctly....

You must be a fan of fantasy fiction.:D

Linkage, very important and valve adjustment -all the basics should be covered thoroughly first to provide a good baseline -

I don't mean to sound like an ass...but you could just accept that you own a slow car. I do too. It's not a bad thing.

Bigger hill? Slower stopwatch?

They're very good cars at what they can do, accelerating fast is not one of them.

I second the comments about the linkage. When I bought my 240D I thought it was just naturally slow. My mechanic drove it, detected the problem & fixed it. The difference was night and day. It's still not a rocket ship, but it's perfectly fine for normal driving. Once it's up to speed it just purrs along happily forever.

quote
{They're very good cars at what they can do, accelerating fast is not one of them.}

That about sums it up, and as said in the above threads. get every thing adjusted as best as you can, clean filters and just hammer down. you are only looking at 67 naturally exasperated horse power.

Having a manual transmission will help over having an automatic.

I live at sea level about 70 miles south of San Francisco. at sea level it runs pretty good, and I can keep up with the majority of drivers. except for the idiots that go faster than me.:rolleyes:

Since the first of April, I have been to Portland Oregon, and 2 trips to Carson City, Nevada where I am now. I will say at 7700ft she is a bit slow going over Hwy 50. and it is around 4500ft here on the valley floor. I do see a her being sluggish on any little up grade, and especially with 4 people inthe car.
Between Redding, Ca and Ashland, Or is the Siskiyou`s which is quite a climb and will get you racing the 18 wheelers.

Next week Iam heading down to Semi Valley (Los Angeles) and going over the Grape Vine on Hwy I-5 should be interesting. If any of you see an Ivory colored 240, honk as you fly by.

Down hill the 240 will have no problem. :D

with you living in Tampa, Fl it should be pretty flat terrain and shouldn`t be much of a problem. bottom line all depends on your age and Testosterone level how fast you want to go.


Charlie

"Off the line" constitutes a dead stop. Make sure you shift it into first gear. At a dead stop, drop your automatic shifter all the way into the lowest gear. Then you can either shift it back to drive or get ready to manually upshift. Normally just starting out in drive, they are in second.