PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum - Repowering 240d with non turbo 5 cyl

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Repowering 240d with non turbo 5 cyl

I know this has been discussed before..But a virus struck and I have lost all my notes.
I have a 240d with a oil guzzler motor -#3 hole is oval! I have a verrrry rusty 300d with a factory exchange motor with 2k miles as a donor vehicle

Will the 4 speed bolt to the 5cyl? Has any one did this ? If not and I use the slushbox I know I have to shorten the drive shaft 1 inch. What about the linkage?
Thanks in advance!

It will work and it has been done with the 617 turbo. R Leo has a nice thread on the job

Where can I access this post with the swap thread? This forum is great !

some other guy in California was doing this also. Forget his name. He is no longer posting but the archive search will give ya the infos.
Be patient.

It can be done...

It looks like the flywheel balancing from the 240 and shortening of the drive shaft will be the biggest issues. Of course the engine/ auto trans and diff from the 300d would be a direct bolt in. The 4 speed would give it more zip but it would be more money and hassle to do it . I wonder if the driveability difference would make it worthwhile?

Your call. If you like manual transmission then I would say it's well worth it.

If you are ambivalent, then go the easy route and swap in the other drivetrain. The drivetrain swap will be less involved but either way it's not 'plug and play'.

It might seem like a small almost insignificant "problem" but I think the throttle linkages would also need some modification if you didn't do the straight swap... don't forget the little things that will make it a pleasure to drive and start (and stop)!

I swapped a non turbo five cylinder into my eighty three two forty. Love it. I also swapped in a 307 diff from a 300 turbo and my five speed manual tranny. My 300d is a euro. I get 35 mpg hiway and over 20 town with it. Great driveabity too. The 300 has a lot more torque than the 240 even with the 307 diff.

You want to also go to a 346 rear end as a minimum to drop the rpm on the highway. That is what the 300 na came with.

You will also want a speedo that matches your rear end to make it all compatible.

And a 300 radiator.

It is a fair amount of work but nothing too complicated.

Oh and there is a motor mount on the back of the 240 oil pan that is not used with a 300 that must be removed and you will want to have a motor shock fabricated for the second motor shock used in the 300 motor.

Doing the whole swap would be the way I would go. The manual tranny behind the 617 is like driving the 240D on steroids. :D If you have both cars side by side all the little problems like linkage can be sorted out, and you'd have a fun car to drive.

I swapped in a 4-spd into my 85 300D, so I will say for the most part it is plug and play.

The 4-spd will bolt to the 5 cyl engine, use the FW from the 240 and have it matched to the auto FW plate. be sure to mark the plate and the crank so you then can bolt the manual FW to the same orientation. there should be a mark on the crank/FW.

use the 240D auto X mount for the trans mount. it has 4 bolts to mount it to the body.
The manual shifter will bolt into the same holes as the auto shifter.
The shift rods will have to be shortened and tweeked some to line up. not a big deal.
Use the front section of the 240 drive Line, and have it shortened and balanced along with the rear section at a good DL shop that can do the MB`s. good time to replace the U-joint and center bearing.
since you have both cars, then you will have all the parts except for the X mount. the 240 manual X mount is longer and only uses 2 holes and some have modifyied it. best to find a 240 auto mount.
The peddle assy will bolt right in, uses the same holes and 13mm nuts. the only difference between the two peddle assy, is, the manual with the clutch peddle has a longer shaft for the second peddle arm to hang on.

Your 240 will have the 3:69 diff, use the Diff from the 300D and it`s spedo. the spedo`s are matched to the Differential.

would be a good time to bolt on a new Master Cylinder while you have the peddle assy in your hands, instead of standing on your head working under the dash trying to bolt it on.

I picked up 3 mpg with the swap, and am pleased with it. I have the 2:88 Diff, and getting 30 to 31 plus on the Hwy. a 3:07 might be a better combination. it seem like with mine, there could be a gear between 2 & 3 and between 3 & 4.

Would I do it again? YES!!!

If some one has not done the swap and not interested in doing it, then you will hear all the reasons not to do it.

Will there be some expences to the job? yes. as with everything in life and worth doing, there is a cost.

have fun and take pictures.

Charlie

i just completed a 240d manual to 300d manual. well, a local shop did it for me. i was lucky enough to find a euro 300d with manual transmission attached. WOW what a difference. it really feels like a modern car. 1st gear is a little short -need to change the differential soon. my biggest complaint is the weight of the engine. i'm going to have to put bigger springs on the front. i just can't decide weather to get new ones or junkyard ones.

Did the swap 6 years ago and love it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Army (Post 2780272)

nope not an issue. The throttle linkages on the 617a are different on the engine but the throttle input from the pedal is the same with I think the only exception being the rod that comes off the firewall to the engine. Or they might be the same.

They are different. I had to mount the bushing from my 300TD for it to work.

Quote:

Originally Posted by frontwheel (Post 2780560)

I did sort of the reverse of yours. a 240D trans into a 300D.
when we got through, the front end sat higher, and wondered on the highway. just the weight difference between the auto to a manual trans, is very noticeable.

So I replaced the front springs with some from a 240D. I do notice it is a little soft in the turns on a windy mountain road. not real bad, but noticeable. so I now have a front sway bar from a 300TD to install. these are 2 mm thicker than the sedan bars.

Also since the swap I replaced the rear suspension bushings and diff mount.

Look at the 3rd and 4th picture, shows the nose hight attitude.
http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/2227110-post100.html

Pic 1 and 3. the silver one
http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/2227118-post103.html

Charlie

I am using the 240d springs on the front of my car. It was originally an automatic so the weight difference of the motor is somewhat set off by the lighter stick tranny. It sits a slight amount low but looks and handles fine.;)

I miss my 617.91x + 4spd euro 300d. Despite the power difference it was quite spritely.

Quote:

Originally Posted by TheDon (Post 2780734)

Good to know - thanks => that's going into the data bank for that throttle linkage thread I'm planning.

Edit - bugger - I've just seen forcedinduction's post...

These linkages really are a pain.

I just finished mine in June and have at most 1500 miles on it. I put my 617Turbo/85 into a 240D/83. I had both cars to start at tear down 18 months ago. But I quickly got everything I needed from the 85 and called the junkman for the rest of the car. I pretty much swapped in the whole 85 drive line. I had just replaced the axles, so they went in with the differential. I went new on all the small stuff -Hoses, belts, mounts, clamps, oil cooler lines, ect. I did have a problem with the throwout bearing being a little big, but a night in the freezer and a good hammer and socket set up in the morning sent it all the way in. (I hope I don't have to pull it out) I eliminated the safeties on the turbo, new tube to the ALDA with a tee off to the gauge in the dash. It runs super when running 5 to 6 lbs boost, and really gets with it at 10 lbs. At 10 lbs the waste gate opens and it has a slight steam whistle scream at least in 2 and 3 gear. Gear spacing and driving is much like my 300E 5 speed without a first gear. I don't know for sure the ratio out of the 85 300D automatic, it could be a 2.73 I guess and it is fast. First gear starts really are a must, reverse also is very fast, just not a car to get out into the weeds with . But it does not get any of those conditions around here, nothing but pavement. I don't have a real hard number on fuel mileage at this time, but I am running a test on it for this tank. But I know it is fantastic. On my 50 miles per day I suspect actual numbers will be between 25 and 30 mpg. I didn't balance anything, since I had no reference point on the busted 240D I pulled out of the car. So we just kept our fingers crossed and put it together. New bolts in the flywheel. Used the 240D flywheel and I feel that does allow a bit of engine vibes under load and at low engine speed. As long as I stay over 20 in 2nd, over 30 in 3rd, and over 40/43 in 4th, it is very smooth. At some time in the past something hit this car on the bottom right along the driveshaft. It cut an 8 to 10 gash in the floor and cracked the shifter mount almost in half and I suspect broke one of the ears off the rear of the fourspeed. Consequently I do not have the very good mount for the exhaust that Mercedes had in mind. If I have to pull the transmission, I would consider getting a new ear welded on. I did fab a mount for the pipe forward of the front muffler and perhaps I can relax that a bit with rubber. The EGR is all removed, the AC is removed from under the hood and so my only vacuum needs are engine shut off and the locking system, pretty simple. I installed it using only one new engine shock on the drivers side. There was no bracket on the pass side so it didn't get one. I also had to cut and paste the bracket for the water recovery coolant system. The car runs so well, and right on the mark for engine temperature and the heater in the 240D setup is terrific. I don't really need AC on my cars, though we do have one car with AC. But my old Mercedes do just fine for me without AC and it saves a ton of expense and a lot of mechanical hassle. I tend to let the fan alternator belts to run a bit lite, less tension on them will serve the front pulley and the water pump well. Only the AC requires that the belts have to be so tight and then on the W123 there is two of them. That is real load on those bearings, and I am happy to reduce that load. I really expect to keep this beautiful W123 for a long time. I love that mileage. My favorite junkman let me know that he had a running 617Turbo and wanted to get rid of it, Ihad to check it out. Went out there, it was in the car, in the weeds, sitting out there for a year. We put a battery in it, jumped the starter, and without glo plugs warming, it fired up in a flat instant. Startled us so Danny didn't keep it running, so we did it again, ran it for a minute or two, pulled it and the transmission and have them tucked away in my garage. Why? Because I would like to do another one. Wife says no way, but if I started it now, this fall, I could finish it before my 80th birthday. I really am pretty slow! But wouldn't that be a deal - to have two of them runners. People would get me mixed up with Tom W, but he has a mitt full of them. Oh, you know the color of this beauty is "Mayo" Yup. mayo decribes it best. But it has no paint stripe on it. But at a paint store this AM I found a 3M Stripe kit in Ketchup, yes ketchup tomato red and that will be beautiful on that car, it really is missing the stripe. I would rather get it painted on, but for now this will do.