Wow, this LubroMoly stuff is impressive! I ran about 1.5 cans thru the system and it eliminated the vast majority of my smoke. So either this stuff is really miraculous, or it's just really good at masking the problem for a little while. With no heat shields installed I really didn't think I would be able to notice much difference with the purge...

OK, now I can take everything apart once again.

Well this time pulling the injectors and valve cover took about 20 minutes. Nice. Especially since I had a guest watching as I did it, who now thinks I am an accomplished mechanic. Ha!

Given how nasty and old the injectors seem to be, I just went ahead and ordered some new Monark nozzles. And since I don't have a bench testing setup--in fact I don't even have a damn work bench--I'm sending the new nozzles and the old injectors to my man eatont9999, who is going to clean them up and rebuild them for me.

The valve adjustment went pretty smoothly. 3 of them didn't need adjustment, the rest were too tight. I managed to get a ratchet on the crankshaft bolt from above, so that made advancing the engine a lot easier than having to crawl underneath every time.

So, it seems pretty clear that my chain is off by 5 degrees. Is there anyone out there rebellious enough to tell me not to worry about for now? I'm on the cusp of a big move up to Oregon, where I will actually have a garage and workbench and I'd like to handle the timing chain then. Of course, I will be driving this car up to Oregon, so maybe I'd better be safe than sorry...

There is ongoing discourse here about the validity of that chain stretch method on a OM61X engine. Due to the parallax error in your photo of the cam mark, it is hard to tell if they are aligned. But assuming they are and that your stretch (or elongation as some here prefer) is 5 deg, that is not going to be a big deal for a trip to oregon. Save the work for later.

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1968 220D, w115, /8, OM615, Automatic transmission.
My 1987 300TD wagon was sold and my 2003 W210 E320 wagon was totaled (sheds tear).

I had a 74 that color. It was a California rust free car and just faded a bit. It had a lovely parchment interior but the seat pads were gone as expected. new pads are available and not too hard to install. Looks like a very nice car!

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[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

My best advice:

Replace the timing chain now.


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ASE Master Mechanic
asemastermechanic@juno.com

Prototype R&D/testing:
Thermal & Aerodynamic System Engineering (TASE) Senior vehicle instrumentation technician.
Noise Vibration and Harshness (NVH).
Dynamometer.
Heat exchanger durability.
HV-A/C Climate Control.
Vehicle build.
Fleet Durability
Technical Quality Auditor.
Automotive Technical Writer

1985 300SD
1983 300D
1984 190D
2003 Volvo V70
2002 Honda Civic

https://www.boldegoist.com/

If you follow whunter's advice, I encourage you to also read about changing out tensioners (or springs), chain guides, and chain tensioner guides. To do it right, there is a lot more to it than just swapping out a chain.

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1968 220D, w115, /8, OM615, Automatic transmission.
My 1987 300TD wagon was sold and my 2003 W210 E320 wagon was totaled (sheds tear).

I should get my injectors back from eatont9999 this week. He said they were the dirtiest injectors he'd ever seen! He pop tested them before disassembly and apparently they all leaked under pressure and the spray pattern was more like a garden hose...

In the mean time I replaced both fuel filters. There seems to be an awful lot of rust in my in-line filter. (photo attached) Is that pretty much par for the course on a 40 year old car, or is this indicative of issues in my fuel tank?

Attached Thumbnails

 

A separate discussion of what kind of heat shields I have (if any!), and how the hell to get them out!

i believe those little black dots are algae, or fungus, or spores, or mushrooms whatever they are, the normal fuel system cleaning may be in order.
tanks strainer replacement or cleaning
1 Oz of Startron Diesel stuff per tank for a bit
blasting out the fuel tank in place or removed
all new filters.


Then again I had great success just using the startron by itself. No removal of anything and it got me back blasting within a half a tank.

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1983 240d 5Sp SOLD
1986 300D(LUCO) SOLD
1983 300TD(dreamboat)SOLD
1984 240d (Executive)SOLD
1984 240d (Euripides) SOLD
1982 300sd SOLD
1982 300sd (Ambas)SOLD

My number one injector is nailing/clacking quite a bit upon start up, and then again when accelerating. Once the engine is nice and hot I don't seem to notice it at as much. The nozzles are new on all 4 injectors, so i don't know why number one is acting up. Perhaps I just need to replace the whole injector? If so, can I only do one of them or would I need to do them all?

I don't use any diesel additive. Perhaps I should see if that helps lubricate the injector and ends the nailing?

I appreciate your thoughts...

Where the injectors professionally rebuilt or did you just replace the nozzles? Try running and additive....there are mixed results but if you have a quarter of a tank, dump a bottle of seafoam in the tank....I was amazed that it helped....thought the best is to get diesel purge and clean the system under the hood...oh and have you drained and refilled the injection pump?

Diesel Purge Mercedes diesel maintenance tips

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I shipped the injectors to another user/contributor on this forum, and he cleaned, rebuilt, and bench tested them for me. I ran almost 2 cans of Diesel Purge through the system prior to replacing the nozzles. I have not drained and refilled the injection pump, but since there's been 5 or 6 tanks of gas run through the car since I did the nozzles I'm not sure what that would accomplish..?

First I would check these:
* Valve adjustment on that cylinder is slightly tight.
* Glow plug on that cylinder is marginal or bad.

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__________________
ASE Master Mechanic
asemastermechanic@juno.com

Prototype R&D/testing:
Thermal & Aerodynamic System Engineering (TASE) Senior vehicle instrumentation technician.
Noise Vibration and Harshness (NVH).
Dynamometer.
Heat exchanger durability.
HV-A/C Climate Control.
Vehicle build.
Fleet Durability
Technical Quality Auditor.
Automotive Technical Writer

1985 300SD
1983 300D
1984 190D
2003 Volvo V70
2002 Honda Civic

https://www.boldegoist.com/

The injection pump on the w115 isn't lubricated through the engine as they are in the w123 series. Here's s thread that shows how to change the oil in the pump

Injection pump maintenance

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