220D engine swap to Ponton 190D - ???

[71inka02]

Greetings all -- a question for the experts....

Will the 2.2 Diesel engine, easily transplant into the W121 Ponton 190D?

I have an amazing 190D, (original CA / AZ car, NO rust) and the W115 220D....the 220D is Oregon car, solid, but needs interior overhaul, door & window seals....but runs amazingly strong with nice 4 speed tranny. I'm thinking how nice it would be to have the 190D capable of better hi-way cruising......

Any thoughts as to if the transplant could be done fairly easily by experienced Indy MB tech...? Thanks in advance for your input, experience & suggestions.

Cheers,

[t walgamuth]

I don't know from experience but I believe the early 115 transmissions will bolt up to the earlier engine and vice versa. I would think this swap has been done before too.

[Mark DiSilvestro]

Some things to look at -

I believe the 220D engine is about the same dimensions as the Ponton unit, but the later engine's center-mounts won't work in the Ponton.
So check for four threaded holes at the front of the 220D block to install the Ponton's front motor-mount brackets.

Also, earlier Pontons used two rear engine mounts, while later ones, like my '61 180b, had a tranny mount setup similar to the 220D.

The Ponton's front stabilzer-bar passes very close to the front of the Ponton engine and may not clear the balancer & pulley used on the 220D engine.

Also see if the 220D engine's oil-filter will clear the Ponton's stabiizer-bar and subframe, or interfere with installing the Ponton motor-mounts.

Don't know if the 220D engine will bolt up to the Ponton gearbox, but if you're hoping to use the 220D gearbox, they're different for floorshift vs column-shift.

Happy Motoring, Mark

[1960mog]

All 115, 615 and 616 engines up to 1976 should fit a W120/121 that was originally equipped with a X21 engine.
However, some X21 engines have a smaller fly wheel and a smaller bell housing then the 615.
This smaller bell housings will still bolt up to a 615 engine, but the 615 fly wheel will not fit into them.
Also the oil filter could be a problem.
The 615 engine mounts the oil filter further forward then the 621, but the 615 block still has the mounting surface for the 621 filter casted and machined.
You could drill the holes for the 621 filter into the 615 block and plate the original filter mount on the 615 off.

[71inka02]

Thanks all - This is great information.......I'm going to meet with my Indy Tech on Friday - Start the dialogue and see if this can be done without breaking the piggy bank.

I gotta say - I bought the 1970 220D from a man in Oregon (purchase price did not have a comma in it), it had been parked in a barn, only driven around occasionally on their (big) farm...Tags expired in 09, it was very dusty & dirty...I used transport carrier to bring it to NC....I put a new battery in it, topped off the fluids, gave her a good check over, and it's a blast! Its the old skool drive/feel that I first loved about the older diesels. It's not the fastest out of the gate, but once you hit cruising speed & she settles in, its like she gets her second wind.....It's not bad on the hi-way with its solid / heavy feeling ride.....

This 220D has cloth interior....that's a first for me - wondered if its a Euro model, but the headlights are US style....I love the no console, metal rod style shifter with round black knob...for me, that makes it totally cool!

[Mark DiSilvestro]

Originally Posted by 71inka02

Thanks all - This is great information.......I'm going to meet with my Indy Tech on Friday - Start the dialogue and see if this can be done without breaking the piggy bank.

I gotta say - I bought the 1970 220D from a man in Oregon (purchase price did not have a comma in it), it had been parked in a barn, only driven around occasionally on their (big) farm...Tags expired in 09, it was very dusty & dirty...I used transport carrier to bring it to NC....I put a new battery in it, topped off the fluids, gave her a good check over, and it's a blast! Its the old skool drive/feel that I first loved about the older diesels. It's not the fastest out of the gate, but once you hit cruising speed & she settles in, its like she gets her second wind.....It's not bad on the hi-way with its solid / heavy feeling ride.....

This 220D has cloth interior....that's a first for me - wondered if its a Euro model, but the headlights are US style....I love the no console, metal rod style shifter with round black knob...for me, that makes it totally cool!

It could still be a Euro model. The headlights are easy enough to swap, and may have been to meet federal or local inspection regs.
From your description, it sounds like your 220D is too nice to be relegatd to a parts-donor.
I know it doesn't have that vintage '50s Ponton style. But besides the slightly higher horsepower, it has a superior heater (if the blower works), brakes, suspension, safety and comfort. It's really the kind of vintage daily driver/highway car your Ponton will never be.
If you still want to upgrade your Ponton, maybe a rusty but running, junker 220D/240D parts-car, or equivalent engine & tranny from a Pick-N-Pull might be a better choice.
Now the '61 180b gasser Ponton I drove many years ago was more of a daily-driver mainly by virtue of it's already having nearly 20 more horsepower than the diesel version. It was still no hot-rod and I sometimes wished for my friend's '60 Ponton 190b gasser, which had another 15 horsepower over my car.
Swapping that 220D engine into yours would only gain maybe 10 horsepower. And your heating and brakes would still be marginal by modern standards.

Happy Motoring, Mark

[Lycoming-8]

To start this off, I have driven both a 1961 190Db, and a 1968 220D/8. I also maintained both of them, with very little being done by independant shops. Just the 4-wheel disc brake system alone would have me choosing the 220D as my driver, and then there is the nifty floor shifter mentioned earlier. Way nicer and more positive than the loose column shifter on the Ponton. So many other drive, ride, and maint issues that all point to the 220D as the much evolved car.

In other words, please don't part out the 220D !!!!

[Goldenboy]

As previously mentioned, the oil filter will likely not be located in the right place. The OM616 I'm putting in my ponton is from a w115 240d and the oil filter housing interferes with the steering box.

The transmission will bolt up to the block and you'll have to use your ponton flywheel/clutch.

You also need to use the ponton oil pan and engine mounts, but they are a direct fit. You may need to switch the oil pump pickup to work with the ponton oil pan.

Assuming you dont have a brake booster, the vacuum pump is removed and replaced with the cover from the OM621 motor.

I think you need to use the ponton crank pulley (as mentioned in a previous post) but I cant remember for sure offhand which one I'm using. You also have to make sure the water pump and pulley you're using lines up with the crank pulley you use.

If you want to keep it looking stock, you can swap over all the OM621 external parts to make it look like a ponton engine. Manifolds, valve cover, fuel filter, etc. should fit on the OM615.

Since you're using the smaller ponton bellhousing, there's not enough room for the OM615 starter. You have to use the OM621 starter, or you could use an aftermarket gear reduction starter if you want something with more cranking power.

That's all I can think of at the moment. It's a relatively straight forward swap if you decide to go ahead with it. The only tricky part is the oil filter issue.