The OM617a Turbodiesel had a seperate FSM for the engine, so that the diagram isn't in your FSM for the OM615/616/617.

wow, I never realized that, I just switched from using the FSM on cd, to using a paper copy. I never really cared for the navigation on the cds, and the quality of the pictures on a screen always seemed murky, although on the plus side a screen view allowed me to zoom in for a closer view.

I thought I had all the books I needed, but looks like I need at least a couple more: a 617 turbo engine manual and a European market 617 engine manual:)

There is a better navigation for the FSM, which can be seen here:

Model 123 Maintenance Manual Index

yes, that is much better.

I did find the picture of the 1/2 inch extension used to jam the vibration damper to loosen the crankshaft bolt; I attached a copy here, not the greatest image. I wonder why this is recommended for some transmissions but not others?

I didn't even look at the car Monday or Tuesday. I am still optimistic that I won"t have to deal with removing the balancing disk from the crank. And still turning over in my head whether or not I should settle on using the 79 to 82 version of the schwingunsdampfer or hold out for the later post 82 part

In the German FSM there mentions that the later oil pans were reinforced, while the older ones weren't. The USA FSM says that the 722.1 transmission takes the lock, but the 722.3 does not. Perhaps there isn't enough space to fit the lock on the 722.3 transmission.

By the way, it is a Schwingungdämpfer, with a capital, an extra g and an umlaut. Without the umlaut it means a "vibrating steamer". The ä is pronounced as a short e, as in neck.