Nice write up, thank you.

__________________
1980 300TD, SOLD
1984 300TD, 275K
1999 C230 K Black & Tan
2013 C250 Black
1974 CJ5 Red
You might faint from the fight, but you're gonna find it. Every challenge could have paradise behind it. -John Popper-

Thanks for the feedback guys! Nice to hear it helps.

I bought a extra, incomplete engine for $240 a few months ago. I figured it would pay for itself to replace bolts and parts that may break. I was right!

My om617 came with a rare(?) vacuum pump with two diaphragms. I decided to take the vacuum pump off my parts engine, and that required changing the Injection Timing Device. This went from rotary driven to cam-like driven pump, by changing the faceplates.
I now can use the simple vacuum pump with one "inlet" hose.

Putting it back together was tough. I broke a woodruff key trying to put it together. I used my alternate engine for the spare. There was a design change at some point and this steel bushing went from 2 pieces to 1, or vice versa. It caught the key during install

All new timing chain rails were put in with the original pins. Some of these were very tough to remove. Slide hammers won't cut it. A metric tap set is handy in case these are damaged too.

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Another reason to check the FSM...

...Did you check the end float on the intermediate shaft?

If that clearance is too great you end up with dead vacuum pumps.

__________________
1992 W201 190E 1.8 171,000 km - Daily driver
1981 W123 300D ~ 100,000 miles / 160,000 km - project car stripped to the bone
1965 Land Rover Series 2a Station Wagon CIS recovery therapy!
1961 Volvo PV544 Bare metal rat rod-ish thing

I'm here to chat about cars and to help others - I'm not here "to always be right" like an internet warrior



Don't leave that there - I'll take it to bits!

Great job so far!

There is a custom $350 4x4 "tucked in" oilpan available-might want that for the jeep.

Make sure you get teh pistons, rods, etc. to match each other in weight. Each rotating assembly should be the same for the smoothest engine operaiton.

Consider ditching the vacuum pump-in my opinion it's a pain and a belt driven or electric unit can supply vac to the brakes (see: Ford F350s).

The rear main has a surprise pin in it.

If you want to borrow my MB brand 12pt socket for the head bolts let me know and it's yours for deposit+shipping.

Port the head while it's off-the short side radius and neck closest to the valves are restrictive.

Your valve guides are probably shot (mine were at 220k)

If you want to go crazy performance on the build check out superturbodiesel.

Plan on installing an EGT probe pre-turbo while it's all apart (comes in handy later)

__________________
$60 OM617 Blank Exhaust Flanges
$110 OM606 Blank Exhaust Flanges
No merc at the moment

Great work and great prices. Rebuilt engines are an amazing $8000, though I saw an engineer-rebuilt one go for much less on ebay. I am also one of the few to tackle this. My 85 300D engine died at 330K. Some say CA models have problems. Something was bouncing around in #1 cyl, but chunks of piston were missing around the rings, so maybe that was the source and not a piece of ceramic catalyst.

So far all I did was disassemble the engine and put in new liners, but haven't taken it to a shop to deck the block and hone the liners. I read a number of comments here on how to remove the liners, but mostly speculation. I ended up driving a screwdriver down the gap, which ripped the cast-iron, amazingly quick and easy. People even fussed how that could damage the block, but I also am a mechanical engineer so ignored that chatter. I heated the block and chilled the new liners, but still had to work hard with a sledge hammer to get them in (with a thick plate on top). You can tell when they seat on the bottom ridge from the sound. Liners are cheap (I paid $11 ea). Still, you got a great price from the shop.

New pistons are $550 ea, though a place sold a set for ~$800 on ebay a year ago. I got a set of used ones for $100 from a guy here. Some day I expect a manufacturer will step up and make new ones for ~$400/set as you see for rarer U.S. engines (forged). Still you'll never see the $85/"set of 8" you see for small-block Chevy.

Where did you get your heads rebuilt? I wonder if they removed (or replaced) the pre-chambers. That requires a special tool (~$80). Seems most head shops would need to to pressure-check the head against their flat rubber plate (if they could seal the pre-chamber hole). Was it a M-B specialist?

I found a complete repair manual on-line. According to my notes, it was www.toddcomputer.com/Mercedez-manual/300D-repair-manual.html (link no longer works). I recall that you need to use a special anaerobic sealant to attach the aluminum main oil pan (lower block thingy). That sound like high-temp super-glue, but search here. I got a continuous timing chain (no link) off ebay cheap, which is smart when doing a total rebuild like yours. I would have kept the "2 tube" vacuum pump. Rebuild kits are only $12 for it vs $120 for the 1-tube. It does fail more often though. VW's have electric vacuum pumps for brake booster that one might use. My timing chain pins came out fairly easily using the "bolt on stacked washers" trick, but it was a little tedious adding each washer.

I left my engine where its at because I found a used engine on craigslist for $300. I was taking a chance, and figured maybe just good for parts, but it works great. The camshaft looks new from what I see thru the oil filler. No blow-by at all. It is in the car now, but not even driving that car (currently have 7 vehicles for 3 drivers). I'll continue with the 617 engine when I get time.

Hey Simpler=Better! I've had your STD thread bookmarked for months. Very cool build you did.
I'm planning on modifying the steel part of the oil pan for clearance. Merc4x4 has a pan for $265 but I don't want to mail a core. I reused my pistons; my ring lands were in spec. I already had my Head rebuilt and it's torqued down now, but thanks for the offer. I found 12pt bits at Northern Tool.
I've considered the electic vac pump from your thread. Did you use an off the shelf item or a junkyard pump?
What's the benefit of taking EGT pre-turbo?

I haven't settled on an electric vac pump yet (My project is shelved until I get out of my apartment) but there are a bunch of cheap pumps to choose from. I'll probably just use an F350 unit because my only vacuum consumer will be the VNT turbo. (I'm planning on manual brakes, transmission, and climate control)

The pre-turbo EGT is preferred because it's more accurate. If you measure post-turbo it's a delayed reading, and always reads low (est 300* low). If you've got it all apart there is no reason to not tap a hole in the manifold. If you're tight on cash just put in a brass plug for the time being

If I was doing it all again I would have been a *little* more aggressive with the porting and measured each neck to match them (probably another 6 hours) but I got itchy and wanted it back together :p Still, I'm definitely going to flow more than a stock head.

__________________
$60 OM617 Blank Exhaust Flanges
$110 OM606 Blank Exhaust Flanges
No merc at the moment

Pic 1: I noticed an object in the #1 prechamber after it came back from cleaning. After much finagling with picks, I removed a broken glow plug tip.

Pics2-5: Head went on with all new bolts, old washers. Valves have all new seals, and my original springs were in spec.Took my time with this crucial torquing sequence. I labeled bolts with a grease pencil. The final 90deg. torque was a good workout.
Next went the cam shaft, sprocket &timing washer, and the rocker arms.
This about brings me up to date.

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*wipes away tear* It's beautiful!

I would recommend timing the pump on the engine stand, it's easier on your back that way.

You probably already know, but use only BOSCH glowplugs with a small amount of high-temp copper antisieze on the threads.

__________________
$60 OM617 Blank Exhaust Flanges
$110 OM606 Blank Exhaust Flanges
No merc at the moment

Looks great. I trust you're going to paint it.

__________________
'83 300D, 126K miles.

Very nice work. I need to do one for my wagon, so you have me thinking about starting it soon.

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All Diesel Fleet
1985 R107 300SLD TURBODIESEL
2005 E320 CDI (daily)

LOTS of parts for sale!


EGR block kit
http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/diesel-discussion/355250-sale-egr-delete-block-off-plate-kit.html

1985 CA emissions 617 owners- You Need This!
Sanden style A/C Compressor Mounting Kit for your 616/ 617 For Sale + Install Inst.

Sanden Instalation Guide (post 11):
http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/diesel-discussion/367883-sanden-retrofit-installation-guide.html

Great work, I'm right behind you and just ordered most of the parts yesterday. Except for getting new'ish used pistons I was able to shop around and get most everything for $800, but then again I already had a few head bolts from a parts bag that were never used and my core engine was a rebuild that never happened so it had new bearings and rings which can be around $300.

I'll keep watching and I agree, So sad going in a HEEP I'm putting mine into a Land Cruiser!!

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76 300D 130K "Stella" (Sold )
74 240D 299K (Donated to Highschool For Senior Project WVO)
83 300TDT 290K (My one and only)
Sanford, NC

It looks like the Wayback machine caught your link. I didn't test every sub-link, but it looks like the PDF are there.

300D Repair Manual

Jerry Kemp
1970 IH Scout 800a - soon to be OM617 powered

Can you share a link/URL for that oil pan? I may need one for my IH Scout 800a swap.

Thank you,

Jerry Kemp

Oil System Accessories

__________________
$60 OM617 Blank Exhaust Flanges
$110 OM606 Blank Exhaust Flanges
No merc at the moment