What manual transmission options do I have for the engine in my 1981 300D? It currently has a manual transmission.

I'm pulling the engine out of the car and am starting to think towards putting in something else.

Thanks for your thoughts.

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Wordmanjay
Tribetown, Ohio

the two kinds of 4-speeds you will be able to find in US market 240Ds are iron boxes (77-81ish) and aluminum getrags (82-83ish). either one is fine, but the accessories are different. the very early iron boxes also have different slave cylinders. consider buying a whole donor chassis because with just the box, you will have a number of other parts to source.

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'77 240D, 504H, OM617.952, etc.

Are there any options "outside of the box"?

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Wordmanjay
Tribetown, Ohio

sure. plenty of adapters out there to put in a ford or chevy manual trans or 700R4 auto with tc lockup... none are bolt in, all require tons of modifications...

also you could source the crazy expensive 5 speed for that vehicle... and rare...

you can also get a 60x trans and modify the motor plate to work with the box...

you can also, rig the newer 6 speed but LOTS need to be done to integrate it into the car...

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My drivers:
1987 190D 2.5Turbo
1987 190D 2.5Turbo
1987 190D 2.5-5SPEED!!!

1987 300TD
1987 300TD
1994GMC 2500 6.5Turbo truck... I had to put the ladder somewhere!

Toyota W59. I think it has a very good chance of being a good 5-speed option for the OM61X platform. You'll need to:

-Make a custom adapter (not too hard, people have done it)
-Figure out how to hook up the driveshaft to the tranny
-Possibly lengthen/shorten the shifter... here are example ways of doing this (here and here).
-Figure out which starter you want... the Toyota starter may interfere with the exhaust, but you need to cut a little off the outside of the Toyota flywheel to fit the OM617 starter ring onto it.
-Make a pilot bearing/crank adapter, or maybe buy it from 4x4labs? They sell a kit, so they might sell individually as well.
-Figure out your speedometer situation

Some links on swapping the OM617 into Toyota pickups (note that these are with the R150, not the W59):

Dmarsh4X4's OM617 swap to 1988 4Runner - YotaTech Forums

Topic: 1990 Toyota 4x4 Pickup with OM617 Mercedes Turbo Diesel Swap (1/1) - EricTheCarGuy - Eric The Car Guy- Stay Dirty!

Expanded version of the second link:

PowerstrokeJoe's om617 Turbo Diesel swap/build in 1990 P/up - Page 5 - YotaTech Forums

Reasons to go with the W59:

-Cheap, plentiful
-Well built, installed stock in trucks that made 190 HP/220 lb-ft
-The gear ratios are very close to those of the 5-speed that came stock in these cars.
-The starter hump is right where it needs to be for the OM61X

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"Senior Luna, your sense of humor is still loco... but we love it, anyway." -rickymay ____ "Your sense of humor is still loco... " -MBeige ____ "Señor Luna, your sense of humor is quite järjetön" -Delibes

1982 300SD -- 211k, Texas car, tranny issues ____ 1979 240D 4-speed 234k -- turbo and tuned IP, third world taxi hot rod

2 Samuel 12:13: "David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” And Nathan said to David, “The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die."

A focused answer to "something else", will depend a lot on a focused explanation of the objectives to be met.

I should clarify that what I posted has never been done, so doing it will leave you somewhat in the dark and waist-deep for a bit.

Wait, are you interested in swapping the engine into something else? Check out 4btswaps.com... there's a section there for the OM617, it might give you an idea as to what you can do.

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"Senior Luna, your sense of humor is still loco... but we love it, anyway." -rickymay ____ "Your sense of humor is still loco... " -MBeige ____ "Señor Luna, your sense of humor is quite järjetön" -Delibes

1982 300SD -- 211k, Texas car, tranny issues ____ 1979 240D 4-speed 234k -- turbo and tuned IP, third world taxi hot rod

2 Samuel 12:13: "David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” And Nathan said to David, “The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die."

This just popped up on SuperTurboDiesel - Toyota 5 Speed (W56) to OM617 Adapter Plates for Sale

No affiliation, and no opinion.

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• 380SL (diesel)
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