The 601 is only 72hp? Hmm I know the 616 is more displacement, about the same hp, and only a little heavier. ..

I'm inclined to buy this story. I've just never ever had trouble lugging a diesel up a hill start. .. they all handle it so well.

The car is originally geared for 55mph roads... regearing for higher speeds is wise, but the sacrifice might not be as bad as we think.

__________________
John HAUL AWAY, OR CRUSHED CARS!!! HELP ME keep the cars out of the crusher! A/C Thread
"as I ride with my a/c on... I have fond memories of sweaty oily saturdays and spewing R12 into the air. THANKS for all you do!

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!

I need to check mine when I get back to work Monday, but I was seem to remember mine being a 3.28 ratio.
The biggest difference I see in drivability is the shift points are moved up in the mph range to much more useful ranges. (if that makes sense)

What data do you have to support this assumption?

__________________

The wonderful world of physics! Where there is no nonsense and numbers matter.

__________________
'84 190D 2.2 5MT (Red/Palomino) Current car. Love it!
'85 190D 2.2 Auto *Cali* (Blue/Blue) *sold*
http://badges.fuelly.com/images/sig-us/302601.png
http://i959.photobucket.com/albums/a...0/sideview.png

On my 1983 240D. There is so much flywheel inertia that I can literally let out the clutch without giving any gas pedal in 1st gear. This is on flat ground, with stock rear end gearing (3.69 I think). Unless you are driving in San Francisco or Pittsburgh I would think lower (3.09 or 2.88) would make 1st gear more usable in most driving situations. This assumes you have proper clutch- gas pedal technique. I have known some drivers who have destroyed their clutch multiple times, (10,000 mile increments) because of improper technique. I' am hoping to make this change to my car in the near future.

3.28 is not an MB ratio... 2.24, 2.47, 2.69, 2.88, 3.06, 3.07, 3.46, 3.58, 3.69, and 3.92 are the ratios that I can think of that might be in your car.
But do you have numbers? I think you're relying more on conventional wisdom than physics here.
Please report back! I have a 240D turbo and am going to try throwing in a 3.07 with a 717.400 5-speed, which would give me an effective first gear that would be the same as a 4-speed in first with the 2.88.

__________________
"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."

You can do that with most vehicles if you're careful. I can even do it with my Street Triple that has such a tall first gear that it goes all the way to 67 mph before it hits the rev limiter.

I have the stock 3.07 in my 300D with a 240D manual transmission. I generally run 1st gear up to about 20 before shifting, unless I'm in a hurry to get somewhere, in which case it gets run up to the dots. When I had a 240D I usually floored it and shifted at the dots. I recall first gear was good for about 21 mph in that car.

__________________
Whoever said there's nothing more expensive than a cheap Mercedes never had a cheap Jaguar.

83 300D Turbo with manual conversion, early W126 vented front rotors and H4 headlights 400,xxx miles
08 Suzuki GSX-R600 M4 Slip-on 22,xxx miles
88 Jaguar XJS V12 94,xxx miles. Work in progress.

3.28 is not an MB ratio... 2.24, 2.47, 2.69, 2.88, 3.06, 3.07, 3.46, 3.58, 3.69, and 3.92 are the ratios that I can think of that might be in your car.

Yeah, just checked, 3.69. That's what I took out.

quote: You can do that with most vehicles if you're careful. I can even do it with my Street Triple that has such a tall first gear that it goes all the way to 67 mph before it hits the rev limiter.

I'm sure you can run your motorcycle to 60 plus mph in first gear. You might not have considered that your motorcycle red line is perhaps 6,000 rpm higher than a Mercedes diesel

Do you know if I change my original differential to 3.07, will it be showing the correct speed?

The speedos are matched from the factory to the diff gear. If you deviate from the stock ratio you need to swap the speedo along with the diff. if you want it to be accurate. Same is true for tires. If you change the diameter significantly you'll throw the speedo off. a 3.07 came in the 300 turbo and the 300 SD until 85 which it changed to 2.88.

__________________
[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.

Alright I'll be looking for a speedo as well, thanks a lot for your help!

Some of us have wondered for a long time just how much rear end ratio could be handled in reality by a 240d. Without making driving the car a real issue.


All I have really observed is speculation and opinions. Some have felt it would not be as bad as thought many times. I just do not know. Certainly if the car can cope with a lower ratio in general they need it.

I have not read the whole thread. It is my thought though that I'd probably not deviate from the stock ratio more than one step.....in other words perhaps a 3.58 or a 3.46 especially if the car is a stick. YOu could get by with a 307 for example if you have the automatic probably but the car will be pretty sluggish (what am I saying a 240d automatic is very sluggish.) The 307 would make it much more sluggish.

I built a 123 body starting with a 240D. I put in a euro 300D and ultimately had a five speed overdrive unit with the 307 diff behind it. Anything taller than that would not be a good setup, but with that engine the 307 was fine. Once accustomed to it it worked just fine. ...and it would routinely deliver 35 mpg. Running on roads with 55 mph, my daughter had a couple tanks that delivered 40 mpg.

That setup was a pleasure to drive.

__________________
[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.

82 - 84 300D will have the 3:07 Differential. Use the speedometer from these 3 years.


82 - 84 300SD will have the 3:07 Differential as well. Use a W123 300D spedo.


The W126 spedo is electric and the W123 spedo is mechanical.
The W126 spedo will not fit/work in a W123.


If you keep your 83 240D spedo. it will work, it will not give you the correct speed or the odometer will be off also.
.
.
.
.

__________________
there were three HP ratings on the OM616...

1) Not much power
2) Even less power
3) Not nearly enough power!! 240D w/auto

Anyone that thinks a 240D is slow drives too fast.

80 240D Naturally Exasperated, 4-Spd 388k DD 150mph spedo 3:58 Diff

We are advised to NOT judge ALL Muslims by the actions of a few lunatics, but we are encouraged to judge ALL gun owners by the actions of a few lunatics. Funny how that works