How common are exhaust manifold cracks? - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

shertex · #1 04-16-2019, 09:42 AM

Well, my used exhaust manifold for the 98 E300 ships today....will be glad to get my son back on the road. Front brakes, front springs, brake line, AC leak...plus the cracked exhaust manifold....he's in for some sticker shock.

My mechanic commented that he's never seen a cracked manifold on a W210. One very experienced forum member says he's never seen one on a W210 or a W124. But, sure enough, it has a very obvious crack. Wonder what caused it. Bad casting? Some sort of unusual stress over the course of 20 years? I of course wondered about the increased pressure as a result of the tune...but mechanic doubted if that could be the cause.

BWhitmore · #2 04-16-2019, 10:45 AM

I have been working on W123, 108 and 111 Mercedes cars for over 30 years and have never seen a cracked exhaust manifold. Probably 1 in a million.

DieselPaul · #3 04-16-2019, 11:24 AM

It just a thing that happens ever so rarely on a Mercedes. I've seen a couple over the years but it's hardly common. Seen a 240D crack one, a W115 gasser, and a few others that escape me. Replace it and move on with your life, its unlikely to go again.

bsmuwk · #4 04-17-2019, 11:14 AM

I've only ever had 2 turbo manifolds crack and they were both on G wagens that were missing the support brace underneath the turbos. Check to see if that bracket is installed on the car - usually mounts to the engine support arm and runs up to the turbo.

Simpler=Better · #5 04-17-2019, 11:32 AM

Was (relatively) cold water ever splashed on the manifold while hot?

shertex · #6 04-17-2019, 02:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Simpler=Better

Was (relatively) cold water ever splashed on the manifold while hot?

Not to my knowledge....I/we have owned the car since 2013.

I think the crack has been there for a while. When I had some exhaust work done a while back, I could hear the rushing of air coming from that area. I chalked it up to turbo whine and forgot about it. But now I'm confident it was exhaust escaping through that crack.

One stud broke off...so mechanic will have to drill it out. Ug.

Simpler=Better · #7 04-18-2019, 02:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by shertex

Not to my knowledge....I/we have owned the car since 2013.

I think the crack has been there for a while. When I had some exhaust work done a while back, I could hear the rushing of air coming from that area. I chalked it up to turbo whine and forgot about it. But now I'm confident it was exhaust escaping through that crack.

One stud broke off...so mechanic will have to drill it out. Ug.

Mechanic should be welding a nut to the broken stud and then easily extracting. It's super easy.

Dan Stokes · #8 04-20-2019, 11:21 AM

I have 3 OM617 turbo manifolds and all are OK. That's a fairly small data set but it IS something.
Dan

bsmuwk · #9 04-20-2019, 12:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Simpler=Better

Mechanic should be welding a nut to the broken stud and then easily extracting. It's super easy.

Ah, the internet.

shertex · #10 08-02-2019, 02:02 AM

Repair is behind us...car running beautifully again. I still wonder about the possibility of the tune contributing to the crack. Exhaust gas temps are certainly higher...by how much I don't know. But it seems that that had to add at least some thermal stress to the manifold over time. Oh well...