300sel

[kip Foss]

A few years back there was some discussion here about the tendency for the 300sel engine to bend the no. 1 and 6 rods. Apparently the problem was solved after a couple of years.

My brother has got a chance to buy an absolute cherry 1991 300 sel for about $5k and I was wondering if 1991 was one of the 'rod bender' years.

Any help would be appreciated.

[Hatterasguy]

Never heard of the M103 having bottom end issues. Mostly just head gaskets and intake valve seals.

I think your thinking about the 3.5L 603 diesel which has a tendency to bed rods once in awhile

[kip Foss]

You may be right. I just remember the 300 sel part. It may well have been a 300d. I have a 300d 115 style and thought that the only 300d engine was a 5 cyl.

[JohnM.]

The 350SDLs are the rod-benders. However the late 300"SDL" had the larger 3.5 bender powerplant.

[Skippy]

What year range and engine are we talking about? Over the years the 300SEL has come with the M189, M100 (me want), M116, M117, M103, and M104. I've never heard of any of these being rod benders, though a couple are noted for their wallet-slimming effects.

300D's came with two different five cylinder engines, the OM617 and OM602, as well as a straight six, the OM603. The 603 came in two versions. The 3-liter non-rod-bending version was the only one found in the W124 chassis, as well as being used in some W126's. The 3.5 liter version was the rod bender and can be found in late W126 and early W140 cars.