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  #1  
Old 04-10-2002, 10:08 PM
ecweasel
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Clear to convert

First , I would like to say thanks for all the helpful advice I found
on search. I'm new to this site and found it very informative. My problem is
this, I working on a 81' 380sl, for a friend. I'm not a MB mechanic, just
your run of the mill tech. I do little things Brakes, tune-ups,etc.. However,
while I was working on the car last week (waterpump\oil change) I noticed
apon starting the vechile ( after the oil change) , a rattle that I suspect to be
a loose Timing Chain. The rattle went away as oil pressure increased.
The car has 107k on the engine and is a single-link chain. I let the car sit
over night and the rattle was still there in lesser form. It dosen't however
do it everytime you start the car. I consulted a MB tech and he said , the
car must be converted to a dual-chain. I told my friend I would research
his options. I came across this site a while ago and came back to see what
I could find. From what I gather he has to convert? There is no other
option. I got a price of $3300, does this sound right? I know book time
alone is 24.4 hrs. Dropping the front-end carrier and all. Does anyone have
any thoughts on this situation? I would appreciate any input.

Thank You,ecweasel

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  #2  
Old 04-10-2002, 10:45 PM
Gilly's Avatar
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Join Date: Mar 2001
Location: Evansville WI
Posts: 9,616
Yes, it's a big job, the price you mentioned seems about right.
No other good option, it would be the thing to do, as doing the modification will seem like peanuts if the engine coughs up the chain.
If he's planning on keeping the car for a long time, it would be worth looking in to.
The "death rattle" on oil change start-ups can be eliminated by pulling the coil wire and cranking the engine over to build up oil pressure, then connect the coil and starting it. The rattle in the morning rattle may indicate the need for a new chain tensioner. By looking into this repair (tensioner) and remembering to build up oil pressure after an oil change, things will at least seem better, but the dual roller conversion would still be something to consider.
Gilly
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  #3  
Old 04-11-2002, 07:12 AM
ecweasel
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Thumbs up Quick reply

Thanks Gillybenztech for the quick reply. Thats a good discription,"death
rattle". I'm going to adivce that he do the conversion. I only have a couple
questions. Why do you convert? Why not just replace the chain another
single-link?, is that just not the proper way of doing things?Just wondering



ECweasel
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  #4  
Old 04-11-2002, 10:45 AM
sbr
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ecweasel, thanks for your post. I too have heard this rattle after changing my oil, but that is the only time I hear it, not on cold start-up or after storage all winter. My timing chain was checked about 15,000 miles ago and it was fine. BTW, you should change to a double row chain due to chain stretch and check the rails which are plastic, small pieces can break off.
gillybenztech, thanks for the tip of building oil pressure. I'll use it when I switch over from my storage oil, Mobil, dino, to Mobil 1.

sbr
'79 450SL
76,000 miles
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  #5  
Old 04-11-2002, 10:47 AM
Mark Herzig's Avatar
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Join Date: Apr 1999
Location: Austin, Texas
Posts: 380
I was just re-reading the infamous Road and Track article on SL's written back in '94. The other option they talk about is to replace the chain/tensioner/rails every 50K miles or so. Since that job is a lot less expensive ($650 ??) it MIGHT be a better alternative when you put a pencil to it and consider things like how long you plan on keeping the car. Even if you plan on selling the car, would you get back the $3000 investment to convert to a dual chain when you sell?

Now note that I'm a fine one to talk. I cronically overspend on my cars and afterwards, have fine mature fiscally responsible thougts like the one above.
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1995 E300D 153K
1985 300D 142K (sold)
1979 450SL 122 miles (sold)
1992 500E 127K (sold)
1987 300SDL 132K (sold)
1986 300E 161K (sold)
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  #6  
Old 04-11-2002, 03:57 PM
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Join Date: Sep 2001
Location: Austin, TX
Posts: 563
He doesn't have to get $3000 back, only $2650 (using your $650 figure), because that money is spent one way or the other.

However, if I'm looking at buying a 380SL with a single-row timing chain, I'm subtracting that $3300 from what I would otherwise consider to be the value of that car. So even if he sells the car, he's going to pay the price (unless he finds a naive buyer).

That said, instead of spending $3300 on that engine, I'd buy a 5.0L engine, drop it in, and see if I couldn't sell the 3.8L for something. That would also solve the power problem.

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1988 560SL Black/Palomino
1988 300SEL Black Pearl/Burgandy
1984 500SEC Anthracite Grey/Palomino
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