First off,I just found this site.I bought a clean 68 220D last year.I'd been wanting one since the first time I saw one back in 68' in a Pink Panther movie.Mine's from the southern deserts of New Mexico.It sat undriven for 17 years before I bought it.It was starting to get stiff due to rust haze in the cylinders.Turned it over by hand untill it loosened up some.Then I primed the fuel system and it started up and runs great.Ran it for about an hour,then gave it an oil & filter change.Last owner kept maticulous records,including every fuel fill and mileage.He bought it when it was two years old.That's the basic history of my car.

My question is this.I've heard these 4 cylinder Mercedes were always kind of thirsty for motor oil.And the last owners log book says this one has always used about a quart every 300 or 400 miles depending on what kind of driving.Is this kind of the norm?And he averaged 29mpg fuel.Normal?
I checked out Total Seal Gapless Rings online,and saw they make gapless rings for these engines.I've had some experience with these in performance gasoline engines.But I have never heard of gapless rings being used a diesel before.Good valve stem seals and gapless rings should virtually eliminate oil consumption,improve performance,and increase mileage.Has anyone else used gapless in their Mercedes diesel?Would I have carbon problems?Any advice on making this engine better is appreciated.

Also,would an air cleaner from a newer 240D engine be an easy swap?I hate oil bath air cleaners,and would prefer the newer style housing with a K & N filter installed.And lastly for now.Would later model factory Mercedes aluminum rims fit my old car?I've never liked hubcaps either.Even though I have 10 of them.
Thanks for any help or advice you can give.

OF course the gapless part is for COMPRESSION & not for oil control!

Tried a set on a 1978 240D (my car) about 15 years ago, as far as I know that engine is still running!

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MERCEDES Benz Master Guild Technician (6 TIMES)
ASE Master Technician
Mercedes Benz Star Technician (2 times)
44 years foreign automotive repair
27 Years M.B. Shop foreman (dealer)
MB technical information Specialist (15 years)
190E 2.3 16V ITS SCCA race car (sold)
1986 190E 2.3 16V 2.5 (sold)
Retired Moderator

sure sounds like a nice find. a quart every 300 miles is not normal consumption. but, if you look at the manual i wouldnt be surprised if it said a quart every 600 was. that is what it said for my 1962 190c. 29 mpg sounds good for the mileage. i would drive it with a good oil such as rotella 15w40 for a while and shake out the oil consumptio issue. it may be less with modern oil. some will recommend synthetic, but i would not use it in something that old unless it had been rebuilt and maybe not then. i believe that you will find any mercedes wheel will bolt on up til at least 1995 or so and maybe later but i only have personal knowledge of up til 1990. i had a 1972 220. shortly after that they introduced steel sleeves and life of mb diesels went up dramatically. i dont know about gapless rings. personally i would use factory rings in a rebuild. i have owned prob about 20 mb diesels through the years, most with lots of miles.

tom w

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[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.

The problem may not be rings. The last of the 200D's and the first of the 220D's had some bad metal in the engines. The cylinders would wear out egg shaped before 100k miles. Not many 68 or 69 diesels survive with the original engines still in them.

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Palangi

2004 C240 Wagon 203.261 Baby Benz
2008 ML320 CDI Highway Cruiser
2006 Toyota Prius, Saving the Planet @ 48 mpg
2000 F-150, Destroying the Planet @ 20 mpg



TRUMP .......... WHITEHOUSE
HILLARY .........JAILHOUSE
BERNIE .......... NUTHOUSE
0BAMA .......... OUTHOUSE

My father had a '69 220D and the engine went bad by 1970 or 1971, huge oil consumption. At the time they denied any problem and said it was his fault. Some things never change.

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1998 C230 330,000 miles (currently dead of second failed EIS, yours will fail too, turning you into the dealer's personal human cash machine)
1988 F150 144,000 miles (leaks all the colors of the rainbow)
Previous stars: 1981 Brava 210,000 miles, 1978 128 150,000 miles, 1977 B200 Van 175,000 miles, 1972 Vega (great, if rusty, car), 1972 Celica, 1986.5 Supra

This is the cars second engine.Last owner had it changed at 190,000 miles.This is another 68' engine also,mileage unknown.Car has 220,000 now.Last owner used whatever brand 30W was cheap at the gas stations.Yes I'm using Rotella 15W40.Mobile 1 in all my non diesels.Gapless rings are top compression rings,but would help with oil controll also.Good to know someone else has tried them with good results,thanks.And I'd never heard about weak,poor metal engine castings before.Good to know.I'm used to big industrial diesels.Semi trucks and my 71' Kaiser Jeep Mm35A2 Military 6X6 multifuel truck.Any Mercedes Diesel info is welcome.Worked on MB busses,trucks and semi's.But new to their cars.