Noisy Lifter(s) Can you identify?
 

Since yesterday I am being haunted by a noisy lifter problem. Its a 190e 2.6 103 engine. I took the valve cover off to detect any visual damage but did not notice anything. I added some ATF fluid to the oil and ran the car but the sound was just as present as before. I am going to change to oil right now. That will hopfuly solve the problem temporarily. I am also planning to replace the valve seals when the temperature here in Toronto goes up a little. I have the seals and all the required tools ready, I have read up on this forum about others that had problems with lifters. I wanted to know where these "lifters" are. I have attached 3 diagrams from the MB manual. If anyone could tell me where these lifters are located. Maybe I know what they are but by a different term.


thx

http://www.mykg4orce.com/temp/1.gif

http://www.mykg4orce.com/temp/2.gif

http://www.mykg4orce.com/temp/3.gif

i dont think
 

any of t hose pictures have hydraulic adjusters on them. are you sure they are from your engine?

tom w

Yes those picture are from M103. I wanted to know where specificaly the lifters are located and if you can point them out on the pictures included.

The ATF won't do much. When you change oil, use one of the universal grades like Delo 400, Rotella T or Mobil Delvac. The added detergents in these oils will go a long way toward cleaning it out. Drain the oil when the engine is hot and preferably overnight. Change the universal grade and its filter about every 500 miles, draining it hot and overnight until the noise is gone.

Good luck,

The good news: Replacing hydraulic lifters is easy and cheap ($10). I had one collapse and when I watched my mechanic replace it I thought, "I could have done this in 10 minutes."

To identify the faulty one(s) you need to press down on all of them in the rocker arms(?) until you find the one that is loose. Unbolt that arm, pop out the old lifter, insert the new one, and replace the arm. That's it.

Alright, well I looked it up at ******** and they are listing one for $14.85. Is this a fair deal? Should I just replace all 12?

$14.00 seems fair enough. The $10 price for me was about 3 years ago.

I see no point in replacing all, if there is nothing wrong with them.

Larry's suggestion does work well: I did the same thing on the past '87 190e 2.3. It changed it out twice and right after the second change the engine seemed much quieter and ran better.

I now do this once a year on the other cars. Oil sure looks dirty when drained, even after that short amount of time in the crank case.

Haasman

Ok I am going to order 2 just in case I find more than one which is bad.

Oh BTW in response to the earlier replies: I switched to a heavier Castrol GTX and the sound has turned into a wisper but is still obvious if I roll the window down.

It is important to use a heavy detergent oil as Larry suggests: Delo 400, Rotella T or Mobil Delvac.

Haasman

The issue is NOT using a heavier oil. You are missing the point. The reason for using one of the oils that I recommend is that they will CLEAN the engine. Drain oil when engine is HOT and let it drain a LONG TIME. Continue to change oil HOT every 500 miles until the noise goes away.

If you change the offending lifter that's great, but if you don't clean the engine, just think of the other components that are gunked up but have no way to tell you that they are struggling. The lifters are your caution sign. You can pay attention to the indication and clean the crankcase or not. Your choice.

Good luck,

No no i understood completely. When I was making this post I was already in the process of changing the oil, so I did it anyway. But my next step before installing my new stem seals and lifter(s) will be to flush with the suggested oils.


Thx

can you take pictures and post them of the valve stem seal job? I want to do this, but a little paranoid about it... my CE goes through a quart in 1000 miles...

I agree.

My lifter problem began shortly after adding Lucas Oil additive, which is very heavy and thick as molasses. If my existing oil was already clean, it would not have caused a problem, but enough dirt and gunk was trapped by the Lucas additive to foul the lifter.

I will take plenty of "step-by-step" pictures for sure, the above adivce has been invaluable.

thank you