Engine air pump, can it be removed for good - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

rickjordan · #1 07-03-2012, 08:18 AM

This is for my '92 190E 2.6

I have noticed lately that the air pump is making a nasty noise and it's not the pulley, but sounds like it's from within the pump itself.

My question is in 2 parts.

One: what is this pump for? It's the only car I have owned that had an "air pump".

Two: Can I just removed it, and start using a smaller serpentine belt?

I had this pump replaced once before, in Feb 2009 at 139,110 miles. Now 3 plus years and some nearly 40K more miles, it's acting up again. I looked at the parts catalog and this is not a cheap part. It's something like $480!!!!

Any tips/advice would be greatly appreciated. My real concern as of now is that if the pump seizes up while running down the highway, the serpentine belt will shear off and then I am dead in the water.

oldsinner111 · #2 07-03-2012, 08:24 AM

Air pumps,pump air tward the catalytic convertor so waste gas is burnt.
Check you laws in your state concerning emmissions,before removing.If I were to remove,I'd remove the cats too.

rickjordan · #3 07-03-2012, 09:49 AM

Ya, I figured it was related to emissions, hence the big price

There is a wire that goes to it and a 1 inch diameter rubber line that appears to go to the exhaust manifold.

As for the emissions goes, the car still has to go through emissions and since the car is pre 1996, they do the old up the tail pipe test. So I do run the risk of it failing. I know that they do check to ensure that there is a cat. installed, but I don't know that they check under the hood for the other emission related stuff.

spit64 · #4 07-03-2012, 10:05 AM

I have driving without air-pump for 10 years now no problem the air pump only use is when the engine is cold so the catalytic warms up faster.
The problem was too find a belt that fit after removal.

duxthe1 · #5 07-03-2012, 08:59 PM

I would just unplug it. Fitting a new belt will require loosening the belt tensioner, and the odds are against it re-tightening.... and it aint cheap to replace. If you hide the connector the emissions guys would never know the difference. They just check to make sure it is there, not whether it functions.

tbomachines · #6 07-03-2012, 09:05 PM

Emissions shouldn't be effected much, just make sure that you have the car nice and warm when you go to test. As mentioned above, the air pump is only during cold starts so by the time you get to the sniffer test you should be well beyond that threshold. Unplugging the unt should keep the clutch from engaging. I do know that they are common failure items but most of us just ignore and move on. Mine makes a nasty noise too but it works and doesn't seem to be getting worse.

Gilly · #7 07-03-2012, 10:35 PM

I am questioning the noise. The pump, as previously mentioned, just runs at a specific period during warmup. If the noise still occurs after the engine is warm, then the noise is in the clutch somehow. Unless the pump is really always running. Then that's probably why the pump itself is now shot after only 3 years, it shouldn't run constantly.
Disconnect the clutch wire and see if the noise stops.
IF your complaint is only the noise during warmup, then the easy fix for now is to disconnect the clutch, the pump will never run without power to the clutch (or more technically accurate without a GROUND to the pump). In any case disconnecting the 2 prong connector to the clutch will disable the pump.

You would then have a few options, mainly to just leave it disconnected now and run the stock belt, or yes just remove the pump and run a short belt, I think you should be able to come up with the length of the belt without the pump, not all countries had the AIR pump, then you just need to track down the belt by using the new length and proper width, most any parts store or an online search should come up with a workable belt without too much hassle. You will need to leave the AIR injection valve in place to prevent an exhaust leak and hope it doesn't start leaking some day.
Gilly

rickjordan · #8 07-03-2012, 11:28 PM

Now that you mention it, I do only hear this noise for the first few minutes the engine is running.

So I will simply unplug it.

Thanks everyone.

PanzerSD · #9 07-04-2012, 12:33 AM

Mine was already off, so I finished what the PO had started, I ditched teh EGR, all the plumbing, for intake and exhaust, vac plumbing gone, and modified to allow the distributor to retain it's retard function, and essential WUR vac lines modified...My car is beyond any emissions legislation eligibility...so it doesn't matter..

spit64 · #10 07-04-2012, 03:05 AM

The pump I removed had a problem with the bearing in the pulley that always turn so I had no choice.

sptt · #11 07-14-2012, 01:09 AM

Unplugged mine and it starts and runs fine with no noise. Found re manufactured ones on the 'net for about $360.00. This thing only ran for about 90 seconds on start up then turned off. Weird thing it seems to have on a car. Was this normal in those days on most cars?

Gilly · #12 07-14-2012, 08:31 AM

Yes and I think they still have them. It sound like kind of a dumb thing to me. The way it was explained to me is that it doesn't really make anything really happen.
When you start a car, any car, well any fuel burning car, he emissions are higher when the engine is cold, right? Everyone knows that, you have to enrichen the mixture, in the old days there was a choke, on a modern car it's no different, they just inject more fuel, and gradually as the engine warms up, you start to open the choke or the mixture is leaned out on a modern fuel injected car.
Well, what the air pump does is to put more air in to the exhaust so that the feds are happy that the parts per million of (whatever they want to be at a certain level) are acceptable. In other words they are "diluting" the exhaust stream with air from the pump. The amount of pollutants are the same, it's just that the "sniffer" is happy because of the added content of air from the pump. Figure that one out.

Hit Man X · #13 07-14-2012, 02:21 PM

HA, I love the EPA guys. They are just as silly as the DOT mandating crappy sealed beams for the longest time. Even now, cars have 80 air bags and back up cameras, but HID lamps are not mandatory?

Yes, you can remove it. I did on my '91 M103. Just use the '89 and older parts... alt bracket, fan bearing bracket, belt. Simple, factory, no one at the inspection place is the wiser. I went as far to remove all the AIR plumbing to the head and fitted it with a freeze plug.

The EGR did not work either as the tube was fully plugged with soot, I removed that nonsense too. Same went for all of the emission lines to the throttle body. All I have hooked up is the vac line for the EZL, the transmission, and the HVAC.

Less items to fail and the car passed the sniffer big time last March with ~280k on the ticker (original cat too).

The inspection people around me are fools. They asked if my SD was a poor running gasoline motor when the back clearly shows 'TURBO DIESEL'

Made me worried for the cars they service at the local quick lube.

tbomachines · #14 07-14-2012, 05:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hit Man X

HA, I love the EPA guys. They are just as silly as the DOT mandating crappy sealed beams for the longest time. Even now, cars have 80 air bags and back up cameras, but HID lamps are not mandatory?

Yes, you can remove it. I did on my '91 M103. Just use the '89 and older parts... alt bracket, fan bearing bracket, belt. Simple, factory, no one at the inspection place is the wiser. I went as far to remove all the AIR plumbing to the head and fitted it with a freeze plug.

The EGR did not work either as the tube was fully plugged with soot, I removed that nonsense too. Same went for all of the emission lines to the throttle body. All I have hooked up is the vac line for the EZL, the transmission, and the HVAC.

Less items to fail and the car passed the sniffer big time last March with ~280k on the ticker (original cat too).

The inspection people around me are fools. They asked if my SD was a poor running gasoline motor when the back clearly shows 'TURBO DIESEL'

Made me worried for the cars they service at the local quick lube.

If you think that's bad, my local place passed a vin verification inspection when the car doesn't have a public vin! Now it's a major ongoing DMV headache for me

JamesDean · #15 07-14-2012, 08:01 PM

I removed mine on my 93 190E. Just use a shorter length belt. I believe its a 6PK2365.

Mine chirps every start up but its about 4 years old now and was a cheap one when I bought it. I've been trying to find one from Continental but havent had much luck.