I ran that oil year around in my 400E. I misspoke earlier its actually the Rosella T6 synthetic I used but yes its still the same oil as folks use in their diesel MB's. I ran that oil year round without any issues and I'm pretty sure the gentleman who I sold the car to is doing the same. If you want to keep conventional oil the regular Rosella T will work fine as well.

I don't have enough experience with the M119 to know how long the guides last but it is something to be aware of.

I was looking around today and it seems the car never got fresh coolant. Lots of sludge in the bottle where you fill in.
I drained as much coolant as I could through the drain valve bottom radiator (right side) but only one gallon came out...not sure why so little.
Ah the bottle was so clogged that the switch indicating low coolant was stuck in closed position...bad bad.

This means the maintenance here was not done properly.


erratic tank gauge: I saw today that the tank gauge is very jumpy...what is this? Bad sender?

During hard acceleration I hear a noise from the right side cylinder bank.. I hope the engine is healthy. How to check?

Drive belt makes a lot of noise... maybe one bearing is shot. Is there a candidate?

Ah the antenna is annoying. It comes out each time the car starts without even turning on the radio...any cure here?

Best, Martin

Martin, I switched to Delo 400 a couple of years ago because of the detergent qualities. Your fuel sender needs to be pulled and cleaned. That is a common problem. There should be info under "search". Don't know what to say on the noise. Do you have a "indie" picked out locally for help? Search the forum for recommendations.
The drive belt isn't making noise, it is probably the idler pulley. Change it out with a MB replacement. And the plastic chain guides should be replaced, at least the uppers. Pull a valve cover and look. If they are dark colored it is probably time. If one breaks, kiss your engine "adios"
Anziani
'97 CL600 52K

Sludge in the overflow tank can result from mixing antifreeze types....

Jim

__________________
14 E250 BlueTEC black. 45k miles
95 E320 Cabriolet Emerald green 66k miles
94 E320 Cabriolet Emerald green 152k miles
85 300TD 4 spd man, euro bumpers and lights, 15" Pentas dark blue 274k miles

I've done both, a 91 560SEL, and a 95 E320 wagon.
Not much difference, both a real time consumer.

I recall the 400E was originally filled with R134a.
The two I've owned (92 and 93) both cooled well in the hot Virginia summers.

Jim

__________________
14 E250 BlueTEC black. 45k miles
95 E320 Cabriolet Emerald green 66k miles
94 E320 Cabriolet Emerald green 152k miles
85 300TD 4 spd man, euro bumpers and lights, 15" Pentas dark blue 274k miles

You don't have to use Rotella. Any oil with a primary API service category of CJ-4 is fine. Chevron Delo, Mobil Delvac, and Shell Rotella are the major national brands, but there are many house brands including Walmart's SuperTech, which is usually cheaper.

I think your oil pressure it okay. My W201 owner's manual says as low 0.3 bar at idle is acceptable. My five-speed typically pulls 1.5 bar at 700 idle speed, but the lower idle speed of autos will reduce oil pressure. The lowest I've seen is about 1 Bar in hot weather, heavy traffic.

15W-40 CJ-4 is okay down to consistent cold starts as low as about 15 deg. F. Below that use the 5W-40 "synthetic" CJ-4, but it's more expensive.

The following link has everything you need to know about selecting engine oil for vintage engines with sliding surface valve trains. The article starts on page 3.

http://www.stlouisncrs.org/news_files/St_Louis_NCRS_Chapter_July_2011.pdf

Duke

car sitting lower than normal?

V8, sportline and facelifted W124s (except the diesel) sat a bit lower than normal - a few mm - mostly it looked lower because of the rocker sill trim leaning forwards at the front wheel.

There is one part on a V8, sportline and E320 W124 that makes the front suspension very expensive to repair - its the ball joints, they are not replaceable like other models (e.g. diesel)

the whole arms need to be swapped - quite a penny.

If the front tires have bad camber wear then a ball joint inspection is must, if they are shot - dont drive the car, you may total it and also injure yourself too.

the joints need to be checked by jacking the lower control arm and levering the spindle upwards.

__________________
2012 BMW X5 (Beef + Granite suspension model)

1995 E300D - The original humming machine (consumed by Flood 2017)
2000 E320 - The evolution (consumed by flood 2017)

I also think your oil pressure is ok. My E-420 with 242,758 miles holds at 1.5 bar, hot weather idle at 500-550 rpm. Records show regular oil changes with Pennzoil 15W40 through the 200,000 mile mark and I have used Delo 400 since I bought the car. It still has the plastic oilers with no problems yet. I will eventually replace them when I do my upper chain guides. Don

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John 5:25

Thanks for all the comments.

I did 2 things
1) changed engine oil to Rotella 15W40 , dropped the oil pan before and checked the screen (changed it actually)...
Was clean like a whistle down there.
Since then the pressure doesn't drop below 1bar...mostly 1.5bar at idle.

2) I flushed the bad coolant (citrus) and filled with G05. Drained through radiator and block drains. While I was there I changed the thermostat.
Temperature now goes slightly above 80C.
So far no engine oil is showing up in the coolant tank...but I have only 500 miles on the new coolant thus far.

I guess if engine oil pops up I'd try and tighten head bolts slightly. What do you think?

I have used seafoam in the tank and added some ATF.
Since one week the erratic movement of the gas gauge stopped! I'll see if it starts again.

Thanks so much for all your support.

One question regarding the transmission oil change and downshift behavior of the trans....
ATF: As I don't know how old that stuff is ...Would you just drain ATF and fill up with new fluid (without changing the filter)? At least then I know that fresh fluid is in.

Downshift: The car does not downshift unless I really push the pedal to the floor- WOT-switch..it works) How can I adjust the cable properly (from throttle linkage down to the trans) and does the adjustment influences shift points for upshift (I guess yes) and downshifts?.
I think the car drives great but what I miss is a more agile shift (like on a BMW).

How much work is it to change spark plugs and service ignition? Anything to adjust or is the ignition still on distributor?

Best, Martin

Martin,
If you are going to the trouble of changing the ATF, I would change the screen and the fluid in the torque converter. Be sure you use the recommended spark plugs. They are not expensive and problems arise with using resistor plugs on these engines. Don't remember what year this car is but if it has distributors/rotors I sure would take a hard look at them. Unfortunately they are NOT cheap.
Anziani
'97 CL600 53K

What are the recommended spark plugs for the 1992 400E?
I have bought Bosch F8DC4 0.8mm gap. Does that sound right?

Martin

Can anyone confirm the correct spark plug for the 400E?
Thanks, Martin