Re: Oil Stick
 

Really 2 questions here: I have a relatively small oil leak around the base of where the oil check stick goes into the engine. Not big, doesn't drip or anything, but is this normal and if not, what to do to fix it? The other question is about the gold color on top of my engine. Was the engine supposed to be gold colored or silver. Can it be cleaned off? Why is it like that? Thanks

TROVERMAN

I think you can simply replace that seal at the bottom of the dipstick tube. As for the "gold" color, how much of the engine appears to be gold? Many parts of MB engines have a gold cadium finish applied to them. I believe this was a form of protection. There is still evidence of this on my '83 TD. For my diesels, it is all over the fuel lines going to each injector.

RE: Gold
 

The whole top of the engine appears a dull gold, with what appears to be the "finish" worn off to a more shiny silver--when you remove the air intake which partially covers the engine cover, that part is the silvery color--I don't know if the silver is changing to gold due to heat or vice versa. Will check in on the dipstick seal--does it unscrew??

Thanks
TROVERMAN

Is the oil leak at the top of the tube where the DIPstick goes into the tube, or at the base of the tube where the tube enters the crankcase?

The goldish look is due to a waxy preservative MB sprayed pretty much everywhere except the interior before shipping. It typically was never removed from the underhood area, just the body. Through time the waxy coating kind of bakes on there and turns a brownish-gold color (depending on how hot the individual areas of the engine got). The area under the air intake tube never got sprayed (the tube did instead) which is why under the tube is still silver.
As far as what color it's "supposed" to be, before it got sprayed with this crap it was silver, like under the intake tube.

Gilly

If you want to remove the yellow waxlike coating (Cosmoline) you can use a Nylon and Brass Detailing Brushes. The nylon should be used on plastic and painted surfaces while the Brass brush can be used on the aluminum surfaces. Inspect your engine carefully to determine which components are painted and which aren't before diving in. A dampened rag can be used to wipe the surface clean.

Note, if you haven't cleaned your engine first you may want to before trying the procedure above. If you don't know how to clean your engine do a search in the detailing forum and you'll find great info. If you still have questions definitely ask before diving in.:)

RE: LEAK
 

The leak is on the bottom of the dipstick, where it enters the engine. It isn't bad, but I would rather have it fixed than leaking. The only yellow I see is on the top cover part of the engine, will try to get it off. Thanks

The Dipstick O-Ring just needs to be changed as Rick already mentioned. Go to the parts department and ask for the O-Ring Seal for the dipstick, bring your old O-Ring with you to insure the sizes are similar.

I had the same problem with mine although mine wasn't leaking it was just pushing the dipstick up and breaking the seal.

You will need a new o-ring for the dip stick tube. Part #017 997 16 48.

Fixed! One less leak now. Thanks!

Troverman,

About the oilstick you got the answer.
About the "gold" finish, rickjordan is right. A lot of the items around the engine are cadmiumplated to protect them from rust. As you can see yourself, the cadmium sticks better to steel parts ( IP pump covers and tubing ) than aluminum ( valve cover or intake manifold ).
I polished the aluminum parts and left the steel parts alone.

Danny