I am going to attempt to replace the gasket which mates the oil filter housing to the block this weekend. I already needed to replace both oil cooler lines, and figured that while they were off, I would attempt this repair. I have heard the horror stories about stripping the threads on the oil cooler and have been soaking the threads with penetrant for days now. I have heard that many folks just cut the lines off for better access, and then cut off the nuts. I this the best approach?

From looking at the picture parts book, it appears that there are a few parts that are sandwiched somehow between the oil filter housing and the block. Is there any special precaution to take when doing this repair? I don't want parts flying out all over the place, if at all possible.

I understand that some of the allen bolts that hold the oil filter housing to the block are kinda hard to reach, and that folks have shortened an allen key wrench to fit. Is my understanding correct on this? I assume I can cut back my allen key wrench with a hacksaw (they are the cheapo kind).

I am also going to finish replacing the motor mount this weekend. I replaced the engine shock bushings and ran out of time before I could get to the mounts. I think the mount bolts are pretty reachable, although I am somewhat concerned about the inner ones on both sides. Any tips or tricks? One of my mounts is really trashed from the oil that leaked onto it from a turbo oil (?) hose. This is the hose that runs from the turbo to another device below it mounted on the block. Is that thing part of the EGR system? I thought the entire EGR was up by the thermostat housing.

I replaced the tranny mount last weekend also without any difficulty. I can't wait to get the motor mounts done as well, should really smooth things out.

Maybe I can get to the rear subframe mounts by the end of the month. I have been reading up on the procedure, and think I know how to do the job with a threaded rod, some large washers and some nuts. Anybody attempted this one?

Sorry for the rambling, but I really want to wrap all this work up by the end of the weekend, and the better armed with information that I am, the faster the work will go.

Thanks,

Chris Blanchard
Cincinnati, OH
1984 300SD 129.4k (lapis blue / palomino)

I've done the motor mounts before. Took me about 3 hours with the trans mount. From the bottom, remove the 10mm nuts and bushings from the engine shocks. Also, the bolts going through the mounts (8mm hex). These bolts were tight and I had to use a cheater bar, be patient with these. Then you jack up the engine. Place a block of wood between the jack and the oil pan so that you don't put a hole through it. From the top, remove the shields, bolts (6mm hex) that hold the mounts to the chassis, and old mounts. Try and get the big bolts from the bottom started before the engine is lowered onto the new mounts. The hose coming from the turbo drains oil to the upper oil pan (not part of egr). You are right, the egr is near the thermostat area. Be safe and watch your fingers.

__________________
2001 Dodge Ram 2500 Cummins Turbo Diesel - 4x4, auto, 3.54 gears, long bed
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'92 300D 2.5 Turbodiesel - sold
'83 300D Turbodiesel - 4 speed manual/2.88 diff - sold
'87 300D Turbodiesel - sold
'82 300D Turbodiesel - sold

I cannot tell you much about the gasket between the oil filter housing and the block. For the oil cooling hose, few things you want to know before start:

(1) Before removing the old cooling hoses, draw a picture of the position of the hoses so that you know which hose goes where.

(2) When removing the big bolt (8 MM, allen) from the bottom of the motor mount, be sure the allen wrench is all the way in and fits straigh. This bolt may be very tight. If you strip the allen head it will hard to unbolt it. If you worry about slipping, you may use a special liquid on the allen head to give the allen wrench more grip power. I got the "grip" liquid from Sears 2 years ago.

(3) When disconnect (or connect) the hoses from the oil cooler, always use two wrenches if possible to avoid damage to the cooler connectors.

David

Good point on the Allen bolts. Take a scribe or awl or something and dig the grease and muck out first so that the key fits all the way in.

For a grip paste for this purpose or phillips screws, simply mix up a paste of Ajax or other scouring powder and water. Stick your phillips screwdriver or Allen wrench in this goo and it will grip like crazy. Failing the availibility of scouring powder, I have spit on the screwdriver and stuck it in sand. This will give a good gripping compound.

Good luck with the oil filter housing, I expect that it will be a real challenge, don't strip an Allen bolt. Make sure you use a new gasket if you go to all this trouble.

Just a tip from a country boy,

I appreciate the tips on adding some "sticky stuff" on the head of the allen wrench. When I was replacing the engine shock bushings, I did try to remove one of the 6mm bolts that secures the mount to the chassis, and while I was able to free the bolt, I did encounter some slippage and did mangle the head of allen bolt just a wee bit.

I then went and ordered all new bolts for the motor mounts, figuring that way I could apply the loctite to clean bolts and avoid any stripping issues when putting them in, as the heads would be "virgin".

In case anyone is interested the part number for the motor mount bolts are as follows:

007984-008003 6mm allen bolt (mount to chassis) $0.77 each, four required.

123-990-02-12 8mm allen bolt (mount to engine) $1.10 each, two required.

So, for about $5 (or less) you can use new fasteners, which I always try to do. Makes the job look a bit more professional, and you know that the fasteners are not at all fatigued.

After replacing the tranny mount and the engine shock bushings, I have noticed that my idle is occasionally "lumpy" (hunts around as if the oxygen sensor was bad - on a gas car). I know that I did not disconnect any "throttle" linkage, and suspect that I either bent something, or have now introduced an air leak somewhere. I didn't raise the engine by much, maybe 1".

I suspect that now the engine is somewhat "canted" from its original position, in that the tranny mount is new, but the old engine mounts are still in place, causing the entire engine assembly to be tilted forward (not visually noticable, though). Don't know if that's enough to cause what I am experiencing, though.

I am also going to systematically replace all vacuum fitting that I can find. These fittings are really cheap, and I would bet that they are somewhat worse for the wear after 16 years. Don't have any vacuum problems per se, but do have the typical (occasionally) neck-snapping 1-2 shift. 2-3 and 3-4 are much softer, and probably a bit early, as well.

When this round of repairs/upgrades is complete, I will have very little of the original rubber left on the car (all new hoses, belts, mounts, vacuum fittings, subframe mounts). Probably won't tackle the rubber bits in the doors and front suspension until after summer.

Chris Blanchard
Cincinnati, OH
1984 300SD 129.5k (lapis blue / palomino)

Larry,

I paid $5 for a tiny bottle of that grip stuff. Thank you for your grip paste recipe. Now, I have unlimited supply of the grip paste for free. It is never too old to learn.

Have a nice day.

David