99 e300 intake cleaning interval question - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

warmblood58 · #1 06-01-2007, 12:30 PM

Hi, I purchased a brilliant silver '99 e300 last night with 70,000 mile from a little old lady (literally, she's 87!) Car is sluggish so it is going to her mechanic prior to delivery to me which leads me to believe that her intake is most likely junked up with the infamous black paste. It appears to me from reading the posts that no one has figured out how to reroute CCV hoses and EGR with any success on the turbo e300's. My question then is how often will I need to pull intake/crossover tube for cleaning and is there a good procedure for this. I have also read on the turbo models, the whole intake gets coated so you have to pull both intake and crossover tube. I am starting to hate this car already and I have not even taken delivery of it yet! Perhaps I should yank the motor and drop in my '82 SD motor Joking . . . . .

Parrot of Doom · #2 06-01-2007, 12:46 PM

'Hardly ever' is the answer. At 170,000 miles mine had never been cleaned and yet still had 100% power.

uberwgn · #3 06-01-2007, 12:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by warmblood58

... a little old lady (literally, she's 87!)

I'd be fearful of buying any used turbodiesel from a "little old lady" who likely puttered around town like an old goat

You know that thing is gonna be plugged up and bad.

OTOH, the cleaning process is not that tough. A huge ultrasonic cleaner will have it looking brandy-new in no time. My father had his 1998 inspected last year when the IM was off to correct fuel leaks. His Benz guy said it didn't really need to be cleaned (@110k miles).

If you drive like a normal person and excercise the turbo on a regular basis, life will be good and it's likely, with our new ULSD S15 fuel you'll never have to clean it again. Use of a low-NOACK oil (meeting MBz spec) will also help.

You can route a flex hose from the CCV breather/outlet directly to the ground so it doesn't enter the turbo and ultimately mix with the carbon from the exhaust. I'm not convinced this strategy is really necessary when driven normally, using S15 and a high-quality 229.5 spec oil.

Good luck and enjoy. This vintage diesel is going to be known for one of MBz's best! They're good machines.

warmblood58 · #4 06-01-2007, 01:02 PM

Thanks, so the CCV breather outlet can be rerouted without triggering the computer? Great! The good news about my car is that the little old lady PO has been running Amsoil diesel rated synthetic in the car! I think a few high speed trips at 80 mph + and a tank of B20 should clean out the system, perhaps some Lubro diesel purge but I would think that would be unnecessary after the B20. I will most likely pull the crossover tube right away and see what I see and should be able to look into the IM this way for inspection. Any other tips? Thanks!

TMAllison · #5 06-01-2007, 01:06 PM

Welcome.

My IM was pretty gunky when it was pulled at ~190k. I filled it with B99 and let it soak overnight to loosen the sludge, then scraped the runners and sprayed it clean. It has a cross "under" pipe feeding the intake, no cross "over" like the 95-97's.

As was already stated, the newer fuels should result in less buildup.

Your's probably needs to find a good hill and be romped on a few times to blow some smoke and get cleaned out. A couple of tank full's with aaddition of a good cetane booster might help as well and would certainly be fun...enjoy,

warmblood58 · #6 06-01-2007, 01:12 PM

Good advice, I think that I will try this first though I would like to reroute the CCV breather hose, have you done this Mod?

James

TMAllison · #7 06-01-2007, 01:25 PM

I've decided not to disable the ccv/egr systems for a many reasons.

First, cleaning the IM every 100K when it comes off for some other maint is not that big a deal. Second, the car has numerous sensors monitored by the IFI computer which are all inter-related. Who am I to say what tweaks the IFI makes to compensate for the differences it senses with devices disconnected and whether overall that helps or hinders performance. If you want more perfromance, chip it. Lastly, the entie system helps eliminate polution and I consider it strange that those who use, or wish to use bio or W/SVO would even consider it.....

TMAllison · #8 06-01-2007, 01:43 PM

BTW - If you want to do a DP here's how you route the fuel lines.

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/showthread.php?t=113596&highlight=diesel+purge

uberwgn · #9 06-01-2007, 01:42 PM

warm, I re-connected my breather hose so it's back to the original config. It bothered me quite a bit to see oily smoke rising up from the hood/front end while sitting at traffic lights. It just didn't look right.

WINGAS · #10 06-01-2007, 02:12 PM

Trouble with synth is that it will find leaks that dino oil wont. So while you might think it will help buildup, some may actually sneak past the turbo's seals. I dont think I'd worry much about it.

I see y'all dont have the 2' "torque tube running across the engine. Too bad, since pulling it is a snap to inspect the innards.

Engine Brite by Gunk and a wanda wash /power sprayer. No big cleaning project. Shot mine with Seymour's Stainelss Steel paint to keep it purdy long run. ( looks like cast alum with a softer "patina")

WINGAS · #11 06-01-2007, 03:59 PM

Warm, geez man, JUST DRIVE THE SNOT OUT OF IT!

Thats all it needs brother - A DRIVER - good score!

Parrot of Doom · #12 06-01-2007, 07:43 PM

The MAF controls more than just the EGR. Unplug it and the car will go nowhere fast.

oldnavy · #13 06-01-2007, 08:16 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Parrot of Doom

The MAF controls more than just the EGR. Unplug it and the car will go nowhere fast.

That is true if they used the MAF to also control the turbo boost like VW does in the TDI diesel cars. However if they have a seperate boost sensor like used in the diesel Jeep then all that it will do is shut the EGR off and improve mpg's and general performance. It is a simple test to see, and will not hurt the car.

Parrot of Doom · #14 06-02-2007, 06:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by oldnavy

That is true if they used the MAF to also control the turbo boost like VW does in the TDI diesel cars. However if they have a seperate boost sensor like used in the diesel Jeep then all that it will do is shut the EGR off and improve mpg's and general performance. It is a simple test to see, and will not hurt the car.

Shut the MAF off and the car will show a range of faults, most obvious will be a massive lack of power.