I did the dye test just to see where some oil leaks were coming from and maybe knock them out one by one. I guess my problem isn't that bad afterall. I doubt I have any noticeable oil loss due to leakage - it mostly burns it. I will probably just leave it alone for now. I was just concerned about radiator fluid getting into the oil but there are no visible signs of that.

Scott

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Scott
1982 Mercedes 240D, 4 speed, 275,000
1988 Porsche 944 Turbo S (70,000)
1987 Porsche 911 Coupe 109,000 (sold)
1998 Mercedes E300 TurboDiesel 147,000 (sold)
1985 Mercedes 300D 227,000 (totaled by inattentive driver with no insurance!)
1997 Mercedes E300 Diesel 236,000 (sold)
1995 Ducati 900SS (sold)
1987 VW Jetta GLI 157,000 (sold)
1986 Camaro 125,000 (sold - P.O.S.)
1977 Corvette L82 125,000 (sold)
1965 Pontiac GTO 15,000 restored (sold)

I have never seen a head gasket leak get fixed by any method other than taking the head off and putting a nice new one on.
You ARE taking a chance that the leak will develop to where it is putting water into the crankcase... and since water is heavier than oil and the oil pickup is at the bottom...that gets bad FAST...
It is your car... we don't know the other parts of the puzzle... do you have another car to use while you do the head gasket job ? Have the spare money to do it now ? Are you a risk taker ? Can you afford to go get a used engine out of a salvage yard on NO notice .. like stranded somewhere and have to have it towed home ?
We can suggest all sorts of things.. but we don't have any money on the line...
If you did your homework, had all the parts ready, and nothing went wrong ...you could probably do the head gasket in a weekend... but you would have to have your knowledge base and special tools lined up before you start.... and do it indoors so mother nature does not mess with you...
Now, on the other hand, if you are the type who would want to do a valve job while you have it off... that too is good planning...

Thanks for the thoughts. This is pretty much what I was thinking too but kind of wanted to put it off due to the labor involved. My main concern is water in the crankcase which I want to avoid at all costs. The question is how long can I put it off --- a gamble at best.

I do have a spare car so down time isn't a problem. I also have the tools (except for engine crane to be acquired at harbor freight) and a garage to pull it off in a weekend. Parts cost will be less than $100. I guess I should do it but I have sooo many other projects lined up already (like a/c on two of my cars, new suspension and rear tires on my other car). Luckily I drive this car only about 6,000 miles per year so I have some time to spare.

Scott

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Scott
1982 Mercedes 240D, 4 speed, 275,000
1988 Porsche 944 Turbo S (70,000)
1987 Porsche 911 Coupe 109,000 (sold)
1998 Mercedes E300 TurboDiesel 147,000 (sold)
1985 Mercedes 300D 227,000 (totaled by inattentive driver with no insurance!)
1997 Mercedes E300 Diesel 236,000 (sold)
1995 Ducati 900SS (sold)
1987 VW Jetta GLI 157,000 (sold)
1986 Camaro 125,000 (sold - P.O.S.)
1977 Corvette L82 125,000 (sold)
1965 Pontiac GTO 15,000 restored (sold)

If your going too do this yourself consider doing the timing chain if it has more than 5 degrees of stretch. Better bone up on IP timing also as this job is difficult too do without "loosing" timing. You can zip tie the chain to the cam sprocket and then remove the cam but its still tough to do the job and not have too re time. I had to replace the head gasket on my daughters 240D. It was blowing small bubbles.

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1985 Euro 240D 5 spd 140K
1979 240D 5 spd, 40K on engine rebuild
1994 Dodge/Cummins, 5 spd, 121K
1964 Allice Chalmers D15 tractor
2014 Kubota L3800 tractor
1964 VW bug

"Lifes too short to drive a boring car"

That would be a great time to do the timing chain ' on principle' as the MB FSM says...

When taking it apart take lots of pictures.... and count the number of links between each of the important sprockets..... I was being funny... they are all important...

I spoz a pro could take things apart without losing timing but allot of folks including myself get things apart and all of a sudden have to face the "timing' issue because something made the chain "jump" (vac pump) and its "Oh, sh** so be prepared.

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1985 Euro 240D 5 spd 140K
1979 240D 5 spd, 40K on engine rebuild
1994 Dodge/Cummins, 5 spd, 121K
1964 Allice Chalmers D15 tractor
2014 Kubota L3800 tractor
1964 VW bug

"Lifes too short to drive a boring car"

OH, I was not saying he could do it without losing the timing... but I would like to know the number of links between the sprockets...LOL
Several good mechanics have lost it just ' rolling in' a new chain.... I believe the amount lost is usually 18 degrees... but they are not usually following the FSM TO THE LETTER... and not using that special tool over the cam sprocket to keep the chain in contact there...

In post #4 I meant to say that I would NOT continue driving it like this, with oil leaking out of the head gasket because this will only get worse. If coolant get's into the crankcase and pumped the the engine, this could do a lot of damage. I went back and corrected what I meant to say.

I was told by a MB factory service tech that high mileage engines should be retorqed at 1000 miles, but there seems to be some discrepancy about this.

an oil anaylasis will tell u about water in the oil long b4 u can see it visually

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commercial fisherman diesel in my blood in my boats trucks and Dear old Dad has had me drivin them since i got my first license in 1968
1986 300 SDL 427654
1999 Chevy Crew Cab Dually 225423
1986 300 SDL 287000 Dad's
1987 190 Turbo 158000 Mom's (my inheritance)

I used an offset key to bring the timing back into spec. I know others here disagree on that but the FSM says to roll in a new chain only when you can no longer remove the stretch with an offset key. It will probably be a few months before I get around to tackling this job anyway. Thanks for all of your input.

Scott

__________________
Scott
1982 Mercedes 240D, 4 speed, 275,000
1988 Porsche 944 Turbo S (70,000)
1987 Porsche 911 Coupe 109,000 (sold)
1998 Mercedes E300 TurboDiesel 147,000 (sold)
1985 Mercedes 300D 227,000 (totaled by inattentive driver with no insurance!)
1997 Mercedes E300 Diesel 236,000 (sold)
1995 Ducati 900SS (sold)
1987 VW Jetta GLI 157,000 (sold)
1986 Camaro 125,000 (sold - P.O.S.)
1977 Corvette L82 125,000 (sold)
1965 Pontiac GTO 15,000 restored (sold)

OK, this thread started out about replacing the head gasket or not... and ended with chain elongation effects remedy.

If you check the archives you will see that I argued for the offset keys being completely legit because it says they are in the Factory Shop Manual.
But since they are available in several sizes it assumes you are able to accurately measure the offset you need to install.
It also assumes that the guides and rails and stuff in contact with the elongated chain are in good shape...
which is very important since those items giving way is the more common cause of misnamed ' chain failure'....
I thought this bigger picture warning should be included for future archives readers...