Yes you can! Drop a video inspection (snake camera) tool down the hole.

Eesh don't pull chambers unless you need to.

This job could be the one to justify buying the camera. All kinds of grades, from $100 to $1000. Check ebay.

__________________
Cheers!
Scott McPhee

1987 300D

So these are set to the high end. Your IP timing should be adjusted a bit to match, is it? That could be your smoke right there.

And if it was 2009 when you last looked, that's two years ago.

__________________
Cheers!
Scott McPhee

1987 300D

You clearly do not know what the precombustion chambers look like.

__________________
1980 240d ,

chain elongation, cam marks reference:
http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/showthread.php?threadid=10414

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/diesel-discussion/305365-9-degrees-chain-stretch.html

evap fin cleaning:

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/showthread.php?t=156207&highlight=evaporator

A/C thread

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/diesel-discussion/297462-c-recommendations-mb-vehicles.html

Well, you can catch a glimpse of the ball with moderately small camera...

But you can buy some snake heads down to a few millimeters diameter in size, and have self-lighting. Maybe enough to slip by and peek at the holes at the end?? but you're right I've never tried going that deep into a chamber.

You could also poke a wire down there to see if the metal is missing. (Piston in the down stroke of course).

__________________
Cheers!
Scott McPhee

1987 300D

I did not read your complete thread. Did you try loosening the nut on the injector lines one at a time? Then letting the engine run long enough with each cylinder disabled in turn. This to see if any given cylinder was basically increasing the smoke at idle.

If you like tinkering around also read the thread on the milli volt method. I would be interested on what voltages you are getting. We know the compression is good and equal enough to discount it's individual impact on the milli volt method.

If those two tests were good and done properly they might indicate some direction to pursue. Throwing dollars at a problem is never happiness. Or having no positive indicators of where exactly to really look are frustrating in themselves.

You could have one cylinders injection far too late for example. Getting only a partial dirty burn on that cylinder. The milli volt method is very good when applied properly picking up that cooler cylinder and indicating various other possible disorders that would otherwise be hard to find.

All it takes is some time and a digital meter that can cost as little as three dollars and up. Price and quality of the meter do not really matter.

It is just another tool in reality. It can absolutly identify or eliminate problem areas. The milli volt test is also dynamic in nature where far too many other tests are just static.

Guesswork is the worse test of all when it is down to the nitty gritty bothersome problems. If you were to pursue this properly it could easily teach members a thing or two including myself in my opinion.

I can gaurantee it easily would identify a faulty injector for example quite easily. Or an element or elements of the injector pump that are out of proper injection timing sequence. Do not adjust any element on the pump if there is an indicated problem yourself without extensive guidance.

Your car and problem are just an excellent candidate for the milli volt approach in my opinion. Ask any questions as you go along if you apply it. There will be lots of help.

Certainly evaluate what other members are posting as well. I really should have posted earlier. Your zero to sixty times seem quite acceptable and the compression readings indicate the engine could easily just have 145k. I also estimate that a car as tight and low milage as yours might just still make those numbers with timing still a little retarded.

If the milli volt method turns up clean the injection pump overall timing will have to be rechecked with the drip method. . Sometimes the electronic timing testers require a corrective factor.

Why you would take a chance on screwing up someone else's engine with pure wild ass assumptions and wrong information I do not understand... you could have PM'd me and asked why it had to come out to inspect it... .instead you dispute what I have said... clearly without owning or reading the Factory Shop Manual....
The FSM specifically says do not put any wires or drills into those holes... they are calibrated size holes.....
They are RADIALLY DRILLED... thus no way to inspect in place...

__________________
1980 240d ,

chain elongation, cam marks reference:
http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/showthread.php?threadid=10414

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/diesel-discussion/305365-9-degrees-chain-stretch.html

evap fin cleaning:

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/showthread.php?t=156207&highlight=evaporator

A/C thread

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/diesel-discussion/297462-c-recommendations-mb-vehicles.html

Early on Brian Carlton suggested loosening the injector line nuts one at a time -- no effect on the smoke, but the she does not like to run on 4 cylinders! In reading the old post, I remembered that Carlton also suggested looking at the pre-combustion chambers.

Timing. I checked by the induction method last week. Carlton's research indicated 14 BTDC was good for the 617 by the fuel line pulse - induction light. Anything past 14 BTDC and the valves got noisy and the idle rpm dropped to 650). I have retarded the timing to 6 BTDC w/o effect. It seems to like 12-13 BTDC. On my engine the drip method relates to 8-9 BTDC by induction.

I will read up on the millivolt method.

My job takes me on the road next week, so I will be off post. The dealership should have the valve springs and rotators by the time I get back.

Thanks everyone!

__________________
Larry in Mobile, AL
'83 300SD "Goldfinger" 145K Mi W126 E-617.95 T-722.3 15" Bundts

You win entry to grumpy diesel club, if you're not already.

Dude, poke a wire down to check for missing metal (tip of chamber), not to poke wires through holes to try to clean them, eesh.

AND you get a mirror tip attachment on snake cameras to view radially drilled holes - you should have PM'd me first but I'm OK you didn't.

__________________
Cheers!
Scott McPhee

1987 300D

It must temporaraly be assumed the injection pump timing is correct. Or at least the first element of the injection pump is. If any element gets it's sequential timing physically moved it is number one. Since it is the refference for drip timing it is going to be it.

Over torquing or not knowing what a guy was doing can account for this. If so the milli volts the glow plugs produce should indicate something. The same effect with anything else unusual happening. It is always reflected by a different burn temperature in the cylinder.

Normally if excess fuel within reason is properly introduced to the engine the rpms simply pick up. So there is no black smoke. You are looking for a substandard burn on one or more cylinders.

It also got my attention earlier that more blowby seems evident at idle than at almost half reasonably used throttle. At this point my knowledge whatever it is hits a wall. I cannot account for that effect although there may be other examples out there that normally do this as well.

You still do not know anything of which you post.

It is not being grumpy to be angry when someone takes a chance on causing others undue expense or hassle because they want so badly to post something in dispute of another's statements instead of because they have facts which do not agree with them.

Once I called your hand you should have done some research..... instead you assume more about the first bad assumptions you made.... even after admitting that you have not seen a precombustion chamber.... and I know from what you have said that you have not even studied a diagram of one.

__________________
1980 240d ,

chain elongation, cam marks reference:
http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/showthread.php?threadid=10414

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/diesel-discussion/305365-9-degrees-chain-stretch.html

evap fin cleaning:

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/showthread.php?t=156207&highlight=evaporator

A/C thread

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/diesel-discussion/297462-c-recommendations-mb-vehicles.html

You are not a spokesman for the Grumpy Diesel Owners Club !!!

Probably you are not old enough to even be a member !!

We do have standards !!!

leathermang is considered by many on this forum to be mature, experienced & wise enough to be a member.

Back to the original topic.
Most times that I have come across this type of problem with smokey idle, when no other problem is obvious, it has turned out to be a dribbling injector. Unless they pop open & shut clean, you will see smoke at idle.
The pre-chambers would need to be horrible to cause this.

__________________
Grumpy Old Diesel Owners Club group

I no longer question authority, I annoy authority. More effect, less effort....

1967 230-6 auto parts car. rust bucket.
1980 300D now parts car 800k miles
1984 300D 500k miles
1987 250td 160k miles English import
2001 jeep turbo diesel 130k miles
1998 jeep tdi ~ followed me home. Needs a turbo.
1968 Ford F750 truck. 6-354 diesel conversion.
Other toys ~J.D.,Cat & GM ~ mainly earth moving

Saved space... I just lost a long answer ... giving up for night..

__________________
1980 240d ,

chain elongation, cam marks reference:
http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/showthread.php?threadid=10414

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/diesel-discussion/305365-9-degrees-chain-stretch.html

evap fin cleaning:

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/showthread.php?t=156207&highlight=evaporator

A/C thread

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/diesel-discussion/297462-c-recommendations-mb-vehicles.html

I think it is a high risk job. Rust and carbon can make for a very stubborn PC in the iron head. I don't know why that leather guy keeps advocating pulling PC's for inspection. What does the FSM say on how often they should be pulled for inspection? Certainly not on a low mileage engine like yours.

I'd think the PC is made of some exotic high temp material to handle the pressure and heat. It probably runs red hot and with 135 bars of fuel pressure, the PC holes will be kept clean and clear and cannot clog up unless that cylinder is dead.

Buy a good quality set of PC removal tools and pull them for fun in your case, but not necessary IMO.

__________________
85 300D turbo pristine w 157k when purchased 161K now
83 300 D turbo 297K runs great. SOLD!
83 240D 4 spd manual- parted out then junked

Great, another post based on pure and wrong speculation.... clearly without any basis in physics...
I am only going to address one problem your theory has ....and with a question...
How does carbon build up forward of the glow plug sufficient to interfere with starting the car...and enough at some point to cause a short which burns out the glow plug ?
Do you have a paper copy of the FSM ?
If yes, have you read it ?
Ok.. have to mention something else... if he has a dribbler... would that influence the amount of carbon potentially built up in those holes ?
Do you know what the melting temperature of Carbon is ?
LOL
If you do not know why I would advocate the pulling and inspection of the precombustion chambers then you have no idea how central they are to the entire concept of the
operation of the engine you drive around with...

AND FURTHERMORE ... that rate of inspection would not be listed in the FSM.... it would be in one of the maintenance manuals published later...and with updates based on feedback from dealers...

__________________
1980 240d ,

chain elongation, cam marks reference:
http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/showthread.php?threadid=10414

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/diesel-discussion/305365-9-degrees-chain-stretch.html

evap fin cleaning:

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/showthread.php?t=156207&highlight=evaporator

A/C thread

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/diesel-discussion/297462-c-recommendations-mb-vehicles.html

I thought that was cleared up with you in another thread but obviously not. You clearly do not understand how a modern glow plug works. The old exposed filament glow plugs can be shorted out with carbon but not modern glow plugs.

I'm not here ti argue with you. I have no time for that. When I see advice that is questionable and possibly cause problems to recipients of the advice, I post my opinion.

I've learned not to take any advice from someone who claimes his engine has zero compression in 1 out of 4 cylinders yet runs perfectly, gets exc mpg and have lots of power.

__________________
85 300D turbo pristine w 157k when purchased 161K now
83 300 D turbo 297K runs great. SOLD!
83 240D 4 spd manual- parted out then junked