I have had varied opinions as to whether or not a 2.2L/4 cylinder MB motor will run on its side or upside down. I request someone with first hand knowledge to relate their experience.
I have a salvage motor that is out of a 190d that flipped, at high speed, and came to rest I know not how...so it would be nice to know if these motors lock up on their side or upside down, or keep forging ahead, and cook most of their bearings.

I am just glad to find out that you are not WANTING to run it upside down....LOL....

I would bet it would Sieze up pretty quick if it was upside down.

you should take about some of it to check the bearings and if they're alright then you'll be set.

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2005 Audi A4 1.8T CVT -Silver/Black "Siegfried"

1982 300D - Silver/Blue "Ralph" -For Sale:
http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/showthread.php?p=852260

1989 VW Diesel Jetta Blue/Blue "Bodo" RIP

My 1978 300D was flipped on its side and left running for a while by my younger brother. Several days later, we went and picked up at tow shop and drove it to my mechanic for sale as a parts car (should have kept it instead). Besides having to crawl in through passenger side to get in and broken rear half axle, the car made the journey of 4 miles without incident. I believe engine was ultimately put in another car and I never heard of any problems.

I assume that even sideways the oil level in sump is such that the pick-up is still submerged. Competely upside down is probably another matter however, given what I believe is a very small clearance between pick-up and bottom of pan.

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2008 GL320CDI 6K
1970 280SL 112K
1982 240D 210K (Sold)
1973 220D 220K (Sold)
1967 200D 160K (Sold)
1992 400E 139K (Sold)
1988 300E 148K (Sold)
1987 300D 257K (Sold)
1991 300E 108K (Sold)
1987 300E 131K (Sold)
1978 300D TMU (Sold)
1980 300D TMU (Sold)
MBCA Member

It wouldn't last forever, that's for sure. The oil pump pickup is at the bottom of the oil pan, and depends upon gravity to return the oil. If you rotate the engine, gravity now takes the oil away from the pickup, not towards it.

When I was in high school I had a friend that had a 1960 190D. It had a bad starter so he frequently jump started it when on a hill. One day he accidently put it in reverse instead of 1st gear. Well it started !! Ran rough and blew smoke out of the Air intake. The real clue came when he put it in first gear and it lurched backward. I dont think the newer ones will run backwards !

LOL
That's funny.

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2008 BMW 335i Coupe

When I first started doing my own mechanicing I put the distributor cap on a 6 cyl chevy 180 degrees off... IT STARTED.... but did not run very smooth... (DUH) .... It took me THE LONGEST TIME to figure out what had happened because it DID start.....and I would never have thought it would run at all with it that way....

I toured a WWII tugboat which is kept on Lake Ontario. It had a huge 12(?) cylinder diesel about 10 feet tall. The only reverse gear it had involved stopping the diesel and starting it in the reverse direction! Needless to say it did not spend a lot of time going back and forward.

I'm gonna show my age here....back when I had hair, I had a 250 Bultaco (at the time, esoteric, but state of the art) dirt bike....high strung, crude piston-port two stroke...and every once in a while, if you didn't know "how" to start it, the damn thing would spit back and run backwards. I could tell by the sound...kinda' lazy.......but once, a (beer-addled) buddy couldn't. He gets on, fires it, revs it once, and proceeds to give it hell while simutaneously dumping the clutch. The handlebars got him in both thighs....over the bars...on the ground....with the Bultaco happily proceeding away in "reverse".

The look on his face was priceless. He never wanted to ride it after that.....

Jim Steere

That's the first I've ever heard a 4 stroke engine running backwards. I've heard of old Detroit 2-strokes doing that, though...

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2001 VW Jetta TDI, 5 speed, daily driver
1991 Ford F-350, work in progress
1984 Ford F-250 4x4, 6.9l turbo diesel, 5 speed manual
Previous oilburners: 1980 IH Scout, 1984 E-350, 1985 M-B 300D, 1979 M-B 300SD, 1983 M-B 300D
Spark-free since 1999

It would run on its side with no problem. It would not last unless the pan and pickup were redesigned. Upside down would be almost completely out of the question.

Have a great day,

But what about the fuel? Wouldn't it start sucking air pretty quick?

Re: backwards. I know those little two cycle diesel Cox model airplane engines will run backwards. Imagine a plane flying backwards

Since this is a diesel, the fuel is no problem. You may need to arrange the filters differently, but as long as there are no leaks, air should not be a problem at the injection pump. Don't try running the fuel tank on its side or upside down however.

Good luck,

Many two strokes should have no particular problem running " backwards" ....

However, I have a problem with any four stroke running backwards UNLESS SOME PROVISION IS MADE FOR CHANGING THE CAM SYSTEM....

That tug boat could easily have had that capability, since it was designed to work that way...

Four stroke engines have by convention rotated a 'certain way' when viewed from the power take off here in the U.S.

The only two exceptions (that I know of) to this were the original Honda ( 600? ), a tiny tiny car... and the Corvair. When dune buggy drivers wanted the Corvair engine (air cooled like the VW) to replace the VW engine they could buy a cam that was ground for running it the other direction... otherwise they had a dunebuggy with four reverse speeds and one very low forward.

Four strokes are in a very specific order,, and the only way a piston knows what is happening is from the valves opening and closing at particular times and orders... Intake,compression,power,exhaust can not be done backwards and it run.... Greg