i never got a lot of the vacuum parts that normally went with this '85 CA engine. over time i have grown more and more agitated about not being able to locate the banjo bolt ALDA hose from the intake manifold. today i submit to you: it's just not present, right? what should i expect to be the effect of this?

the clear line i plumbed to the mityvac in the cabin; not sure what i have effectively measured but it shows about 11-12 inches at idle, 3-4 under load.

before you ask, redoing that wacky glow plug wiring is coming up soon.

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'77 240D, 504H, OM617.952, etc.

Not having an alda line you will never get full fuel to the engine when it hits boost. Basically you will be running around with ~80hp vs the full 125hp that the engine will see with full fuel.

You have two options:
1. You could run a line from the alda port (red arrow) to the back of the intake manifold on the other side of the engine (if the port is open in the manifold, which it appears to be, you're also loosing boost pressure, although without the alda you won't be making much)

2. Plug the whole on the intake manifold and remove the alda. This will give you full fuel all the time which can cause more black smoke upon acceleration. It will be up to you and your right foot to limit this instead of the ALDA doing it for you

I've marked in your pictures where the alda line should be connected.

Attached Thumbnails

   

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2004 F150 4.6L -My Daily
2007 Volvo XC70 -Wife's Daily
1998 Ford F150 -Rear ended
1989 J-spec 420SEL -passed onto its new keeper
1982 BMW 733i -fixed and traded for the 420SEL
2003 Volvo V70 5 Speed -scrapped
1997 E290 Turbo Diesel Wagon -traded for above
1992 BMW 525i -traded in
1990 Silver 300TE -hated the M103
1985 Grey 380SE Diesel Conversion, 2.47 rear end, ABS -Sold, really should have kept this one
1979 Silver 300D "The Silver Slug" -Sold

thank you dude99 for the prompt and useful response!

long term, assuming it's not hard to get the right adjustment, i'd be happy to have a measure of protection against excessive smoking. to this end i'll collect the banjo bolts at the junkyard.

for today i tried putting 8x1.25 allen screws into the ALDA and manifold; i couldn't detect much change, it's still slow. it might have been a little bit faster. the vacuum shown on my mityvac increased a bit.

i'm going to have the valves adjusted and timing checked tomorrow. fingers crossed. thanks!!

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'77 240D, 504H, OM617.952, etc.

Yeah, pugging the ports won't make a meaningful difference. There should be no adjustments required after you hook up a alda line. You will notice a massive difference in power though....

__________________
2004 F150 4.6L -My Daily
2007 Volvo XC70 -Wife's Daily
1998 Ford F150 -Rear ended
1989 J-spec 420SEL -passed onto its new keeper
1982 BMW 733i -fixed and traded for the 420SEL
2003 Volvo V70 5 Speed -scrapped
1997 E290 Turbo Diesel Wagon -traded for above
1992 BMW 525i -traded in
1990 Silver 300TE -hated the M103
1985 Grey 380SE Diesel Conversion, 2.47 rear end, ABS -Sold, really should have kept this one
1979 Silver 300D "The Silver Slug" -Sold

power, eh?

i will report back. thanks again for the data, i couldn't find record of anyone else who happened to be missing this hose.

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'77 240D, 504H, OM617.952, etc.

The mechanic you used for the installation, must not have been very familiar with these MB engines and how they operate, or he would have known to connect this line.

Charlie

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there were three HP ratings on the OM616...

1) Not much power
2) Even less power
3) Not nearly enough power!! 240D w/auto

Anyone that thinks a 240D is slow drives too fast.

80 240D Naturally Exasperated, 4-Spd 388k DD 150mph spedo 3:58 Diff

We are advised to NOT judge ALL Muslims by the actions of a few lunatics, but we are encouraged to judge ALL gun owners by the actions of a few lunatics. Funny how that works

charlie, i can't disagree too much with that. FWIW - and this was two years ago - i inquired with six mechanics, and only two were willing to take the job on: a shadetree operator, real helpful, but out of sacramento, and a shop full of german cars here in SF. i went with the latter, but it wasn't a slam dunk, would have been fine to have more choices. two of the shops that said no thanks to doing the swap were mercedes specialists. i did not inquire at the dealer (haha).

in this case, at least no harm was done, i've just been driving around really slowly, so now i hope to get a treat in the form of decent performance after putting on the ALDA line!

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'77 240D, 504H, OM617.952, etc.