So old faithful decided to develop a major hiccup today. At 560K it’s time for an overhaul. Going back to service records, I’ve been quite wrong. The head has not had a complete overhaul but a head gasket, and valve seals. So as far as I see this head is about all original.


I’ve had a slightly audible compression leak going on for a bit. Didn’t affect drivability, or power all that much. The turbo spools great and the car moved with good power. I went to go start it at work and it started missing pretty bad.

The compression leak was noticeable from the exhaust side near the manifold. Pointing to an exhaust valve. With a short drive, around 2k RPM it started to rattle around and knock a little. The sound is exact of a sloppy valve wobbling around. It does start rougher as well. Went the first crank, but it is a little more labored now.


Considering the body and paint are in great condition and everything else is maintained well (I’m 2nd owner and it’s been exclusively serviced at the same dealer since new) I will pull the head and overhaul it. I’ve also done a fair amount of work to keep the body and chassis rust free. Sectioned in rockers and repair patches to the quarter arches.


I feel as if it may be wise to check the sealing of the bottom end as well.

I plan to update the thread with tear down pictures and show the insides of a half a million mile Benz. I will also mic out the clearances and specs of the whole head to compare to factory specs to see how it’s worn and if anytjing is reusable such as cams. I have spare cams from an N.A. 606. They have more lift duration than the turbo cams but I don’t see that being a huge deal. The difference is minimal.

Stay tuned.

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Only diesels in this driveway.
2005 E320 CDI 243k Black/Black
2008 Chevy 3500HD Duramax 340k
2004 Chevy 2500HD Duramax 220k