New Engine
It all started with a faulty injection pump. I brought the G to a BOSCH service and they told me that it needed a rebuild. But they also told me that they had measured the compression and the 3rd cylinder did not have any compression so they said that I must have a problem with the cylinder head.
I decided to take the G to my trusty mechanic and so the truck was towed to his garage. On removal of the head, he told me that one of the valves in cylinder 3 did not close properly and that should be the reason for lack of compression. He send the head to be rebuilt as well and that is where all started. The guy doing this said that the head was also cracked and it appeared to have been skimmed in a previous life (it had 0.2 mm makerd on both sides). So it was a cse of a new head.
If you check with MB, Part number A6030109520 is € 1,538 and this is the bare head. Add gaskets and sundry parts and by the time you have fitted the head to the engine you won't get much change from € 2 k. To this you have to add the cost of rebuilding the pump (some € 900) plus my mechanics labour and you see why I did not sleep a lot last night.
Eventually, I decided to grab the bull by the horns and rang my friend Carlos Acosta, the Spanish G guru. He said that he had a number of Mercedes remanufactured OM 603 engines and he could give me a good price in one of those. I decided that I wanted to spend more money and have a new engine rather than go half way and have a half used one.
So I took my life's savings (ha, ha, sounds dramatic) and my trusty Seat Marbella Ferrari red to Carlos' garage. There I met three prominent members of the Spanish GWagen community who had a hearty laugh on my Marbella and also on my declared intention of transporting the engine in it. But they eventually bited the dust when we loaded the engine in the boot -without removing the rear seats! - and drove off with it.
Now I am dying to have it finished!
Jesus,
You seem to have had bad luck with that 300GD. How many miles had the engine done?
The new engine looks super. Is it a new MB supplied engine? What have you done with the old one? What was the cost?
Mine has close to 200,000 miles and still runs so well.
Ciao
Jesus,
I am sorry to hear of your "loss", but I think you did the right thing in the end. The german on the plate, for those who didn't see/understand, means "original Mercedes Exchange Unit". Probably the ONLY exchange unit ever worth fitting. IMO, you have, in fact, a better than brand new MB engine there. Relish in the fact that everything has been meticulously inspected/x-rayed/measured/etc and anything suspect been replaced by new. Only the block is probably "old" and there you have the advantage of it being already stress-relieved through previous use(thousand times cold-hot-cold treatments).
All you need to do now, is:
1. After run-in, ALWAYS keep it filled with Mobil 1 full synthetic.
2. Meticulously change filters OE MB ONLY every 5000km
3. Change oil every 10 000km
4. Keep a close eye for any loose air-intake connections.
5. Treat it well, ie NEVER rev it up when cold(start and let idle for some minutes and then only gentle revs). Ideal not to take it over 1500rpm until full operating temp has been reached.
6. Keep in mind that one of the worst things to do to an engine is "unloaded" revving.
I can expand extensively on all of the above points but then my post will become a short story and possibly very boring.
If you keep to the above points, though, it will probably outlast us all here!
Good luck and enjoy!
Werner
Jesus,
I am sorry to hear of your "loss", but I think you did the right thing in the end. The german on the plate, for those who didn't see/understand, means "original Mercedes Exchange Unit". Probably the ONLY exchange unit ever worth fitting. IMO, you have, in fact, a better than brand new MB engine there. Relish in the fact that everything has been meticulously inspected/x-rayed/measured/etc and anything suspect been replaced by new. Only the block is probably "old" and there you have the advantage of it being already stress-relieved through previous use(thousand times cold-hot-cold treatments).
All you need to do now, is:
1. After run-in, ALWAYS keep it filled with Mobil 1 full synthetic.
2. Meticulously change filters OE MB ONLY every 5000km
3. Change oil every 10 000km
4. Keep a close eye for any loose air-intake connections.
5. Treat it well, ie NEVER rev it up when cold(start and let idle for some minutes and then only gentle revs). Ideal not to take it over 1500rpm until full operating temp has been reached.
6. Keep in mind that one of the worst things to do to an engine is "unloaded" revving.
I can expand extensively on all of the above points but then my post will become a short story and possibly very boring.
If you keep to the above points, though, it will probably outlast us all here!
Good luck and enjoy!
Werner
Werner,
Many thanks for your wise advice to which I have a number of questions:
1. Isn't a bit of an overshoot to use a fully synthetic oil in a non-turbo engine?
2. In addition to one, isn't a bit of a waste to change an oil specified to last for 30,000 Km every 10,000?
3. Why change oil filters every 5,000 Km when you change oil every 10,000?
Cheers
as a view, my dads compny had lots of vans and as long as we changed the oil at small regular intervals (around 6000 miles) they ran forever without problems, we always used good oils and only one of the vans was a turbo. we were ok as we has the ramps for lifting them up, but imo the small hassle of changing the oil saved a lot of money and time in the long run.
Werner,
In all my Gs I used to change oil and filter every 5,000 kilometres (some 3,000 miles) rather than the recommended 7,000 kilometres or 5,000 miles. I use to use well-known brand good quality oils, 15W40 in viscosity and SG/CF in quality. Obviously, my two Gs have been diesels and they were used when I bought them.
Now I will soon have a brand new engine and that advice about using Mobil 1 has me intrigued. I reckon that the lower viscosity of the Mobil 1 (0W50) would enable the engine to turn over more easily and therefore the fuel consumption should be reduced. In the past, I never dared to use a fully synthetic oil in an older engine for fear that the lower viscosity would result in substantial oil consumption. But now with a new engine, I reckon that that might do the trick: increased life expentancy of the engine plus reduced fuel consumption in exchange of just increased cost of the oil.
So this is my plan:
1. Fill with a good quality mineral oil for the run-in
2. After run-in (say 2,000 kms, perhaps?) Change oil filter and oil, swapping to Mobil 1. Change every 15,000 kms thereafter (?)
3. I plan to clean the fuel tank once it's empty. After that I shall change fuel filter and prefilter. Change every 15,000 kms thereafter, together with the oil.
4. I use a K&N air filter, which I feel lets the engine breathe better. What's your opinion on this?
On a different subject, I have an invoice from the previous owner of my G stating that the injectors had been changed some 17,000 kms ago. Now they have been replaced again becasue they were knackered, according to the mechanic. What can be the reason for this to happen?
Thanks,
as a quick quess the type of diesel used. some, ie tesco's over here dont have all the same ingredients. we always went for a shell etc.
just a thought
Tom
Hi Jesus, and seasons greetings.
Sorry to hear about the demise of your old lump and good luck with the new.
Appreciate that this is a little late, but I have a cylinder head for the old one. My current 463 had a new head fitted a few months back, turned out all that the problem was, was a stuck valve.
I know it is no longer of a lot of use to you, but marry the two useful bits together and someone will have a serviceable engine.
Happy New Year, to you and yours,
Cheers
Jesus,
Ok here goes for my reasons:
Mobil1: ALL of the mineral(and synthetic) oils(SH and CF2) I have tested when i used to be involved in highway top speed racing contests used to have a severe drop in oil pressure readings after getting past 100 deg Celsius for the first time. After that, their readings would always be low-ish. Completely different with Mobil1: always good! Fair to say those were extreme conditions: 9000rpm/180mph/full power for up to 15 minutes foot to the floor. A huge difference in oil performance nevertheless though. BMW tested all available synthetic oils some years ago in their best 6-cylinder engine at the time. They simulated the equal of 150 000kms on a dyno from ambient -20 to +50 degrees. The engine with Mobil1 was the only which showed no measureable wear in any of the components. Back to my own experience: It is quite remarkable how clean the inside of an engine run on Mobil1 is compared to others. This oil is quite phenomenal!
When I got my Sprinter(turbo/intercooled) 312, it had just over 100k on the clock and was using about 500ml of oil every 2000miles. Put it on Mobil1 and now(170k miles) it does not use ANY oil between 10 000mile services. And believe me, this engine has to WORK for a living. Obviously cleaned out the ring grooves and subsequently freed up some sticking piston rings. Dont worry about the 0w-viscosity - it is good insurance against cold start wear.
About the 10 000mile interval: Well, judge by what the oil looks like by then. A big function of oil is to clean up and carry contaminants from the engine. If the oil still has it's honey-colour, leave it in; otherwise I'd change it. By the way, the crankshaft in a non-turbo engine is actually higher stressed than in a turbo, because of the need to rev it high to get the power, whereas a turbo engine can be driven on it's fat torque curve. Lower revs=lower stress. Forgot the fromula, but at 4000rpm engine components like crankshaft/conrods/gudgeon pins experience FOUR times the stress they would at 3000rpm. Even more critical in a diesel engine due to much heavier pistons. So disregard the myth of non-turbo engines requiring "not-the-best" oil.
The cherry on the cake is that you can get hold of Mobil1 at about £20 per 4L if you shop around.
About your filterchanging question: Well we can't tell when the filter is clogged up. When it is, the bypass valve opens(pressure triggered) and allows the oil to run past the filter, UNFILTERED. So that is why I play it safe. Anyway, the filters are cheap as chips and it is a 5 minute job. If you can't get hold of OE Mercedes ones, use Knecht, Hengst, GUD, Fleetguard or Baldwin. All of these are used by maindealer MB workshops sometimes. One definately to avoid like the proverbial plague are the orange-coloured ones. Learnt my lesson the hard way not too long ago - filter exploded 50 miles after fitted and manufacturer didn't want to know! Like I say, stick to the above 5 or OE.
The filter filters out particles in the oil taken from the inside of the engine. If you use synthetic oil, it won't break down for many years, unlike mineral oil, so no need to change with the filter.
About the fuel filters - again as for the oil filter - leaving it in too long will cause unfiltered fuel to reach the engine. They're cheap and it's quick to do, but don't forget the little plastic pre-filter! All adds up to insurance...
Now with the K&N: I believe the air filter housing is far more restrictive than the filter. Furthermore, for a filter of the same size to let through more air, it is simple logic that the pores must be bigger, but do this little test: Take off the hose between the filter and the engine and smear a good coating of engine oil to its inside. Then refit and go and do some driving through some dust or just leave it like that for a few weeks. Then take off the same hose and run your finger over the before-applied oil film(no gloves!) and feel for any minute grittiness. I did the same test and was alarmed!!! Filter ended up in the bin! But maybe my hoses were not sealed properly. I can't say now that K&N is bad - you have to see and judge for yourself.
As for the injectors, keep changing the filters and stay with good fuel. The difference in mileage I get on my sprinter between t.... fuel and BP is ridiculous. Definately a better quality fuel and who knows if lubricity is skimped on as well by some???
As they say in German: Long after the price is forgotten, the quality is remembered!
Take care, good luck and have a magnificent 2006!!!
And the same for all you other fellow g-owners here and everywhere.
Getting there... just waiting for the engine mounts from Germany!
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Hi Roly,
With a GWagen you can never tell how many miles did really the car drive. According to the odometer of the car, just 170,000 Km (106,000 miles), something I was prepared to believe by judging the wear in the cylinders (negligible). A different issue is why did the pump need a refursbishment with that mileage. I personally think that the truck had at least another 100,000 kms on it. But you would never know... perhaps the mileage was correct and it's been extensively used off-road, where wear tends to be bigger than on the roads....
I can't say where does the engine come from. What I can tell you for a fact is that, although technically a factory rebuilt, this looks like a brand new engine. Everything that you see is spotless and shiny to the point that the only thing that looks to have ever been used is the rocker cover!
Cheers