Dirty Work

Well, I can't say it was so interesting, but I'd stripped my old M110 280GE motor and needed it gone asap.  After it rolled around the back of my truck & spilled oil everywhere, I decided to make the trek across town and give the motor to a local Mercedes dismantler I've used for over 20 years.

It's amazing the treasures they have, but this was a donation-type visit so I had to keep it quick.  Of course, they were happy to take a nice motor if even just for the head, but these guys have always helped me out and are more in the friend category than anything else so I left with a vintage-correct Becker Grand Prix stereo that I'd wanted for years.  It's not a very good radio actually, but it's what looks right in an older Mercedes!

Now I can organize the garage and finish assembling the powertrain in peace.  I pulled out the pressure washer again to clean off the years of grease & dirt all over the engine bay.  It's sort of amazing what a difference a bit of water can make.  It's also much nicer to work on a clean car!  All of the ignition & gasoline hardware is out now so that truck is just itchin' to have it's new motor.  Where are those @#!! motor-mount arms???  Well... and the pilot bearing.... and the intake duct... and...

Sorry but no pics this time.  Too much going on with Easter... the G will have to be patient until next week, sigh...

Scrub-a-dub

Cleaned up the flywheel & clutch parts today.  There really was a ton of "gook" all over the place, and I thought I lost a flywheel bolt for a while there (found it in my parts washer).  Now the flywheel is on and I'm ready to join to the transmission.

Unfortunately, that's about all I could get to, but I did order a third 90-degree silicone air duct since I had previously failed to measure out the path well enough.  While I was at it I got a kit of various vacuum hoses to replace some of the fuel injection returns, and possibly a vacuum line or two.  Gwagen Preserve provided me with some pricing for a few odds & ends that I needed - a euro headlight, differential lock knob, and engine mount arms.  I can't wait for those!

Hopefully more photos and progress tomorrow.

Flippin' Flywheel

I went to pull the 300GD flywheel today.  It was a complete assembly with the clutch & pressure plate, but as luck would have it the rear main seal of the engine had leaked oil all over the place.  The clutch lining seems to be fine, but everything is coated with a heavy layer of oil/grease/dirt.  I hope a long soak in some solvent will take care of it, but I know Guido in Germany has new parts for lots of $$.

The flywheel is held on by 12 bolts, each with 12-point 12mm heads.  I thought I'd need some sort of special socket for them, but a standard 12mm 12-point socket will work fine.  I also had to jam a screwdriver in the fan belt to keep the engine from turning while I broke the bolts loose - they're really on there.  I must say, that is one massive flywheel.  It seems absurdly large and deeply dished, but I guess that should help low-end starting.

The other news of the day is my silicone air supply ducts arrived!  Here's a shot of the reducing elbow test-fit onto the turbo.  SiliconeIntakes.com does a nice job, and everything is off the shelf.  Two elbows, a coupler, and four hose clamps for about $45 delivered.  Not bad, and a nice clean finished look.

Next I plan to mount the flywheel, join the engine & transmission while they're out, and finally clean up the engine bay.  I should have the engine mount arms this week and hope to pop it all in quickly.

A Transmission From Afar

Even though I'm on a tight budget and should be focusing on my engine, I noticed that my transmission had been worked on and replacing it would be a good idea. The work indicates only that someone opened & re-sealed it, but who knows what's going on inside. I'd rather have a backup at least.

I have to say that the decision was helped by the chance availability of a low mileage good unit for a great price. Along with it I grabbed a GD flywheel, clutch, throwout bearing, and driveshaft (formerly missing). I'm planning to go back and grab the throttle linkage, tachometer parts, and some various hardware, hoses, etc. There are many details that are easy to miss.

Next week I'll have the Gwagen-Preserve engine mounts so I can install everything. They are superior to the 300GD mounts because they provide clearance both from the oil-pan to differential, and engine to steering box. Mike's worked hard to perfect them and I'm looking forward to trying them out. For the record, they're cheaper than the MB units, which are very difficult to find.

Well, that's it today I guess. It seemed like a lot more was happening - probably because I had to pull all of the parts myself!

Engine Test

I've read about some who have acquired diesel engines, installed them, and only later discovered that they smoke, burn oil or worse.  Mike advised me to bench test my engine - so I did.  Good advice, and thank goodness I turned out to be one of the lucky ones (so far as I can tell).  I connected my glow plug relay, battery and a diesel tank, and in a few minutes I had the beauty purring like a kitten.  I love the simplicity of the old diesels, and this one seems to fire up right away and leave no mysterious noises to wonder about.  Even without the exhaust hooked up she ran beautifully and without much noise.  I can't wait to get her installed!

Other research today involved a long talk with Eurotruck Importers, mainly regarding suspension spring tension & height.  I'm hoping to replace my springs with something stiffer but not too high.  I also want to make the front & back balance out so the truck is level.  After much discussion I can't say I'm any closer to an answer, but Mike told me earlier about buying rear springs and having fronts custom-made to match.  That may be the best way... but for now It's less clearly defined.  This falls into the category of "un-necessary repairs" so I'll have to wait a bit, but it would be nice to save on some shipping if I can.  I also have to get some shifter bushings and a few other odds & ends.

Tomorrow I may try to pull the transmission.  We'll see.

Dead Engine B-Gone!

Okay, it took me a few days, but the work really wasn't that bad.  The engine came out after removing the final 4 bolts that hold the rubber engine mounts to the frame.  Although a bit messy, the bulk of the work was removing wires, hoses, and the whole front radiator/grille/supports.  Along with this was my non-functioning A/C system that I secretly hope to put back in eventually.

The transmission bolts were all easy except the two top-most bolts that could barely be seen, let alone removed with hand tools.  Fortunately, I discovered that a LONG ratchet extension and a 17mm wobble-socket did the trick nicely.  Be aware that both bolts have to be removed from the right-hand side of the trans as the left has all of the shift linkages in the way.  It's tight but do-able without bloody knuckles.

It's not hard to see why the engine was running so poorly - a thrown rod punctured both sides of the block and oil pan.  The block is for sale if anyone needs a boat anchor.  Say, five bucks obo?

On a different note, I cruised up to Marin county, CA this morning to meet Mr. ClubGwagen/G-Wagen Preserve moderator Mike Serpe.  He's one heck of a guy, very knowledgeable, and enormously helpful with advice.  He's also got his hands on a wealth of parts new & used, and top-of-the-line modified parts.  I've had numerous conversations with him by phone, and never any pressure to sell me something.  I want to buy everything from him just because of this!  If you need help with a G, Mike is the guy to hook you up.

Next I plan to clean up the engine bay, and check my driveline components.  Mike will bring me some of his custom engine mounts for my turbodiesel motor next week, so I have some time to kill.

A New Engine...

Well, after a lot of forum surfing and asking questions to the local "G experts", I decided to transplant a turbodiesel motor from a 300D/SD/TD.  I have yet to see anyone's start-to-finish accounting of making the swap, but I think I have a pretty good handle on it.  It sounds like the swap is easier with an automatic transmission, but I'm going to stick with the 4-speed for now.  Of course, we all dream about a 5-speed...

So far, I know I need:

1. 300GD motor mounts
2. 300GD motor mount arms OR Gwagen Preserve's improved mounts (better)
3. 300GD flywheel - my 280GE flywheel will NOT work
4. 300GD clutch & pressure plate - 280GE will NOT work
5. 300GD vacuum line from pump to brake booster
6. 300D air/oil trap (or an aftermarket unit)
7. All exhaust components from any turbodiesel - to be modified heavily at a muffler shop
8. Any turbodiesel air cleaner or new air ducts to hook up the 280GE air cleaner to the turbo intake (this looks like two 90 degree bends - one reducing from 3" to 2.25", the other 3" to 3"; and a coupler for them)
9. Glow plug relay
10. Ignition switch housing from a diesel (for the vacuum engine cutoff)
11. 300GD tachometer & tach amplifier

I'm sure there will be more that bubbles up, but this is a start.

Thanks to craigslist and a crazy Thai dude named Jeff, I sourced an OM 617.951 turbo engine with only 119K miles on it!  Part of the deal was to get ALL accessories and parts needed for a swap - and Jeff really set me up.  I got a complete exhaust system still with the OEM stickers on it, pulled from a wrecked TD.  The glow plug relay is pretty tired looking but he gave me a warranty on everything so I'm not too worried.  All of the accessories are there & seem to be in good shape.  Jeff even loaded me up with an air cleaner & associated hoses, a huge bucket of spare hardware and a wide assortment of hoses and vacuum lines, just in case.  It was fun doing business, thanks Jeff!

I've only just started to disconnect the old motor from the chassis, but everything seems pretty straight-forward so far.  The only thing I'm not looking forward to is removing the bolts from the top of the engine/transmission.  I can barely see them, let alone get my hand & a wrench up there.  I've pressure washed both the diesel engine & the 280 just to make working a little easier.  Tomorrow I hope to be looking at an empty engine bay!

The Saga Begins...

Okay, I always wanted a G but could never find the right deal... well, I'm not a rich man either so I've been looking for a project.  As luck would have it, a clean 280GE SWB popped up in a neighboring state with a blown engine.  After a pathetic offer on my part, and a few days to think about it, the seller accepted!  Off I went with my pickup (soon to be replaced by the G), a trailer, and a small envelope of cash.  It was a long drive, but well worth it.

Now the fun starts.  There were some nice surprises, such as a brand new stereo, amp & speakers, both rear jump seats, all new upholstery, all new exhaust, original alloys & good tires and only 98K on the clock.  The speedo is in MPH, which suggests this car came in and got federalized, and the ID plate confirmed this with an import date of 1983 - all very good things, especially if you live in California where its becoming increasingly difficult to register imports.  Oh, and did I mention the "barn doors" in the rear?  Oh yeah...

One of the less-nice surprises was the missing front driveshaft... why was it removed???  Now the modified exhaust header is routed in that spot, which is okay because it will have to go when the new engine arrives anyway.  Still, the question remains: why was it removed?  Bad transfer case?  Bad front axle?  The front locker is all there but the hydraulic fluid is gone.  I'm starting to worry.

Overall it's a great truck.  With some mechanical attention and a paint job it will come back to life!