Shattered piston was the problem! (eith pics) Suggestions please!

[st4]

It can happen in theory, very rare on Mercedes cars but common in another German rival where swirl flaps are ingested.

 

[kth286]

perhaps a good contact in Gloucestershire is the SL shop - google it - well known.

they will know of Merc breakers in the area of which I have seen several in the past.

 

[Xtractorfan]

Bmws are famous for injesting swirl flaps ..have seen a few that have had pistons replaced, a few thousand miles later and engines needed replacing ..So why take the chance when you now can source a decent engine and remove the swirl flaps before fitting it

 

[Sponcom]

Managed to source short engine cheaply so because I'm probably too stubborn for my own good (and have a bit of time as I am on gardening leave between jobs) I'm going to give it shot replacing the bottom end. I'll have the cylinder head checked out for good measure and i'll replace the valves on cylinder 1 if it checks out OK.

Any recommendations for sprucing up the bottom end before I put it in. I'll clean out the sump and replace front and rear oil seal. Is it worth replacing the oil pump on these engines or do they last?

Thanks

Paul

 

[_Taz_]

you really need to strip the whole bottom end & inspect the existing pump, as you will never know if it has ingested fine slivers of ali', ring etc...

unless you check the oilways, crank oilways, fitting a new pump will just be prone to an early failure bud.

Ignore the strainer on the oil pickup, it still will not prevent swarf going up into it...

have you checked the oil filter housing for any retained debris as an indicator of how bad the internal contamination of debris is ? I'd suggest doing this 1st, because if it's full / shows signs, you really should either scrap the engine or do a full part by part rebuild / inspection IMHO

good luck, hope it all works out for you

 

[Sponcom]

you really need to strip the whole bottom end & inspect the existing pump, as you will never know if it has ingested fine slivers of ali', ring etc...

unless you check the oilways, crank oilways, fitting a new pump will just be prone to an early failure bud.

Ignore the strainer on the oil pickup, it still will not prevent swarf going up into it...

have you checked the oil filter housing for any retained debris as an indicator of how bad the internal contamination of debris is ? I'd suggest doing this 1st, because if it's full / shows signs, you really should either scrap the engine or do a full part by part rebuild / inspection IMHO

good luck, hope it all works out for you

I am replacing the whole bottom end - I don't intend to reuse any of the existing compnents as I have sourced a replacement. I do want to do anything on the replacement bottom end that can be done easily e.g. crankshaft seals, I don't particularly want to go as far as regrinding a crank or replacing shells if I can help it but if it's prudent to replace the oil pump then I will.

Cheers

 

[Frontstep]

I admire your resilience and hope it goes well.

 

[Corned]

I echo Frontstep's sentiments.

This is a much better option than trying to fix the existing block.

Good luck!

 

[paul hayward]

well done for saving one more MB from the scrap yard!...all fingers crossed you get her sorted out without too much hassle!

 

[Sponcom]

Thanks for the support!


I should get the block on Friday so hopefully will get it in over the weekend.

Anyone know a good supplier apart from dealer for a couple of inlet and exhaust valves?

 

[grober]

Depending on the mileage I would be inclined to leave the bottom end as is. Cranks get worn at seals sometimes and a new seal may not give you the oil tight engine you desire. Unless you are doing a full engine rebuild out of the car simply not worth the effort imho. e.g as well as renewing the oil pump are you going to renew its drive chain and tensioner? the engine will be as strong as it's "weakest link" save your efforts and money for rebuilding the broken bits would be my advice.

 

[WG M-B]

The oil pumps and bottom ends on mb engines are exceptionally strong and can go many hundreds of thousands of miles with minimal signs of wear.
If it makes you feel better then drop the sump off and take a big end shell out to examine it.
I think you wil be surprised how new it looks!!!!!!!!!

 

[Sponcom]

thanks guys!

I won't bother with the seals and pump then, great! It can go straight in!

 

[Sponcom]

I found my missing swirl flap and spindle!!!! With picture

I found the missing swirl flap when I removed the valves on cylinder number 1!

Can you see it!

 

[Silver_Star]

You will probably do this anyway, but whilst the head is off I would remove all 5 glow plugs and ensure the threads are all clean and refit new ones when the head is back on.

 

[Sponcom]

You will probably do this anyway, but whilst the head is off I would remove all 5 glow plugs and ensure the threads are all clean and refit new ones when the head is back on.

Thanks Silver star, I replaced the glow plugs a couple of weeks back so they should be OK.

 

[brandwooddixon]

I admire your tenacity in dealing with this, although personally I'd be looking at finding a donor vehicle. One where the engine runs well, has lowish miles but has or would fail an MOT on something structural or has gearbox issues.

Swap the engine over then sell the rest for scrap.

 

[spock500]

The marks on the cylinder bore, how deep are they? can you feel them with a thumb nail?

I had a broken piston ring which caused similar markings but I managed to hone them out whilst putting back the cross hatching.

End result

Let me know if you still need suppliers as I can dig the ones I used.

 

[MechPhil]

I shall follow your progress with entusiasm! I love engine work. That's why I became a mechanic. So you have to do services and brakes to make a living, but engine jobs pop up every now and again...

Once you recieve the new bottom end, a quick inspection of the general condition will tell you if it needs any work. If it looks like it's been standing, gathering dust for months, I really recommend removing the sump. You will have to replace the gasket. Personally, I would remove the sump anyway. If you really want, go ahead and remove a bearing shell, but as WG MB says, they should be fine. Unless one of the big-end caps is noticeably scorched compared to the other four, in which case you may have to get the crank out.

Still, with the cyl head off, all kinds of muck can be "accidentally" dropped into, or simply find its way into the oil return channels and end up in the sump.

Of course, now will be a good time to replace the timing chain... The oilpump drive chain doesn't work all that hard, so you can skip it, but I wouldn't miss the opportunity to renew the cam chain.

I don't think it's decent to be this excited when someone else (halfway across the world, no less) is doing a major engine repair. Good on ya!

Phil

 

[cleverdicky]

I shall follow your progress with entusiasm! I love engine work. That's why I became a mechanic. So you have to do services and brakes to make a living, but engine jobs pop up every now and again...


I don't think it's decent to be this excited when someone else (halfway across the world, no less) is doing a major engine repair. Good on ya!

Phil

Hi, your right. But I don't think anybody is 'enthusiastic' about engine work in the UK. It might be fun wearing shorts in the heat for yourself while working on them, but working here in the cold rain or snow it is not.
It takes a rare determination (desperation) and will power.
That's why there are so many suggestions to just replace it.
In the UK engine work is only done for necessity or in large heated workshops.
But everybody should do at least one full rebuild in their lives, if only for character.