Phil_Yorkshire
New Member
- Joined
- Dec 1, 2020
- Messages
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- Your Mercedes
- C320cdi
Hi, I'm not yet a Merc owner but I may well become one if I can find the right motor. I'm an ex mechanic and although its been a while, I do understand how engines work 
.
I've owned a diesel car since 1988 and won't be swayed any other way. I live in the Dales and believe me, the MPG claims for petrols just don't stack up in these hills.
I've just started to look for a replacement for my current Alfa 147 jtdm - don't laugh, engine wise its been one of the most reliable motors I've even owned and goes like sh&%. Apart from a Volvo D5 I always had BM's before that but gave up on them when they ruined an excellent 2.0 diesel engine by putting a single cam chain at the back of the engine - the outcome of which was motor trade famous. The Volvo D5 was a brilliant engine but most use an auto box which again, is not really economically viable where I live.
I was attracted to the possibility of a Merc when I saw an Ebay ad for a 2013 C220 cdi estate at what looked like a very reasonable price. A little time spent on a few websites located several even cheaper ones - some under 100k miles with dealer service histories. However, I then googled the engines and found that much like BMW's of the same era, the OM651 engine that I believe powers the car I was looking at, has cam chain problems.
Some people seem to point to stop/start systems making things worse but from what I can make out, its much the same as the BM - down to the use of a single chain rather than the duplex used on older engines. Also like BM, putting the cam chain at the back of the engine makes repairs much more difficult - not good! I'm not prepared to take the risk of buying a car that in the near future may well need £1500 spending on the engine - if I'm lucky. So its looks like OM651 engined cars are out.
So, my question is - is there a good Merc diesel engine that doesn't suffer major problems fitted to models in the £6000 to £8000 bracket? The 320 cdi has been mentioned to me but I really don't have a clue. I also want a manual gearbox and they seem very rare on the 320's.
.I've owned a diesel car since 1988 and won't be swayed any other way. I live in the Dales and believe me, the MPG claims for petrols just don't stack up in these hills.
I've just started to look for a replacement for my current Alfa 147 jtdm - don't laugh, engine wise its been one of the most reliable motors I've even owned and goes like sh&%. Apart from a Volvo D5 I always had BM's before that but gave up on them when they ruined an excellent 2.0 diesel engine by putting a single cam chain at the back of the engine - the outcome of which was motor trade famous. The Volvo D5 was a brilliant engine but most use an auto box which again, is not really economically viable where I live.
I was attracted to the possibility of a Merc when I saw an Ebay ad for a 2013 C220 cdi estate at what looked like a very reasonable price. A little time spent on a few websites located several even cheaper ones - some under 100k miles with dealer service histories. However, I then googled the engines and found that much like BMW's of the same era, the OM651 engine that I believe powers the car I was looking at, has cam chain problems.
Some people seem to point to stop/start systems making things worse but from what I can make out, its much the same as the BM - down to the use of a single chain rather than the duplex used on older engines. Also like BM, putting the cam chain at the back of the engine makes repairs much more difficult - not good! I'm not prepared to take the risk of buying a car that in the near future may well need £1500 spending on the engine - if I'm lucky. So its looks like OM651 engined cars are out.
So, my question is - is there a good Merc diesel engine that doesn't suffer major problems fitted to models in the £6000 to £8000 bracket? The 320 cdi has been mentioned to me but I really don't have a clue. I also want a manual gearbox and they seem very rare on the 320's.
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