Agreed, probably because they were taken over by marketeers and the engineers were pushed aside. Our 83 300D diesel has 393,000 miles on it and still has the original engine. Although the jack points are rusted and the rear axle has slop in it, it's always ready to go.
Yes, basically they were in trouble with old-world economics etc. The engineers were no longer in charge and cost-cutting became the norm - and this was in the 90s when things were downhill for ze Germans exchange-rate wise etc as well - Lexus was a serious threat on the luxury end and all the Japanese makes had sports cars well undercutting Porsche on performance/price ratio (not to mention the Corvette finally had its act together, sort of). Toyota came in and helped with process but apparently they didn't really grok that Toyota also manages to control both cost and quality, and it's never been the same since....
No problems with the camshaft or the valves. I've haven't heard that.
The only thing I can think of is that the lifters are mechanical and they need to be adjusted every 15,000 miles. If not, then the engine begins to run rougher and rougher.
It sounds like your camshaft should be good. You can inspect it by removing the
engine oil filler cap on the valve cover( Note: Engine NOT Running!)
Again, with engine NOT running, look down with torch at cam lobes for signs of
excessive wear and you can feel with your finger. Minor wear is really nothing to be
concerned about.
From the late 1970s up into the mid 1990s we were replacing worn camshafts,
rocker arms and even the valve springs!
Then in the mid 1990s, a senior technician in Mercedes Benz New South Wales,
(Australia) said" fellas, I'm not telling you this, but with the camshafts on the 300 D
engines, get the new camshaft and rocker arms treated at an engine reconditioner
or machine shop to surface harden them, that will fix the wear problem"
The problem was Benz didn't surface harden the cam lobes and rocker arm contact
surfaces properly and as on cold start oil takes around 10-15 seconds to get to the
top of the engine, wear would happen.
Don't worry about this,if your camshaft is still good and you have had the vehicle
for a while, you camshaft has been treated by the factory or after market.
In Australia, the service interval for tappet adjustment is ever 20,000 km (12,000 miles)
The inlet valve clearance is close(0.004 in cold)
Another thing to keep your eye on is the vacuum shut off cell on the end of the
injector pump( round anodised, gold coloured can like vacuum cell with rubber hose
and plastic vacuum line connected to it)
Remove this rubber hose from the vacuum shut off cell. There should be NO engine oil present in this rubber hose. If there is engine oil present, the vacuum
diaphragm is damaged.
If left in this state, engine oil will be draw up the vacuum line to the ignition switch
and cause engine oil to leak out under dashboard.
Also keep an eye on the large vacuum hose going from the engine mounted vacuum pump to the brake power booster unit.
The diaphragm in the engine vacuum pump can fail and engine oil can be draw up into the power booster unit.
Also keep an eye on reverse gear. Delayed engagement or shuddering can be caused the band adjuster becoming lose, usually easy to repair.
Those are some of the common problems with the 300 D. With good servicing,
there are usually minimal problems. The 300 D is a good vehicle.
Mercedes-Benz went to shit right after about the W140 so who cares
Agreed, probably because they were taken over by marketeers and the engineers were pushed aside. Our 83 300D diesel has 393,000 miles on it and still has the original engine. Although the jack points are rusted and the rear axle has slop in it, it's always ready to go.
Yes, basically they were in trouble with old-world economics etc. The engineers were no longer in charge and cost-cutting became the norm - and this was in the 90s when things were downhill for ze Germans exchange-rate wise etc as well - Lexus was a serious threat on the luxury end and all the Japanese makes had sports cars well undercutting Porsche on performance/price ratio (not to mention the Corvette finally had its act together, sort of). Toyota came in and helped with process but apparently they didn't really grok that Toyota also manages to control both cost and quality, and it's never been the same since....
Found your post mentioning you 83 300 D from 14 days ago.
Has the cam shaft ever been replaced? Those OM 617 engines often would wear out the cam shaft and rocker arms.
Just interested to know.Apart from that it's a good engine.
No problems with the camshaft or the valves. I've haven't heard that.
The only thing I can think of is that the lifters are mechanical and they need to be adjusted every 15,000 miles. If not, then the engine begins to run rougher and rougher.
It sounds like your camshaft should be good. You can inspect it by removing the engine oil filler cap on the valve cover( Note: Engine NOT Running!)
Again, with engine NOT running, look down with torch at cam lobes for signs of excessive wear and you can feel with your finger. Minor wear is really nothing to be concerned about.
From the late 1970s up into the mid 1990s we were replacing worn camshafts, rocker arms and even the valve springs!
Then in the mid 1990s, a senior technician in Mercedes Benz New South Wales, (Australia) said" fellas, I'm not telling you this, but with the camshafts on the 300 D engines, get the new camshaft and rocker arms treated at an engine reconditioner or machine shop to surface harden them, that will fix the wear problem"
The problem was Benz didn't surface harden the cam lobes and rocker arm contact surfaces properly and as on cold start oil takes around 10-15 seconds to get to the top of the engine, wear would happen.
Don't worry about this,if your camshaft is still good and you have had the vehicle for a while, you camshaft has been treated by the factory or after market.
In Australia, the service interval for tappet adjustment is ever 20,000 km (12,000 miles) The inlet valve clearance is close(0.004 in cold)
Another thing to keep your eye on is the vacuum shut off cell on the end of the injector pump( round anodised, gold coloured can like vacuum cell with rubber hose and plastic vacuum line connected to it)
Remove this rubber hose from the vacuum shut off cell. There should be NO engine oil present in this rubber hose. If there is engine oil present, the vacuum diaphragm is damaged.
If left in this state, engine oil will be draw up the vacuum line to the ignition switch and cause engine oil to leak out under dashboard.
Also keep an eye on the large vacuum hose going from the engine mounted vacuum pump to the brake power booster unit.
The diaphragm in the engine vacuum pump can fail and engine oil can be draw up into the power booster unit.
Also keep an eye on reverse gear. Delayed engagement or shuddering can be caused the band adjuster becoming lose, usually easy to repair.
Those are some of the common problems with the 300 D. With good servicing, there are usually minimal problems. The 300 D is a good vehicle.
LOL you can disagree all you want but "the best" is... a bold statement.
You're cheesing early today?