Mercedes W116 300SD "Planet Express" ownership/build log

Finally getting this balance shaft module removed. VW requires a few specially tools, thankfully knocked off cheaply on Amazon, and one I could cheaply knock together in my garage.

One tool holds the crank in tdc and another the cam. 

With the cam and crank locked I can get off the timing belt. 

A little time with some 3/16 plate and I've got a tool to hold the crank sprocket to remove the crank bolt. This thing was tight!

Now I can figure out what size triple square I need to remove the BSM. This car has fastener ADD. Random Torx and Allen sizes all throughout the normal socket sizes. And Triple Square? Who other than VW?

In reply to buzzboy :

"Who other than VW?" Mercedes. I think it must be a German thing. Fasteners of all types and sizes all over the place. They can never just put a 10mm in if the torque requirement is below a typical 10mm torque spec they must use a 9mm. Or 8 or 7 or 6 or ...

In reply to dculberson :

My all time favorite is the air cleaner on a W123.  Perimeter clips all around the housing, and three bolts through the top.  Meanwhile, every other car company ever be like:

volvoclearinghouse said:

In reply to dculberson :

My all time favorite is the air cleaner on a W123.  Perimeter clips all around the housing, and three bolts through the top.  Meanwhile, every other car company ever be like:

Mercedes did that perimeter clips + bolts for their air cleaner covers into the 90's, sofaking annoying.

The evil balance shaft module(BSM from here). Here it sits with it's stupid 12mm triple square sockets, which NAPA calls serrated wrenches.

After ordering the correct tool I waited for the road onto the island to reopen after a north easter

The BSM comes off pretty easy. It also contains the oil pump. So I ordered an oil pump from an earlier ALH which didn't have the BSM. Thanks VW for building such good LEGOs. Now I can plug up the oil feed to the BSM and start putting this thing back together.

That scared me more than anything I've ever done on a car. Starting up the first engine I built was less scary to me. I was just so worried I'd screw things up. I had to enlarge one hole to 11/32 and then tap the hole for a plug.

The TDIclub forums recommended doing this job with the engine rightsideup so any shavings will fall out of the engine instead of into it. As I turned the engine up I realized that I can't hold the engine while tightening down my crappy engine stand. So I'm yelling for my GF to grab the necessary sockets while I'm holding the engine where I want it, then all the oil previously held in place by the BSM decides to start running down my leg. But we got it and only added another stain to the garage floor and my flipflops.

This felt a bit like putting the cart before the horse, but parts I need are parts I need. Somebody recommended Jags That Run for this nifty adapter. Goes from Mercedes 3 bolt differential flange to Spicer 1310 u-joint. The trans I'm currently considering also uses a 1310 on the output so that should make my life easier when I look for a new driveshaft

Instead of my usual method, I had patience and bought the correct tool. 

The oil pump drive is press fit. Now I get to learn how to remove it without a puller and without damaging anything else nearby. 

just slit it about 3/4 of the way through with a zip disc and then whack it with a chisel. it will split and fall off

Feels good to have that done. All the old bits are finally off and the new stuff is going back on! 

In typical me fashion I got excited and started putting the new crank seal on backwards, which destroys it. New one in the mail. Time to start work on procuring the transmission so I can begin mounting it in the car

Zee Germans:  Ja, let us use biodegradable plastic for critical engine component.  No fail in this plan!

Nice work.  Love checking here and seeing progress!

In reply to volvoclearinghouse :

It started with our engine wiring harnesses back in the 90s on MBs. 

High heat? Yeah, that won't cook said harness prematurely.

Finally got the timing belt installed. Not the easiest one I've ever done, but it's done. I like timing marks on the belt itself. Call me old fashioned.

On a trip to Virginia Beach to drop my BMW off at a shop I picked up a little something else

Z32 300ZX trans. I've always liked how these shift. Holds plenty more torque than I'm going to make.

And because nobody on the internet likes to show accurate dimensions of transmissions(only like 10 months of researching this info). From bellhousing to shifter on a RS5R30A  is 32 inches. Perfect!

In reply to buzzboy :

What kind of an A-Daptor plate you gonna need to mate that Kamikaze transmission to that Kraut engine?

tdconversions.com sells adapters from L4 VW engines to a whole host of transmissions. Was tough finding one that's strong enough for 300ft*lbs and wouldn't put the shifter up under the dashboard.

buzzboy said:

tdconversions.com sells adapters from L4 VW engines to a whole host of transmissions. Was tough finding one that's strong enough for 300ft*lbs and wouldn't put the shifter up under the dashboard.

What's wrong with a 3' long shift lever?

New things afoot! Time to get this FS5R30A installed

Adapter install has begun and has hit a little roadblock. The engine side of the adapter went on just fine. The transmission side seems to have the wrong hardware included in the kit as well as two bolt heads that want to occupy the same space.

Engine side with flywheel adapter

Trans side

Starter that comes with the kit

The bolts holding the two havles of the adapter together use Nord-Locks which I've read about but never seen before. Pretty cool.

Now I wait for an email back about how to proceed. Also I'll want to order up the flywheel and clutch parts. They will be Z31 pieces.

Having a few confusing bits of the manual for this adapter worked out. Apparently a newer version of the VG30 manual was uploaded, that I'm reading, that's not correct. Waiting for the correct one.

My new shifter mount came in. Factory this transmission bolted to the tunnel. The mount makes the shifter attach to the trans itself. This transmission feels soooo good. Glad I chose it. I've only driven one once before, in a Jaguar Mk3 XJ6, and I was very happy with it.

I also get to clearance the bellhousing for the starter. Any idea what tool would do that best? Die grinder?

I'm pretty happy with my cheap bellhousing material removal. Mostly a drill, cleaned up with a Dremel wood carving bit. I read that some z32 N/A bellhousings need to be clearanced for the 250mm TwinTurbo flywheel. Mine did not that I can tell. This looks so nice. Time to start work on engine and trans mounts while I await a clutch/PP. 

It fits! Plenty of clearance for the turbo/exhaust on the passenger side and for the oil cooler on the driver. First issue I had was the shifter sticking up above the tunnel which was a quick fix with the sawzall. Now as I sneak up on the final fitment I'm noticing a clearance issue with the slave cylinder and the suspension crossmember. 

I was going to suggest a router to clearance the bell housing, but sounds like I'm too late. Carbide bits in a router carve aluminum like butter. 

Glad to see the continued progress on this old barge.

Love the flip flops.  I see you still have all your toes, too, at least on the right foot.  I always wear steel toed boots in the garage.  Hell more times than not whenever I leave the house I've got steel toes on.

Those engine bays in the w116 are huge. Even the one I had with a v8 had massive space. 

Lots of space laterally and longitudinally but vertically the double crossmembers make the engine bay very short.

Long time no update. Picking away a few minutes at a time. Update soon after I get the engine mounts finished. 

What's been taking up some of my spare time. The GF and I built this 12x8 bouldering wall.