Spouse Cred Level Up!
Spouse Cred Level Up!
mazdeuce wrote: In reply to ascott: Everything you said is true. Especially if you've never been inside a motor before, you have no idea where to start. I acknowledge that although buying and installing a lift to fix the van seems perfectly normal around here, to most people it sounds as crazy as buying an airplane and learning to fly because you have a wedding to go to.
I'd be quite happy with an excuse as compelling as yours to buy a lift. As it sits, I need to jack the roof up off my garage and add a few more rows of blocks to make enough space for it.
In reply to ascott:
Find the Grosh thread. It will explain more of hownership our friend here operates. Also, its got good ideas.
I enjoyed this thread and the Grosh one too. Cool projects.
mndsm wrote: In reply to ascott: Find the Grosh thread. It will explain more of hownership our friend here operates. Also, its got good ideas.
AKA: "funny you should say that" and/or "we await your build thread" 
In reply to mazdeuce: Check Autozone. Here in Florida, they've had a bunch of oil on clearance at $2 a quart. Synthetic Mobil, Castrol, Valvoline, Royal Purple. Might save you a little on those 10.5 quart short oil changes you mentioned a few pages back.
In reply to ascott:
I understand what you're saying but I respectfully disagree. Take a gander at petegossett C4 thread which he's performing on only an hour or two a night, maschinenbau's "rice rod" build that he's doing on top of a home renovation, or numerous other build threads done after work and the kids are in bed.
Mechanical skills can be learned pretty easily as virtually the whole of human knowledge can be accessed through a 3"x5" ish device these days. Then it's just a matter of following directions and owning a basic toolset.
Knowledge of a system, not even full understanding, when you're presented with a problem helps in formulating options. With options you can decide what the best course of action for your situation may be. When your only option is head to the dealer you are enslaved within a system that is designed to make money from ignorance for someone who isn't you.
Removing the black-box perception of how something so integral to most people's lives works seems like common sense. At least then the what and why can be understood even if you don't want to undertake the where, when, and how. The power is in your hands at that point.
Mazdeuce has several transportation options so rebuilding for pennies on the dollar makes perfect sense. If it were me I'd do the same but it'd take quite a bit longer.
I'll stop E36 M3ting up your thread now mazdeuce.
Any time someone I know gets hung up on the idea of working on cars being hard, my go-to description for how to learn is this: "If you can use basic hand tools and read directions, you can do a lot more than you'd expect. There will always be jobs that you either don't have time, specialized tools or specialized skills for, but most things don't need anything special."
In reply to rslifkin:
Very true. Especially in this age, where literally anything is on youtube. Now while I don't think anyone has r&red thEir own amg van, its not really that different than other cars. And when I can find a whole video on how to do a starter in a corolla so I don't have to pull the service manual, ima do it. All I really need is bolt locations anyhow, but that's not the point. You can learn anything online if you want to.
The0retical wrote: In reply to ascott: I understand what you're saying but I respectfully disagree. Take a gander at petegossett C4 thread which he's performing on only an hour or two a night, maschinenbau's "rice rod" build that he's doing on top of a home renovation, or numerous other build threads done after work and the kids are in bed.
I don't think we disagree at all. The point I'm attempting to make is it's a value and time judgment, not a skills issue.
It's a state of mind. When I was younger I thought nothing of wrenching every night. I crashed one car and bought another smooched at the opposite end and set about them both with discs, torches and welders to make one car again.
Fast forward and unlike some who are more and more into cars as time goes on, I'm down more to the level of maintenance than true project cars. It took me 6 weeks to do a full timing belt, water pump etc. swap on my Volvo which is more like a weekend project if I was dedicated. I love watching what people like Deuce do and want to get back there, but right now family (and TV, and socializing) takes precedence over wrenching 9/10 times. But practice makes perfect and it's amazing how you lose some of the muscle memory for doing things. I swear a simple brake job take twice as long as it used to do now I do it once a year not once a month if you know what I mean.
mndsm wrote: Putting the brush scrubber to is...hello paint swirls.
No offence to Deuce or anyone else here on this board, but I guarentee that to the owner of the car I pictured, it's just a mini van, nothing special. Also I drive my car through the car wash every week. Who cares? HAving said that I am giving serious consideration to polishing the Volvo come spring......for the first time ever in nearly 9 years and pushing 110k miles.
mazdeuce wrote: ...this one is broken, so it's worth less than that. Hopefully when it's fixed I'll be putting a $10k motor back in, but I pulled a $2k motor out.
I haven't finished the whole thread yet, but this resonated. Part of my work is resuscitating those who are "technically dead" when I arrive. The worst that can happen is for them to stay that way, best case we bring them back!
Great work. Carry on. Thanks for documenting it and thanks for being a stay at home parent, SWMBO works much harder than I do taking care of our terrorists.
In reply to mazdeuce:
I saw your posts and read about your project. I would like to make a few comments about your path of repair.
1) Bent rods can be difficult to identify, especially with a dial indicator. This method will work for badly bent rods, but will not identify minor deformation.
2) Coolant in the oil can cause crank bearing and rod bearing damage, quickly. I doesn't take a lot of damage to start a failure mode that will result in rapid failure after putting he engine back in use.
3) A slightly bent rod can cause a rod bearing to ride on an edge, creating metal to metal contact, and will fail rapidly. (note rod bearing clearance is about .0005"-.001")
4) The best method for checking bent rods is to remove them and have a machine shop check the rods with a rod reconditioning machine. (Some rods cannot be reused once they have been removed. Check this before pulling rod caps)
5) Assuming you have not operated the engine too long, examination of the rod bearings can reveal if a bent rod exists, especially if the damage is on a rod next to the broken head bolt. (same caution as previous point)
6) Many new rod designs use a fracture surface interface between the rod and rod cap, historically speaking, this interface was machined smooth. Rod reconditioning machines usually work by grinding the interface between the rod and the cap and then re-boring the large end rod hole. This technique cannot be used on fracture surface interfaces. Hence, most fracture surface interface rods are single use only and are quite expensive.
7) If you operated the engine too long, you may have damaged the crank by rotating with a bent rod or by the bearings failing from coolant in the oil.
8) Mercedes Benz has a history of using nitrided crankshafts. If you grind a nitrided crank, it will have to be re-nitrided following machining because the coatings are thin and becomes less effective as material is removed. A lot of crank shops will not grind a nitrided crank.
Summary:
You need to find out if the connecting rods are serviceable and if they can be reused once they are removed. My guess is that any rod removed will have to be replaced. This means if your crank needs machining, you will need a full set of rods (this may be why the dealer condemns a motor with a bent rod). MB turbo diesel rods are about $500 each. The rods would also have to be removed if you have bearing damage. I recall you said you couldn't turn the motor over. This could be due to hydrolock or crank bearing failure. (don't turn the crank with the heads and or cams out of place.)
If it were me, I would check the bottom half of the motor before spending more money. I am kind of surprised nobody has brought this to your attention. Ask any mechanic who has performed engine overhauls, if you can find one!
Since you are an engineer, you may take the following to heart. Your head bolt failed from fatigue, which is a cycle life type failure. Fatigue failure of head bolts on pumps and internal combustion engines is common because the bolts are exposed to rapid and large cycle stress. The problem is usually due to improper torque, which allows the stress cycles to be more damaging. A stronger bolt and higher torque is usually the fix (do not design your own fix, this is an engineering problem). I bring this up because you wanted to add horsepower. Adding 200 HP will likely cause additional head bolt problems because the cycle stresses will increase in size with horsepower.
I am impressed with your confidence and your can do attitude. I am much the same way, but the engineering design used today is "throw-away" at first failure. I used to own an auto shop in Houston and I know a few good mechanics. I am a little bias, having worked for independent shops during my career, but they are the best. Try calling Ben's Workshop in Austin, Texas. They could probably answer a lot of the questions about the reusability of the rods and if they know anyone who can grind nitrided crank and re-nitride after machining.
I'll be watching if you need to ask any questions.
Richard.
Adrian_Thompson wrote:mndsm wrote: Putting the brush scrubber to is...hello paint swirls.No offence to Deuce or anyone else here on this board, but I guarentee that to the owner of the car I pictured, it's just a mini van, nothing special. Also I drive my car through the car wash every week. Who cares? HAving said that I am giving serious consideration to polishing the Volvo come spring......for the first time ever in nearly 9 years and pushing 110k miles.
I have had 3 cars in my life I cared about the paint on. My ex wife ruined one. I traded another for the third. I learned a lot from detailer friends....it sorta rubbed off.
In reply to mazdeuce:
I forgot one more thing that is important. Repair shops buy parts from dealerships at a discount. It could be 15%-20% off of retail. With your new found notoriety, you should be able to set up a commercial account at a Mercedes Benz Dealership and take advantage of the discounted parts. Just call around Texas Mercedes dealers and tell them who you are and ask for help setting up discounted parts purchasing. I have an inside contact at Mercedes, I will try to get you together.
Richard
I have to hand it to Mazdeuce. You're handling your new "fame" a lot better than I would have.
Mazdeuce, don't let anyone scare you! The Challenge wagon drove me to work for 2,000 miles with this guy slapping around. And you know what? It ran pretty darn good.
And that's just in a E36 M3ty GM V8. Surely a well-engineered German engine can handle a little bit of curve 
*disclaimer: don't listen to me
In reply to Schulze_Engineering:
First off, thanks for the overwhelming existential dread. 
Everything you say is true. I've though about it. How far in do I dive? What all do I check? I decided to follow MB advice to their techs on this issue and check deck height. I did it with a straight edge and feeler gauges. All 8 cylinders check out. Mercedes says that if this is the case, it's fine, slap it back together.
Does that mean it's fine? No. Am I facing a cascading bearing failure within the first 20 miles? Maybe. But there has to be some level of risk that's acceptable. I've spent some sleepless nights thinking about it and I'm comfortable with this. I won't know whether it was the right choice until it either fails or doesn't.
If this was a race car or a car I was sending my daughter to college in I might not be as comfortable, but I'm going to see how this plays out.
I would love contact with Mercedes. When my Cadillac broke on One Lap it was very nice to just be able to talk frankly with someone about the problem. He was high enough up that he didn't have to BS me or dance around words and that was a huge help. That hasn't been my experience with anyone at MB yet except for the AMG tech. He was fantastic.
Huge thanks for taking the time to type all of that about and give me things to think about. I'll read it a couple more times and think it over.
Crackers wrote: I have to hand it to Mazdeuce. You're handling your new "fame" a lot better than I would have.
Just got back from Wal-Mart. Nobody noticed me. As long as I can buy toilet paper without having to wear sunglasses, I'll be OK.
In reply to Durty:
Thanks for commmenting. It's nice to hear from everyone whether they're a "buy a warranty not tools" person or someone who would gladly do the same thing I'm doing. Nobody is wrong, we just come at it from different places.
As far as staying at home, the second best decision I've ever made after who to marry. I'll decide what to do "after" but I'm seeing this job through to the end.
mndsm wrote: In reply to rslifkin: Very true. Especially in this age, where literally anything is on youtube. Now while I don't think anyone has r&red thEir own amg van, its not really that different than other cars. And when I can find a whole video on how to do a starter in a corolla so I don't have to pull the service manual, ima do it. All I really need is bolt locations anyhow, but that's not the point. You can learn anything online if you want to.
You do have to be careful with your sources online. Usually those videos or forum posts are being made by someone who has done the job once and may or may not have any clue what they're doing. Amateurs teaching amateurs. Some of the stuff I've seen on Miatas is hilarious. I'll use them to get an overall picture - the lay of the land, so to speak. Like you said, bolt locations.
It's no coincidence that the first thing I buy for any vehicle is a proper factory service manual.
Mazdeuce is used to it. fairly sure his grosh went around the internets for a while.
mazdeuce wrote:Crackers wrote: I have to hand it to Mazdeuce. You're handling your new "fame" a lot better than I would have.Just got back from Wal-Mart. Nobody noticed me. As long as I can buy toilet paper without having to wear sunglasses, I'll be OK.
Bog roll? THat's what Amazon prime is for.
In reply to Adrian_Thompson:
But how will I KNOW I'm famous if I buy toilet paper online? It's the not knowing that eventually gets to you......
You'll need to log in to post.
