Is a GL320 an awful choice for a tow pig?

My mom has a 2007 Grand Cherokee with the Mercedes 3L diesel, and while this is just a single data point, the only issue she's had with it since new was a swirl motor actuator in the intake manifold went bad. This was a $1500-$2000 fix a few years ago, though it's a common problem and there are diy instructions online. Or you can get a tune to eliminate the swirl motor, or put a resistor inline to trick the computer into thinking it's working (supposedly its an emissions thing). I don't know if that problem exists in the later engines or not.

The engine itself is great - tons of torque, fairly quiet, good mileage.

wae wrote: So far I'm hearing that it's not something that's going to sneak up on me in the middle of the night and blow through every penny in my wallet, so that's encouraging. I'm not opposed to the Suburban or Tahoe, but I really like the idea of having a nice comfortable luxury SUV. I just fear things like what Mazdeuce is going through with his Mercedes. I realize we're taking about two very different things, though.

I got a C280 in at work today with under 80k that is going to need some very expensive repairs because someone told him that he only needed oil changes every 10-15k.

The worst part is, it's ten years old and the doors are rusted out. So even if the various POs actually took care of it instead of playing Hot Potato with the maintenance, it would still not be worth very much.

I'd only buy any German luxocruiser if I could see on the Carfax that maintenance was done over and above the factory specified "limp the car through the first three years" scheduling.

That is the real reason I would want a Cayenne. Yes, the maintenance schedules on them are bogus too, but you have your choice of a VR6, an Audi V8, or a 928 engine. I'd choose the VR6 because cheap, and the idea of a Corrado engine with Porsche badges makes the trollface part of my brain giggle. The brakes on even a base model Cayenne/Tuareg(sp?)/Q7 are gigantic times huge and are more or less immortal, the trans on the VR6 model is a ZF unit that looks like it belongs under a Class 8 truck, etc. (I wouldn't trust a V8 Cayenne for towing, it's a DSG and DSG times towing kinda worries me)

The odd thing is, when I was looking, Cayennes were cheaper that Tuaregs, which irked me because Porsches are not compatible with VCDS for some dang DRM reason. And V8 Cayennes are cheaper than VR6. You can pick up a V8 Cayenne cheaper than a Tahoe.

I'd go for the GL. The X164, W164, and W221s were the first really solid cars Mercedes made following the quality disasters that were the first DaimlerChrysler years. The only real issue with the OM642 has to do with buildup from crankcase ventilation, which can easily be solved using a catch can. They're a lot nicer than GMT900s, and don't suffer from the pesky DoD cam wear issues that plague the Yukons, Tahoes, and Suburbans of the same era.

Well, jumped into the deep end of the pool on this one. Let's see how it turns out.

What could go wrong?

Since I got the Sequoia (05) to tow (~5500lbs typically), we've done a ton of long-distance tows with the car/trailer. Two other guys I race with have since bought the same vehicle. The 4.7 Sequoias 05-06 with the good transmission are bulletproof, tow strong, are dead-nuts reliable, cheap to fix or upgrade (thanks Tundra aftermarket!), very nice and comfortable (if a bit dated style) interiors, cavernous cargo space (I can haul 4x8 plywood INSIDE with the hatch closed), more civilized than domestic biggies, and silent as a tomb when towing. But the best part is that they are unloved because they are not a 4Runner or Tundra, and so they are DIRT cheap on CL. I mean, the KBB on mine is only $4k (compare to $8 for the same year 4Runner with the same engine)....My crew guys always comment on how much they love riding in the back on long tows :)

It's not a diesel but we still tow everywhere at 80mph and it pulls the load fine and maintains speed up long inclines (granted, I'm talking about east coast mountains, not the Rockies...). MPGs are not very good, but probably not much different from any gas-engined tow rig.

The newer Sequoias with the 5.7 are more $$ but equally unloved on the used market compared to Suburbans, etc...for the same reasons (not a Tundra or 4Runner).

I know it wasn't on your list, but it's a great tow/utility rig for bargain-basement buy-in with typical super-low Toyota maintenance costs and high reliability....so figured I'd throw it out there.

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As to the Benz, we actually looked into one of those back in '12 when we got the Sequoia. After doing about 10 minutes of research, it moved to the bottom of my list (well, off the list). Too many apparent issues, for as sexy as they look and as cheap as they are on the used market. YMMV, of course.

EDIT: DOH, too late haha....well, let's hope your luck is better! It is very attractive sitting in the driveway, that's for sure ;)

Looks nice.

I bet it is comfy

I looked around at the Escalade, LX460, Land Cruiser, and the Sequoia but the Lexus was the only thing that I really really liked other than the GL350. And I can't stand that ridiculous swinging door in the back.

I know I'm taking a risk on the Benz, but it drives sooooo nice and makes awesome diesel sounds if you listen really closely.

So, are we taking it or the van for the scrapyard run? . That thing would look so out of place there.

In reply to eastsidemav:

I'm going to get the brake controller installed tonight. Tow pig mode: engaged!

Used it for its first official race car tow duty today and, of course, It Happened.

It ran just fine, having no problems at all cruising at 70mph up the interstate on the way to the site. As we neared the site, though, it just completely choked trying to get up the hills. Like to the point where I thought it was just going to stop and roll backwards. When I started it up to leave, it threw codes for both the bank 1 and bank 2 intake runner controls stuck shut and all the way home it drove like I had a block of wood under the accelerator. I'm assuming that since they both are reporting failed at the same time, it isn't the individual parts in the manifolds, but some common component, so I've got to go try to figure that one out.

I knew I should've gotten an F-150...

The R has a actuator on the front of the intake that controls all of the intake runners as a group. Big vacuum can looking thing with an arm. Pull some plastic if needed and take some pictures. It's just a car, you can figure it out.

mazdeuce wrote: The R has a actuator on the front of the intake that controls all of the intake runners as a group. Big vacuum can looking thing with an arm. Pull some plastic if needed and take some pictures. It's just a car, you can figure it out.

I take my inspiration from you and your R -- If you can manage a handbuilt unicorn, certainly a common OM642 should be no problem for me! So you're right: no more whining (for now), just some fixin'.

The statement about it being just a car is slightly inaccurate, though: Allow me to revise that to "It's just a car that employs fasteners for which I have zero tools". I started to take plastic and such off and got as far as removing the strut bar when I realized that they use those E-torx bits to hold all the air filter plastic together, so I'll have to visit The Hammer Store tomorrow and get tooled up to dig in!

Does that thing have a low range transfer case?

E-torx and triple-square are your best friends when it comes to German cars. They aren't really any harder to work on than modern American cars, they're just a bit different.

A set of torx and e torx and you should be fine. Thst's all I had to add to my 25 year old set of Craftsman tools for the R.

Showed my buddy this thread, used to be Mercedes tech.

"M55 motor I bet due to carbon build up. You'll have to remove the intake manifold. Which means everything on top of the engine. There's some bolts you can't reuse as well."

Osterkraut wrote: Does that thing have a low range transfer case?

As far as I am aware, it does not. I think that was only on the super-crazy-ultra offroad package that wasn't ordered on this particular specimen.

G_Body_Man wrote: E-torx and triple-square are your best friends when it comes to German cars. They aren't really any harder to work on than modern American cars, they're just a bit different.

Yeah, you're right. That's what I kept telling myself when I was thinking about buying one. I've got a copy of WIS and all that, so I just need to remember that it's really just big metal Legos in odd shapes.

mazdeuce wrote: A set of torx and e torx and you should be fine. Thst's all I had to add to my 25 year old set of Craftsman tools for the R.

I've had tons of Torx bits for a while now, and I just got back from der Hammerplatz and now I've got some "universal" wrenches that claim to work on E-Torx as well as various sizes of E-Torx 1/4 and 3/8 sockets, regular and Grande.

I also broke down and picked up an inch-pounds torque wrench. This is what my life has become! I'm going to have to actually do things with gasp precision!

yupididit wrote: Showed my buddy this thread, used to be Mercedes tech. "M55 motor I bet due to carbon build up. You'll have to remove the intake manifold. Which means everything on top of the engine. There's some bolts you can't reuse as well."

Thanks for getting me a consult! That confirms my suspicion that it's some common component. I've read a bunch of the Sprinter guys just unplugging the motor and putting in a resistor on their OM642 engines and having no ill effects, so I'm going to see if that's an option in the short term while I wait on parts.

Wish me luck... I'm digging in!

I've been fiddling with Mercedes for awhile and now my xjr which i took everything off the top of the engine to replace a $17 hose.

Lots of work but label everything and read. Do you have Mercedes sds? A must have for any modern Mercedes owner. Might be the best $500 you spend towards the Benz.

Anyway, good luck and beautiful truck. They're worth the effort.

Well, I tempafixed it and all seems to be well!

I took off the air intake tubing and the fuel filter so I could get down and see the motor. Everything looks like it's connected, so not broken linkage. I put a 10k resistor between the two middle pins of the connector, wrapped it up, and left it disconnected. Cleared the codes, let the fuel pump fill the filter again, and she started right up and runs super strong. No more limp mode!

I also found at least part of the soot and smell problem: the intake tube seal was crushed and not sealing and there's a fair amount of oil coming from the pcv system. I uncrushed it and it seems to not smell as much now, but it's hard to tell.

Now I know what parts I need to order and I'll have to find some time when I can have the car down for a day.

In reply to wae:

Oil from the PCV is a recurring thing on those. Buy a catch can, and never look back.