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The PMSL Nothing much to report . First fuel since March 29/05/20


320touring

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9 hours ago, Heidel_Kakao said:

Is there any reason that wouldn't pass an MOT if you used it for the majority of an exhaust system? Seems a quick and lazy way to make an exhaust.

In the case of this ML, it’d fail because the cat has been removed, but I’m not sure about in general!

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Would it be possible to bolt a sheet of steel to the underneath of the vehicle to stop it being pilfered again?

Also if you replace it with a non original cat it more than likely won't be taken,as they have very little value as scrap,worthless in fact.

Genuine Merc ones are quite lucrative in the cats for cash business.

 

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Think I am going to go down the flex piping route.. will get some stuff ordered up.

 

Today I thought I best get some idea of the oil and fuel filter types so I can get stuff ordered up to do a service.

First up, mild confusion at a vehicle having the original engine covers in place!

IMG_20200112_143939.thumb.jpg.3a3ba5240b169f3d35c8a9f997860c6f.jpg

Once removed, the oil filter was easy to find, sitting at the front top of the engine.

IMG_20200112_144217.thumb.jpg.2d87f724235e20bde67437c9a147278d.jpg

 

The fuel filter is behind it a wee bit, on the same side and easily accessible.

IMG_20200112_144222.thumb.jpg.3f477f848d129f3ca59de9eb01c5e98b.jpg

Whilst not quite robust as the "bolt through" truck spec filter found on the 300D, this filter looks a decent bet for the 70/30 veg mix that this engine can handle.

 

Speaking of the OM612 - it has a reputation for the "black death" where injector seals fail and you get carbon and diesel build up under the rocker cover

*EXAMPLE PIC*

black-death.thumb.jpg.153715c1c1885c51e40799ef885e4552.jpg

 

So you can imagine my trepidation when I removed the main cover..

 

Absolutely immaculate :)

think it stays on fleet for a while..

IMG_20200112_144233.jpg

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I had leaky injectors on my last 2 cdi Mercs. Its an easy job if caught early and the copper seals are pennies from Mercedes.
Always check under engine cover on these era of Mercs.

I think it's probably worth getting a new section of pipe from the fuel filter.
I've been told prices have risen since I last bought Merc fuel hoses, but they were under £10 a section from Mercedes when I got them.

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As alluded to in the last update - after some investigation this seems a thoroughly reasonable tub, so I have resolved to show it some attention.

 

First up, oil change time. 

IMG_20200114_183106.thumb.jpg.b4b258b60d68e1bbff0555a0a42e5026.jpg

The om612 2.7 5cyl lump in this takes 8L for a full change including filter. So it was a mid sook stop required to empty the Pela, before drawing out the last couple of litres.

IMG_20200114_204048.thumb.jpg.cf389efd0cbcba4bd0eef3cd1b667bbf.jpg

As you can see, the oil filter was about due a change. Doing things properly (after all, this is a posh car with its engine covers still in place), I replaced the 3 seals on the filter mounting. A most unusual experience!

 

The air filter was next - significantly easier to access Than the equivalent m57 in the BMWs of the time. 3 bolts and 3 clips made for fast replacement.

IMG_20200114_200214.thumb.jpg.cdd4305819fd62588fd05dfe815fbc76.jpg

 

With that done, I turned my attention to more practical matters.

As soon as my brother confirmed he has collected the fuel filters it was game on

IMG_20200114_140103.thumb.jpg.529b11ede3f703b9dc512ff154c54ae6.jpg

The om612 will apparently take up to 70% Veg and run happily on it. 

This car never having been run on it before, I decided to take it gently at first - adding 10L to the 3/4 tank in the car. This is probably about a 25% mix.

IMG_20200114_210905.thumb.jpg.eaf2d5a78e909d743242eb7e6d551a0c.jpg

Om nom nom.

When starting a vehicle off on a vegetarian diet, there are two key things to do:

1. Ensure the filter is accessible, and any clips have been loosened to check they work 

2. Put a spare fuel filter in the glovebox box 

IMG_20200114_195747.thumb.jpg.c3381275fadebc1e24b06a778e670f0f.jpg

The veg will pull guff out the fuel lines for a while, so having the spare filer allows you to swap it out if you notice the "surging" you can experience when a fuel filter is blocked.

 

Lastly, a new 16" wiper was added to the rear.

Total cost for the service (fuel filter not changed so not counted) was £41.95, including 10L of 5w40 fully synth.

 

It drove lovely on the way home, but gave me an "Oil high" warning. 

A quick 11pm Pela run seemed to resolve the issue. I think it was slightly overfilled due to sitting on a slope when the oil was added.

IMG-20200114-WA0011.thumb.jpeg.7903c8897a607ff6b6c1918a2e1b7d65.jpeg

The big check will be if it starts happy tomorrow morning when cold:)

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6 hours ago, Cavcraft said:

Nice one, had no idea these were veg friendly. That service was cheap too, especially including the oil.

Link for the oil is here: 

https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.ebay.co.uk%2Fulk%2Fitm%2F303141872276

25 minutes ago, wuvvum said:

These must be one of the few common rail engines that will cope with veg?

About a year ago I did some research into vw PD engines, and there were a fair few folk running high veg content in them. Interested, I did some reading re other CR engines, and the OM611/2/3 came up. Essentially, any early 2000s Merc Diesel 

Om611 (4cyl 2.2 litre straight 4cyl) e.g. c220cdi/ e220cdi up to 2011 ? 

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercedes-Benz_OM611_engine

Om612 (5cyl 2.7 litre straight 5cyl) e.g. c270cdi /e270cdi up to 2006 

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercedes-Benz_OM612_engine

Om613 (6cyl 3.2 litre straight 6) e.g. e320cdi/ s320cdi up to 2003

 https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercedes-Benz_OM613_engine

 

Will apparently take high concentration VEG. ***DO NOT TAKE MY WORD FOR IT -CHECK IT OUT FOR YOURSELF - I ACCEPT NO RESPONSIBILITY FOR ANYTHING THAT HAPPENS SHOULD YOU TRY USING VEG IN THESE ENGINES***

I checked online 

Screenshot_20200115_085926.thumb.jpg.96dd060cec877935360f08b5de522667.jpg

 

And given I had a cheap testbed, I thought I would give it a shot.. I'll keep the thread updated as I increase veg content:)

 

In other news, the drive to work was fine. Cold start on veg was grand, and no "oil high" message:)

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That Wojtek Kuffuffle guy replies to all requests with the same reply no matter what the vehicle people ask about,     

 a friend with an 2005  270cdi Merc same engine that has ran nearly 90% with a bit of petrol mixed in but drops it down to 20% at this time of the year due to starting issues, he will only use used oil as it's not ethically right to use new oil destined for food and has two of my old 1000L IBCs full to the brim as he's struggling to use it quick enough,  he recons pubs burger vans and restraunts can't get rid of it quick enough and the reason is people just  can't be bothered to collect it.

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Lol, that chap does seem a prolific poster:)

 

Re your mate's experience - positive to hear some info re someone using Veg ok in the same engine. Ordinarily I would use WVO, but didn't have any in stock (as didn't have a diesel on fleet).

 

If it works out, I'll see about getting re -set up for filtering.

 

The dream is a scabby s320cdi on veg:)

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Well, here we have the "Exhaust in a box" kit.

The ML system is 76mm diameter (old school 3" pipe:))

I bought 1m of 80mm diameter flue liner for wood burners - stainless steel and £15.99 delivered

IMG_20200117_114614.thumb.jpg.aff01ac32144bd83baec38a3be02c8c2.jpg

This is rigid enough to stay in shape but flexible enough to bend past the chassis rail that would make piping it with solid pipe difficult.

 

To attach it, there are two options:

1. Slip the pipe over and jubilee clips it in place.

2. As above, but slit the ends to let the clips crush the tube easier.

IMG_20200117_114625.thumb.jpg.5831218c178540e39e2f456977568ce0.jpg

These Jubilee clips were £2.75 for 2, and are lovely - nice action, mechanism looks decent too.

 

I may update this on Sunday evening to advise if it works:)

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Work achieved. Exhaust masterpiece still intact after 35mins/22 miles.

Get a buzz at 900rpm off the heat shield at the front. Silent everywhere else. 

May adjust teh front slightly to stop the buzz, otherwise it appears to be transporting exhaust gasses to the rear silencer fine, and is much quieter when driving.

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We now have 20L of finest veg in the tank, so running at about 30% veg.

First cold start tomorrow should tell me whether this is ok or not.

On the current tank, I saved £7.54 (assuming it doesn't break!) 

Allowing for that, that enough saved every 6 tanks to cover servicing costs - so I could afford to service it every 2200 miles and still break even.

Exhaust is still holding, But I reckon I will try to sort the rattle tomorrow.

All in all, so far so good this week!

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