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Well if you know me, then you know of my battle with the stealership where I bought my C43 for FULL price + EXTRA with the promise that anything and everything would be fixed.
They did the valve covers (this is about 2 years ago). I have a high level of oil consumption, it is about 3/4 quart on every gas fill up. According to MBZ Stealership, this is very normal and not a problem at all. According to my friends at MBWorld, they add absolutely no oil to their cars unless tracked. So who is telling the truth and who is lying?? IDK, you tell me!!!
Look at the seepage from the valve cover. Also look at the breather hose cracked and mended with rubber paste. You can't even see the bottom where it is completely cracked, this must be a joke right? Am I in a nightmare of incompetency? I would be better off letting a 16 year old and his shop class in high school work on my car. Why am I paying thousands of dollars to the stealership for this....
FORT WASHINGTON MERCEDES BENZ, FORT WASHINGTON PENNSYLVANIA, USA
So I cleaned the covers, put clamps on the hoses and will change the oil now and see next month if still seeping. Do you think this explains my oil consumption? I feel like this does not explain 3/4 quart per fill up. There are no oil spots where I park my car so I don't think lower is leaking, could be leaking under pressure when I drive on highway. I may do a compression or leak down test, IDK.
I almost feel like I want to keep my C43 original and just do repairs. Maybe I will buy a C280 or something and install my 5.4 in there, is that possible? Haven't really researched it.
Damn, what a nightmare. I can't imagine those should be weeping like that.. When I first purchased the vehicle, I was told valve cover gaskets were replaced, but they were still weeping a bit. Fwiw, I've gone through the same situation & have racked up $8000 in parts, mods, & maintenance on this thing for the past 3.5 years. What I have learned is, if I want things done correctly, to do most of the work myself. These cars really are not difficult to work on.
Realistically the rocker cover gaskets should last 6-8yrs between replacements. They will weep a bit after 4-6yrs but nothing a yearly engine wash wouldn't fix. The breather hoses really should be replaced every time the rocker covers are resealed as they almost always break like it looks like happened to yours and they were "patched up". Many people only replace the gasket and they don't reseal the top breather with silicone which seams to leak at about the same rate as the gasket, they should be resealed at the same time.
There are some Victor Reinz rocker cover gaskets that were slightly out of spec and leak within 12 months......I got a set unfortunately.......the only rocker cover gaskets I've ever done with the engine removed and they leaked within 6 months!
those sweaty oil place are for sure not causing your oil consumption.
my 4.3 with 305.000km had about 1 liter every 3.000/3.500km's.
my first 5.4 had 1 liter every gas fill up. ( i drive around 330km on a full tank.)
here for i pulled the engine.. it also smoked like a m..therf..cker.
Agree with Dutch. My 43 which is closing to the 300'000km mark uses around 1lt between normal oil changes 1x year, so Mickey I guess you have a bit of excessive oil consumption. As others say, it's not the oil seeping at several areas that explains the need to top up regularly.
my valve cover gasket on the passengers side was sweating a bit of oil down on the exhaust.
i haven't replaced any gaskets yet
i have never needed to add any extra oil, is this common on high mileage M113 engine to add extra oil?
Burning some oil is common to all engines, including M113s. A lot of highway driving and tracking will increase the consumption, so guess that's expected...
Burning some oil is common to all engines, including M113s. A lot of highway driving and tracking will increase the consumption, so guess that's expected...
Like everyone else my C43 does burn oil but nothing like you are describing. It is way out of the ordinary to consume that much over 1 tank of gas. I replaced my gaskets when I installed the phenolic spacers years ago, haven't seen any weeping
Yeah, e55, I have already resolved to do most of the work on this car myself. Aside from constantly overpaying for non-quality work, I enjoy working on it and the community here is great!
I already clamped the hoses. I should have torqued down the screws while I was there, I'll go outside and do that in a bit when I change the oil later today or tomorrow. I'll run it for a month and go back and have a close look at weepage. But I'll also do a compression test later next week. Any idea on what compression should be in this engine?
To answer your question about swapping the 5.4 into the C280, yes it will fit, no it will not be a direct swap like the C43. The C280, or any other C class besides the C43, uses different motor mounts, exhaust, engine management system, etc... It can be done but will be much more of a head ache and will cost more as well. The 5.4 into the C43 is plug and play
You would be insane to try and put a 5.4 in a C280. It's possible but a HUGE HUGE HUGE headache.
The real issue is that a C43 is about as cheap as a C280 now. I see them all the time going for 2500-5000 in fine condition (not concourse, but good enough to drive and be proud of). They are in way better shape than mine and I paid $4k in 2011.
But 3/4 litre every GAS fill up? That's outrageous. I have virtually no consumption on my motor with 297k miles and I was using very extended oil change intervals (15,000 miles Mobil 1 0w40). It's either burning in the combustion or leaking somewhere and your weeps/leaks are not near as bad as that.
You would be insane to try and put a 5.4 in a C280. It's possible but a HUGE HUGE HUGE headache.
The real issue is that a C43 is about as cheap as a C280 now. I see them all the time going for 2500-5000 in fine condition (not concourse, but good enough to drive and be proud of). They are in way better shape than mine and I paid $4k in 2011.
But 3/4 litre every GAS fill up? That's outrageous. I have virtually no consumption on my motor with 297k miles and I was using very extended oil change intervals (15,000 miles Mobil 1 0w40). It's either burning in the combustion or leaking somewhere and your weeps/leaks are not near as bad as that.
Throw an LS in the 280 and boost it & a throw a 5.4 in the 43
08-17-2016, 07:29 PM
