NorCal124

here's the pic of my painted engine diaper. I have it off at the moment to help with the cooling until I can get my auxilliary fan fixed which I have finally scheduled next week. Once you undercoat one thing you'll try to find as many things as you can to undercoat, haha.

CDP

haha. looks awesome. How come yours is sooooo much bigger than mine?

NorCal124

Probably because you have a newer model than me and probably because yours is a 300 and I have a 260. Or maybe its just the camera.

NorCal124

Actually their Mobil 1 5000 is a premium conventional oil. It says so on their website. They also make a high milage oil they say is conventional. It's only their regular Mobil 1 line and their Mobil 1 Extended Performance that's full synthetic. I mistook their Clean 5000 as a blend but it's their 7500 brand that is the synthetic blend. Either way chris, mobil 1 no matter what type of oil you use is a great oil.

YNVDIZW124

The reason my car got bad milage lately is because OF GAS PRICES!! You get less for your money and more crap like ethanol and other additives to "waterdown" gasoline. Also only use premium because it burns better and cleaner for your engine! If you buy regular your getting the same milage even if you got more gallons for the same price!

Ok to do a tune up is cheap! If you get your stuff on ebay then yes it's cheap! the work is simple and if you don't know about cars JUST LABEL EVERYTHING!! Trust me if take it apart then you'll know how to put it back. Also KEEP YOUR WORK AREA CLEAN AND NEAT if you have bolts all over and tools all over it's going to take longer.

DON'T USE MOBIL 1 SYNTHETIC OR PLATINUM SPARK PLUGS!! That oil made the valves on my 190E 2.3 rattle like crazy and the idle feel like shhhhhyt.

neanderthal

thanks for correcting me nor cal. i wasnt aware that they had whored out the mobil 1 name to dino oils.

have you checked your radiator for bugs and leaves and so on stuck in the fins and impeding air flow. quick fix at a self service car wash, just hose her down.

and im sure i dont need to tell you not to worry too much about the temps as long as it doesnt get in the red. before i had my cylinder head done i was always ready to put the heater on at full blast to give it a shot of extra cooling when it needed it.

NorCal124

I used synthetic oil, my car is fine.

YNVDIZW124

Well depends where you live and weight of oil. Here in socal the temps are higher and makes you oil thinner that can make your valves rattle. Most people that live in in cold places have a lower weights of oil to make starting easier.

CDP

What weight do you use Ab?

YNVDIZW124

20-50w regular oil and takes a little longer to start (5-8 sec) but runs and idles smoother. On the M104 engine i would use 10-30w or synthetic.

CDP

think 10w-40 would be good for my car?

YNVDIZW124

If your engine is in good condition and all you gaskets are fine then yes. Also the reason i have such high of a grade is that my car has a leak on the front timing cover and it'll leak more if i go with a lower weight.

CDP

If you have a timing cover leak. Here's a DIY so you can fix it man! I might do this job soon too as well.

http://www.mercedesshop.com/Wikka/M103TimingCoverReseal

YNVDIZW124

I know i can do it but im just lazy!! it's summer so it's hot as hell to run a lower weight!!! In the winter or spring i will go down to 10-40w.

jrmd01

An investigative show called 20/20 did a show last night about "top 10 myths"

One of the myth was about gas. They interviewed engineers and the NASCAR drivers and asked them thier opinions.
1. They all use regular 87 octane gas in their "daily drivers"
2. "budget" (ie. 7/11) gas stations have the same gas as "premium" gas stations (ie. Cheveron)
3. They said 99% of the daily drivers will run fine on regular 87 octane. Only the "high compression" engines need high octane (They mentioned the Acura NSX and their race cars as their example).

I was shocked because I usually use 89 octane thinking it's better for my car. With the high prices of gas, I think I'll try 87 octane...if the car runs fine I'll stick with it.

NorCal124

Nice of you to share that jrmd01. I'm not trying to prove or disprove what you have heard but from personal experience and belief I have to say I'm skeptical about those results. When I was driving my Sentra I always filled up w/ 91 Octane. One time I was going home and I noticed I needed some gas. I only had a few bucks on me and I needed at least a quarter of a tank to be sure I could make it home. I filled up w/ 87 to get a few extra ounces of gas out of what cash I had and I notice a definite bog down in performance from my car. I know my sentra isn't a race car but I've driven that car for so long that I know when something is wrong. Just my experience and 2 cents.

YNVDIZW124

Like i said in my other thread you get more gas with 87 octane but your burning less gas and wasting the rest. I would drive 87 octane on a 4cyl honda engine but not in my 302(5.0) v8 or my m103 6cyl on my benz because it was not designed to burn lower octanes.

I get my gas where it's cheaper because now almost all gas stations are run by the same company like united oil, bp, and others. They all use names like 76, chevron, arco...etc.

All engines can run on 87 octane but you can't say that it will run fine or at it's best!

BTW I HAVE A SENTRA TOO AND RUNS OK ON 87 BUT BETTER AT 89/91 OCTANE.

AMG_Eric

the rule of thumb with octane is use the lowest you can get away with. what i mean by this is simply use the lowest octane b4 you get spark detonation/sprak knock. its a common myth that octane improves this or that. true that mbz recommends 92 for our beauties but the real truth is if she aint a knockin then no worries.

btw its too late to get a link that sufficiently applies to what i said. however in my early puberety days i worked at a gas station and it was the inside scoop. i also think mythbusters did a segment on this.

also on a side note john beck of beck racing motors in placentia told us a story about gas. it seems that some stations/brands of fuel tend to use more alcohol. the reason is it 1) makes a gallon not really a gallon of gas (more like a x % alcohol and the rest gas) and it 2) it keeps the chances of water getting into the tanks down to a min.

i know in the midwest they ship the fuel up the main pipeline via texas so it is essentially all the same. however here in the socal there are 4 distinct brands of fuel and the 8-12 or so companies that sell it can only buy from those 4 refineries. i believe they are arco in lbc/carson mobil in pv unocal in el segundo and chevron or shell...who the heck knows? additionally that is why socal gas is so expensive because the refineries basically made a moritorium on buying fuel from out of state refineries.

neanderthal

i just use regular, unless i know im going to be driving the car hard, or im going to be driving up a long mountain pass (san francisco and sacto trips, phoenix, vegas etc)

but since the cars were designed to use premuim, i make sure that about every third tank is premium. i'll add a bottle of fuel injector cleaner about once a year and run hard, and i make sure that i have premium, fuel injector cleaner, and a very very warm engine before i do a smog check.

jrmd01

NorCal124

NO offense taken. I'm just telling you what I saw on TV the other night. 20/20 is a pretty respectable show, they wouldn't report something without some fact to back it up. But take it for what it's worth.

YNVDIZW124

I understand what you're saying. I'm in the medical field. When we were discussing pimples. Diet (chocolate, fatty foods, etc) was not one of the risk factor for getting pimples. But from my personal experience, I'd have to disagree. My point....science is not perfect. There are many things that they try to prove, but personal experience is the best.

AMG_Eric

Nice to know someone agrees with the 20/20 report. Since you've worked at a gas station, just wondering what gas do you put in your car? Currently I use 89 octane, but if I can safely use 87 octane I think I may switch. Gas prices are $2.65/gallon in Hawaii.




Here's another myth...regarding engine oil.

Consumer's reporst published a report back in the early 90's on engine oil. They tested everything from synthetic oil to slick 50.

Their finding....no difference AS LONG AS YOUR OIL IS CHANGED EVERY 3,000miles and you're using an oil the meets the SAE (?) rating (It's on the bottle). Ever since then, I've used whatever oil is on sale since I change my oil and filter every 3,000mi EXACTLY.

AMG_Eric

i run 87 no use in give the arabs more of my cash then necessary.

neanderthal

jrm
thats true, as long as you change your oil frequently. if you dont change your oil regularly then brand and type come into play

Wadster

Come guys!! I've just read how many replies that mention octane and whether cars are designed to use it but not one mention of what octane really is and the circumstances when an engine might need it. Is this Chevy Cavalier forum or what?

NorCal124

I believe all of that except I have to say that the only oil I won't touch w/ a 10ft. pole is Pennzoil. Pennzoil causes sludge build up. They have a wax based chemical in them which causes it. I have actually taken apart an engine using penzzoil and have seen 2 other engines undergoing an overhaul that use pennzoil. All of them had sludge everywhere, it was horrible. Why people buy it, I don't know. Why we still sell it, I don't know. But when I get customers recommending oil, all I say is anything but Pennzoil.

CDP

What exactly is a overhaul anyways?