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Oil cooler? Do we even have one? There's a transmission oil cooler in the radiator.
Valeo radiators had known issue with that. But tranny not engine.
Since the car hasn't said anything about adding oil, the transmission fluid could be mixed with the coolant.
I thought this wasn't a problem for the manual trans.
I wish I had the car with me to do a more in-depth analysis of its current state.
You know what, I was researching about more info of my coupey issues, and I remembered an insignificant detail from when I was replacing my water pump.
One of the really long bolts holding the pump in had some oil on the end of it.
I dismissed it, but considering that oil is in the coolant now, that might be the cause of it.
I don’t know though, it feels like I’m grasping at straws trying to find any reason to fix the car easy and not have to take apart half my motor.
It would suck to take the head off and find the headgasket was fine.
I really miss driving my little coupe…
At least I got to do an 8 hour roadtrip with my friends to see the Grand Canyon in a rental Ford Focus that seemed like it was about to blow up (thank you Turo).
If any of y’all know any good ways to finalize the diagnosis, please let me know.
Thanks in advance!
Well, the process of disassembling the head has started, but barely anything has happened.
I started by draining oil, removing spark plugs, removing coil packs, and almost the whole intake.
I’m stuck on the connector for the recirculation valve.
Only one casualty, that being one of the breather hoses.
I’ll keep you all posted on how it goes. What the engine looks like now The stuck connector Black oil after 4k miles, yikes
Today I wasn't able to do much, working on a car by yourself is truly a testament to one's strength.
I was able to finally remove the stuck connector on the recirc valve and fully remove the intake.
I also removed the coolant thermostat housing from the block, moving the wiring over the engine (for now) along with the thermostat out the front.
I drained the coolant which looked fresh because it is, and then removed the drive belts.
When do I put the motor at TDC?
I've seen many videos online and am confident about doing the timing for now.
Overview Front of the engine, looks really bare now Belt removed The parts table grows...
Update here: https://mbworld.org/forums/c-class-w...002-c230k.html
Today I removed the fuel rail along with all the injectors and then I pryed off the valve cover.
I then put the engine at TDC and then I encountered something weird, my exhaust cam seems to be upside down from where it should be.
So now I don't know what to do.
TLDR: My timing seems very off and I need help with it before I continue.
C230 Sport Coup + 2006 W164 ML350 + 99 Ford Escort RIP
Originally Posted by TheRotaryFox
Since the car hasn't said anything about adding oil, the transmission fluid could be mixed with the coolant.
I thought this wasn't a problem for the manual trans.
I wish I had the car with me to do a more in-depth analysis of its current state.
C230 Sport Coup + 2006 W164 ML350 + 99 Ford Escort RIP
Do you need to turn another time on engine?
Logically it couldn't have jumped that many teeth.
4 stroke...you need one more revolutoin, no?
This is why I am reluctant to start.
Latest problem....steering very loose.A lot of play.
Makes a clunking noise when turning steering wheel left to right
moves a fair amount and clunks even when locked. I can see the shaft going into the
rack turning CLUNK left CLUNK right.
I'm too old to do this **** alone.
I see a C230 on craiglist in SF with 96K miles that needs a head gasket for $1400.
I'd be better off buying and fixing that and using my car as a parts car.
I could spend 5 grand fixing my car and still need paint and have a car with 260K miles on it
and many more things to break.
Last edited by C230 Sport Coup; Dec 22, 2024 at 06:59 PM.
Do you need to turn another time on engine?
Logically it couldn't have jumped that many teeth.
4 stroke...you need one more revolutoin, no?
This is why I am reluctant to start.
Latest problem....steering very loose.A lot of play.
Makes a clunking noise when turning steering wheel left to right
moves a fair amount and clunks even when locked. I can see the shaft going into the
rack turning CLUNK left CLUNK right.
I'm too old to do this **** alone.
I see a C230 on craiglist in SF with 96K miles that needs a head gasket for $1400.
I'd be better off buying and fixing that and using my car as a parts car.
I could spend 5 grand fixing my car and still need paint and have a car with 260K miles on it
and many more things to break.
I'll try turning the engine a full rotation until it's back at TDC to see if that fixes anything.
About doing this stuff alone, I agree. I usually have my friends helping me do this and we all have no clue what we are doing so we just wing it and have fun.
I saw that C230 on Craigslist, maybe you can talk the guy down to 1k flat.
I haven't gotten down past the cams, but so far the process of the head gasket has been pretty easy, other than the super hard yanks needed to separate 22 years of bonding
Yesterday I was able to set timing and discovered my chain had a stretch of about 2 - 3 degrees.
For 140k miles it seems to be a normal amount of stretch.
No matter, locked the cams in place and marked the chain and cams with some nail polish (stolen from my sister haha).
I removed the timing cover at the front and the top timing chain guide.
I started to take off the metal piece that goes on top of the supercharger and realized I needed an angle joint to remove a couple of bolts.
So only minimal progress made, hopefully, I can do more today. How the M111 looks now 2-3 degress of stretch Marked up cam
So today was a decently good day.
I was able to take off the supercharger and the big metal thing that's on it.
Took a good while to get the hose that attaches to the supercharger baffling (I think that's what its called?) loose.
Removed the chain tensioner, and the 3 bolts on top of the exhaust heat shield, and loosened the cam sprocket bolts.
I need to get the weird 12-point key that the head bolts use.
And the exhaust bolts are all probably super rusted so I might be screwed.
Once I remove the intake and exhaust, I should be able to yank off the head and go from there.
And as a bonus, I removed the supercharger muffler, now to get some bolts that will fill in the holes and enjoy my new noises. Current progress Supercharger looking empty there Old tensioner " class="post_inline_image" data-size="2000x1504" data-src="https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mbworld.org-vbulletin/2000x1504/img_4303_5351b8e31b0ef4ad589e1adf86ae193e2ab0cc3c.jpg" loading="lazy" />
Supercharger muffler removed
Last edited by TheRotaryFox; Jan 2, 2025 at 03:31 AM.
Nice. You’ve got the hood prop’d up to Reach for the Sky mode right?
I wonder if ARP makes a bolt set to replace the OEM ones so no more rust or fighting broken ones.
Mhm, hood all the way up so I don't bonk my head.
I've heard that you can use some ARP head studs that were made for a BMW 2.3L engine, but I decided against it as I didn't know if the fitment would be good.
I just bought some OE bolts from FCP Euro.
Well 5 days later, progress is still really slow.
And it worries me, as I will have to go back to university on Sunday.
Currently, I have everything off, yet the head seems attached.
All 10 head bolts, and 4 bolts around the timing chain, the intake, and the exhaust were removed.
No matter what me and my friends tried, the head seemed to be stuck on really bad, as if there were some secret bolts somewhere.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
The side rail dowel pin removal tool. How the engine is currently. Exhaust manifold off (mostly). Intake manifold off (mostly). Which one of these head bolts was near the coolant leak?
Alright!
We hit the 50% mark on work.
There was a bolt on the rear left of the engine and a coolant hose on the rear right holding the head down.
After we got those off, a couple of love taps with a rubber mallet and away we went.
The head gasket was a nasty mess, rusty everywhere.
With some brake clean and some scrubbing with a toothbrush, the head looks a lot better, but we still have a good way to go.
We had a casualty, when setting down the head on the table the PCV exploded.
So me and my friends set off to O'Reillys and got the parts and made one ourselves.
We may be engineering students, but this was above our pay grade lol.
Now all that is left is to finish cleaning up, replacing gaskets, and reassembly.
Easier said than done.
I can't wait to drive the coupe again! Nasty gasket, yuck How the head is Makeshift PCV Slightly cleaned up the head, still got a lot to do Bonus ping pong ball
C230 Sport Coup + 2006 W164 ML350 + 99 Ford Escort RIP
Just checking in after quite some time. So you're going for it eh?
I'm not seeing any of the photos. Any thoughts?
I just see these wierd little dots where the photos should be.
Can't seem to attach a photo...hmmm.
Well, I hope I will be able to see them.
Especially any specific difficulties you run into.
I've been thinking of giving up on litttle "Carly"
with the head gasket and suspension.
But yeah, if I can get the head gasket done, ,then suspension won't' be such a big deal.
As it is, I have steam coming out from under the hood whenever I stop at a light.
|'ve blocked off the cabin air intake to avoid breathing fume, only run on recirc, and
just keep topping. Starts every time.
I'm haviing a new problem, the suspension is SOOO loose, it's giving me an ESP error.
Clock spring. But I don't think it's the spring, it's the play in the steering.
Well I'll be watching closely....
Last edited by C230 Sport Coup; Jan 11, 2025 at 05:47 PM.
C230 Sport Coup + 2006 W164 ML350 + 99 Ford Escort RIP
I can't see any photos or upload one either.
MBworld issue?
Originally Posted by TheRotaryFox
Alright!
I can't wait to drive the coupe again! Nasty gasket, yuck How the head is Makeshift PCV Slightly cleaned up the head, still got a lot to do Bonus ping pong ball
Just checking in after quite some time. So you're going for it eh?
I'm not seeing any of the photos. Any thoughts?
I just see these wierd little dots where the photos should be.
Can't seem to attach a photo...hmmm.
Well, I hope I will be able to see them.
Especially any specific difficulties you run into.
I've been thinking of giving up on litttle "Carly"
with the head gasket and suspension.
But yeah, if I can get the head gasket done, ,then suspension won't' be such a big deal.
As it is, I have steam coming out from under the hood whenever I stop at a light.
|'ve blocked off the cabin air intake to avoid breathing fume, only run on recirc, and
just keep topping. Starts every time.
I'm haviing a new problem, the suspension is SOOO loose, it's giving me an ESP error.
Clock spring. But I don't think it's the spring, it's the play in the steering.
Well I'll be watching closely....
Well, I've finished as much as I could.
I stayed up with my friends till 2 am to put everything back together.
Sadly, at the last moment, I realized that the spark plug seals in the valve cover gasket set I ordered did not fit.
And since I had a flight in the afternoon, I decided to call it quits.
Everything but the front airbox, valve cover, coil packs, spark plugs, a little bit of wiring, oil, and coolant were put in the car.
The head gasket was a decently easy job, just a pain to get the head off, back in, and put the chain tensioner back in.
Everything else is just bolting stuff on and off.
I turned the engine over 2 times, did not bind.
It did make me sad to leave the coupe a little apart.
Sadly this means my next update will be in the second week of March.
C230, don't give up on Carly!
That coupe has been a big inspiration for how I want my coupe to be.
The head gasket is a rough issue, but I would be willing to help you do yours, just to see how far that little M111 you have can go.
C230 Sport Coup + 2006 W164 ML350 + 99 Ford Escort RIP
Oh man, it's like waiting for season 2 to find out if it starts.
So you left the cams in place?
How did it feel when you popped the head bolts?
You didn't take the head to a machine shop?
I was beginning to think your gasket must have been fine, your engine is sooo clean inside.
Mine is a bit gunked from 100K miles of driving it with the blow gasket. Some moisture has been getting in the engine.
But then I saw that bolt you mentioned. Definate water damage.
As as helping in person, might be a little hard, as I'm in Brookings OR these days.
But virtually I suppose.
Oh man, it's like waiting for season 2 to find out if it starts.
So you left the cams in place?
How did it feel when you popped the head bolts?
You didn't take the head to a machine shop?
I was beginning to think your gasket must have been fine, your engine is sooo clean inside.
Mine is a bit gunked from 100K miles of driving it with the blow gasket. Some moisture has been getting in the engine.
But then I saw that bolt you mentioned. Definate water damage.
As as helping in person, might be a little hard, as I'm in Brookings OR these days.
But virtually I suppose.
Season 2 is accurate, and the estimated release date is March.
Yeah, I left the cams on the head.
Maybe if you have the time you could rebuild the valves, might make the engine last till 520k :P
No machine shop, no time and didn't want to spend more money than I should.
Car didn't overheat at all, and all my pushing it never got it higher than 100C.
I didn't pop the head bolts myself, they were on there super tight, so I had two of my buddies help to get them loose.
They didn't feel stuck, and came right out after you crack them loose.
I think the worst part is putting the chain tensioner back on.
As one youtube video put it, "It's a soul robbing pain in the rear."
It took us 4 hours to get it in, and that was after we had dinner and took a break.
What worked for us was to put the body of the tensioner inside the block, then put the spring, plastic piece, and the cap in after.
The way my friend put it back in was he pressed his palm against the back of it and FORCED the cap into the tensioner.
Once he pushed it in all the way (which takes so much effort, it was harder than cracking the head bolts) he used his palm to rotate the threads of the tensioner in just enough so that he could let go and we could tighten it up.
We achieved this at about midnight, and that had hyped us up enough to throw the entire motor back together until we couldn't figure out how to out the spark plug seals in.
About the head being clean, I think you said you couldn't see the images of the actual damage.
Here ya go: Dirty Old Gasket
ive done basically all the same stuff youve done but with the addition of new valves. Replacing and re seating the valves wasnt that bad but getting them out was. I ended up having to make the tool that the WIS manual calls for. But after replacing and re seating the valves the compression was wayyy better so its definitely something to consider.
Sorry, was too late for the party, would have been a good idea to clean the secondary air injection check valve in the back of the engine, you need a special crow foot to change it otherwise. I hope you had the WIS document for install the chain tensioner, bought a new one or at least a new internal spring.
And, you can tap a M8 thread to plug the hole in the supercharger cover and seal it with a bolt from outside.
And, you guys seem to have a different exhaust manifold than the Germans. Looks like a cast iron part, we have a 3Y stainless steel type manifold.
Good work!
PS: Some oil change tip, buy the Hengst filter with the plastic disks at the bottom. The Mann or Bosch do not push the oil hold valve at the bottom hard enough after some month.
C230 Sport Coup + 2006 W164 ML350 + 99 Ford Escort RIP
As far getting that chain guide back in, I was wondering if you bothered to purchase a new pin?
And one other thing regarding reinstalling and the trouble you had;
I wonder if freezing it would make it any easier to put back in?
There's a video of a guy who is replacing the wel known Nachi bearing (which fails a lot it seems) on the snout of the supercharger on the
W211 V8 E55 Komp. He heats up the supercharger in his oven to get the old one out (so maybe a torch might help to get the pin out?)
and then puts the new bearing in the freezer to get the metal to contract just enough....it drops right in.
No hammering, nothing. Hmmmm.....
Yeah, taking stuff apart is always easier than putting it back together.
When I was 19 and replaced the head gasket on my 20R SOHC Toyota PU
engine I had very little mechanical experience other than bicyles and a 2 stroke motorcycle
doing basic stuff, and I coudn't even believe it when it actually started.
Last edited by C230 Sport Coup; Jan 23, 2025 at 04:05 PM.
ive done basically all the same stuff youve done but with the addition of new valves. Replacing and re seating the valves wasnt that bad but getting them out was. I ended up having to make the tool that the WIS manual calls for. But after replacing and re seating the valves the compression was wayyy better so its definitely something to consider.
I was on a time crunch, so valves weren't in the picture.
The engine is still decently "low" mileage for its age so I'll end up doing them the next time the head gasket goes.
Mercedes SLR McLaren 722 S Is Extremely Rare Example Modified by McLaren
Slideshow: A one-of-one U.S.-spec Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren Roadster became even rarer after a factory-backed transformation at McLaren's headquarters.
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" class="post_inline_image" data-size="2000x1504" data-src="https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/www.mbworld.org-vbulletin/2000x1504/img_4303_5351b8e31b0ef4ad589e1adf86ae193e2ab0cc3c.jpg" loading="lazy" />
