C43 '55' swap thread
09-06-2010, 10:22 PM
#1
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Thread Starter
C43 '55' swap thread
I've been meaning to put together this thread for a while, but got sidetracked with different things. 503's recent thread on sourcing a 5.4L engine (https://mbworld.org/forums/c36-amg-c...urce-5-4l.html) started up the discussion again, and there are a few good points there too. I'm hoping a few other guys who have done this swap in the past (Money-One, Speedybenz, ProjectC55) can chime in too.
And I'm hoping a moderator could make this thread into a sticky...?
Anyway, here goes....
Background
When I first started researching my C43 purchase, I perused this and other forums. At that point, I became aware of the possibility of a ‘55’ swap, ie. swapping out the car’s stock 4.3L engine for the larger, naturally aspirated 5.4L engine from contemporary AMG cars. Such a procedure is just old school hotrodding, German style. And with further reading, I learned that AMG themselves produced a handful of 30-odd W202 C55s with the larger engine.
Being a bit of a shadetree mechanic, I loved the possibilities this swap offered. I’ve built other cars in the past, namely my ’88 Saab 900 Turbo SPG and my ’74 Saab 99LE rallycar. Both Saabs were built from the ground up over a period of years, the SPG with SDS stand alone engine management, custom GT30R dual ball bearing turbo, 4-speed rally transmission, etc. I’ve also done a fair amount of suspension work on my ’01 Honda S2000, and the next step with that will be a supercharger kit. So I’m not unfamiliar with wrenching, and with the help and guidance of friends who are actual mechanics, I’ve grown to really love tinkering.
But I’ve also grown to appreciate the beauty of ‘OEMness’, and also how much of a pain custom tuning can be. ‘Stand alone’ engine management, my friend wittily and wrily remarked, can often mean ‘standing alone at the side of the highway trying to figure out what went wrong’!
So, the ‘55’ swap appeals to me for the ease of which it can be done. An engine in and out job should be do-able for a mechanic with a lift in a full day I’m thinking, and a shadetree mechanic in a weekend or two. In the Saab and S2000 world, DIY threads are pretty plentiful, but then there are a helluva lot more S2000s and old Saabs than C43 AMGs. I couldn’t find a definitive thread anywhere with all of the information required for the 55 swap, so here I am, doing my own.
I stress that I haven’t done the swap – yet. I've prioritized my wedding and S2000 supercharger kit acquisition first. But I still think about the 55 swap! To that end, I’ve compiled information in PDFs and will post more here. I’m also hoping that the guys who have done swaps will step up with any information they can share too.
With the demise of club202.com, that resource is unfortunately mostly gone. I did managed to find a Google cache of one thread discussing the swap, and the bits which I felt were most helpful are preserved in PDF. The other PDFs are all from the WIS (thanks again to MarcusF for getting me my copy) and outline procedures, with torque specs, etc.
The premise is simple: take one engine out, put another in. But then other questions arise:
Which engine to put in?
From what I gather, any of the Mercedes M113 V8s should swap right into the car. A couple of links regarding the M113:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercedes-Benz_M113_engine
http://www.marcusfitzhugh.com/CLK/engd.html
The M113 is a V8 with SOHC, 3-valve heads, and made in 4.3L, 5.0L and 5.4L variants, the latter being called a ‘55’ even though it is marginally less than 5.5L (like the current ‘63’ engines, which actually displace 6.2L).
External dimensions are the same, and likely cannot be differentiated to the naked eye, unless one knows of exactly what to look for. Thus, an engine from a ‘500’ car could fit, but why would you do that when a handbuilt AMG 55 motor is available?
The 55 from any of the following cars should slot in nicely:
* 2001-2002 CL55 AMG
* 1998-2002 CLK55 AMG
* 1998-2002 E55 AMG
* 2001-2003 ML55 AMG
* 2001-2003 S55 AMG
* 2002-2003 G55 AMG
* 2004-2008 SLK55 AMG
* 2005-2007 C55 AMG
My guess is that the most common of these engines will be from E55, SLK55 or W203 C55 donor cars.
Compression ratio – supposedly there was a half point bump in compression from 10.5:1 to 11:1 in 2001? See the Club202 excerpts for more on that.
The 55 engine is longer in stroke and larger in bore than the standard engine in the C43, thus accounting for the substantial increase in displacement.
I've found a few engines available, ranging from US$2,600 to $4,000 for a 90,000 miler to a 57,000 miler, respectively. Prices have certainly come down than when the swap was first discussed on club202 maybe 7-8 years ago.
Engine management, plugs and injectors
From a brief look at the EPC, it looks like the plugs and injectors are the same on both the C43 and a 55 engined car.
From my discussions with several guys who have done the swap, and from reading the forums, the stock engine management will adapt sufficiently for the larger displacement. I suppose one should reset the ECU once the 55 engine is in the car.
I personally think it would be best to have an ECU in the car from a true 55 car, so that the car ‘thinks’ it has 350hp and 390 ft lbs (or whatever), as opposed to adapting from the C43’s 300hp and 300 ft lbs. However, are there issues with ECU swapping? It’s most likely not like the old days of Bosch LH fuel injection (what I have experience with) when the EFI computer was separate from everything else, and you could plug and play almost at will. I suspect that the modern car (and I use that term loosely to define anything from early ‘90s onwards) is more integrated and will require some electronic trickery (read, dealer electronics) to move an ECU from, say, an E55 to the C43. Input anyone?
How?
Such an engine out job is pretty straightforward for an experienced shadetree mechanic. I’ve been wrenching on my own cars for maybe 12 years or so, and before that, it was go-karts. I have no formal training in the area, and fly a desk during for a day job. I started wrenching with my Dad’s tools and progressed from there. I would not do such a swap without a decent level of mechanical competency and a lot of tools. The single largest too required would be an engine hoist. There are a few other Benz specific tools which could be helpful too, including a large but thin 36mm wrench and a holding tool, both of which are used for the removal and replacement of the mechanical fan. It is possible to do without these, but using them makes it a very easy 5 minute job. There are also a lot of torx fasteners on the car, (substantially more than on my Saab, and virtually non-existent on my S2000) so it would be a good idea to have an assortment of torx sockets and wrenches.
Link to fan tool:
http://zdmak.com/wbstore/main.asp?ac...CTMP=1&LowCt=0
The C43 is pretty traditional in layout - engine up front, trans right behind it, driveshaft connected to diff in the back. On my S2000 separating the engine from the trans is a big PITA because the clearances are so tight, with the engine pushed back close to the firewall. The C43 looks to have more room, easier to access the engine-transmission bellhousing mounting bolts.
I'd like to hear people's thoughts on taking out the engine and transmission together. My mechanic buddy and I were thinking aloud with the car in front of us, and thought maybe of removing the rad, rad support, headlights and front bumper and then sliding out the engine/trans combination together from the front of the car, as opposed to lifting it up and out. But...there is a lot of room between the firewall and engine to get at the bolts, so it could be unnecessary.
What else is recommended to do while the engine is out?
From experience with other cars, and thus 'makes sense' type of thought process, I would replace the following while the engine is out: rear main seal, transmission seal, upper rad hose, lower rad hose, valve cover gaskets, oil pan gasket, transmission cooler lines, oil cooler lines, spark plugs, maybe power steering lines too. Flush all fluids of course. Any other suggestions?
Going on holiday tomorrow, so enough for now. Hopefully this thread will spark some more discussion on the subject.
I've attached some PDF scans of the club202 discussions, plus some WIS printouts. I'll attach a few more in another post.
And I'm hoping a moderator could make this thread into a sticky...?
Anyway, here goes....
Background
When I first started researching my C43 purchase, I perused this and other forums. At that point, I became aware of the possibility of a ‘55’ swap, ie. swapping out the car’s stock 4.3L engine for the larger, naturally aspirated 5.4L engine from contemporary AMG cars. Such a procedure is just old school hotrodding, German style. And with further reading, I learned that AMG themselves produced a handful of 30-odd W202 C55s with the larger engine.
Being a bit of a shadetree mechanic, I loved the possibilities this swap offered. I’ve built other cars in the past, namely my ’88 Saab 900 Turbo SPG and my ’74 Saab 99LE rallycar. Both Saabs were built from the ground up over a period of years, the SPG with SDS stand alone engine management, custom GT30R dual ball bearing turbo, 4-speed rally transmission, etc. I’ve also done a fair amount of suspension work on my ’01 Honda S2000, and the next step with that will be a supercharger kit. So I’m not unfamiliar with wrenching, and with the help and guidance of friends who are actual mechanics, I’ve grown to really love tinkering.
But I’ve also grown to appreciate the beauty of ‘OEMness’, and also how much of a pain custom tuning can be. ‘Stand alone’ engine management, my friend wittily and wrily remarked, can often mean ‘standing alone at the side of the highway trying to figure out what went wrong’!
So, the ‘55’ swap appeals to me for the ease of which it can be done. An engine in and out job should be do-able for a mechanic with a lift in a full day I’m thinking, and a shadetree mechanic in a weekend or two. In the Saab and S2000 world, DIY threads are pretty plentiful, but then there are a helluva lot more S2000s and old Saabs than C43 AMGs. I couldn’t find a definitive thread anywhere with all of the information required for the 55 swap, so here I am, doing my own.
I stress that I haven’t done the swap – yet. I've prioritized my wedding and S2000 supercharger kit acquisition first. But I still think about the 55 swap! To that end, I’ve compiled information in PDFs and will post more here. I’m also hoping that the guys who have done swaps will step up with any information they can share too.
With the demise of club202.com, that resource is unfortunately mostly gone. I did managed to find a Google cache of one thread discussing the swap, and the bits which I felt were most helpful are preserved in PDF. The other PDFs are all from the WIS (thanks again to MarcusF for getting me my copy) and outline procedures, with torque specs, etc.
The premise is simple: take one engine out, put another in. But then other questions arise:
Which engine to put in?
From what I gather, any of the Mercedes M113 V8s should swap right into the car. A couple of links regarding the M113:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mercedes-Benz_M113_engine
http://www.marcusfitzhugh.com/CLK/engd.html
The M113 is a V8 with SOHC, 3-valve heads, and made in 4.3L, 5.0L and 5.4L variants, the latter being called a ‘55’ even though it is marginally less than 5.5L (like the current ‘63’ engines, which actually displace 6.2L).
External dimensions are the same, and likely cannot be differentiated to the naked eye, unless one knows of exactly what to look for. Thus, an engine from a ‘500’ car could fit, but why would you do that when a handbuilt AMG 55 motor is available?
The 55 from any of the following cars should slot in nicely:
* 2001-2002 CL55 AMG
* 1998-2002 CLK55 AMG
* 1998-2002 E55 AMG
* 2001-2003 ML55 AMG
* 2001-2003 S55 AMG
* 2002-2003 G55 AMG
* 2004-2008 SLK55 AMG
* 2005-2007 C55 AMG
My guess is that the most common of these engines will be from E55, SLK55 or W203 C55 donor cars.
Compression ratio – supposedly there was a half point bump in compression from 10.5:1 to 11:1 in 2001? See the Club202 excerpts for more on that.
The 55 engine is longer in stroke and larger in bore than the standard engine in the C43, thus accounting for the substantial increase in displacement.
I've found a few engines available, ranging from US$2,600 to $4,000 for a 90,000 miler to a 57,000 miler, respectively. Prices have certainly come down than when the swap was first discussed on club202 maybe 7-8 years ago.
Engine management, plugs and injectors
From a brief look at the EPC, it looks like the plugs and injectors are the same on both the C43 and a 55 engined car.
From my discussions with several guys who have done the swap, and from reading the forums, the stock engine management will adapt sufficiently for the larger displacement. I suppose one should reset the ECU once the 55 engine is in the car.
I personally think it would be best to have an ECU in the car from a true 55 car, so that the car ‘thinks’ it has 350hp and 390 ft lbs (or whatever), as opposed to adapting from the C43’s 300hp and 300 ft lbs. However, are there issues with ECU swapping? It’s most likely not like the old days of Bosch LH fuel injection (what I have experience with) when the EFI computer was separate from everything else, and you could plug and play almost at will. I suspect that the modern car (and I use that term loosely to define anything from early ‘90s onwards) is more integrated and will require some electronic trickery (read, dealer electronics) to move an ECU from, say, an E55 to the C43. Input anyone?
How?
Such an engine out job is pretty straightforward for an experienced shadetree mechanic. I’ve been wrenching on my own cars for maybe 12 years or so, and before that, it was go-karts. I have no formal training in the area, and fly a desk during for a day job. I started wrenching with my Dad’s tools and progressed from there. I would not do such a swap without a decent level of mechanical competency and a lot of tools. The single largest too required would be an engine hoist. There are a few other Benz specific tools which could be helpful too, including a large but thin 36mm wrench and a holding tool, both of which are used for the removal and replacement of the mechanical fan. It is possible to do without these, but using them makes it a very easy 5 minute job. There are also a lot of torx fasteners on the car, (substantially more than on my Saab, and virtually non-existent on my S2000) so it would be a good idea to have an assortment of torx sockets and wrenches.
Link to fan tool:
http://zdmak.com/wbstore/main.asp?ac...CTMP=1&LowCt=0
The C43 is pretty traditional in layout - engine up front, trans right behind it, driveshaft connected to diff in the back. On my S2000 separating the engine from the trans is a big PITA because the clearances are so tight, with the engine pushed back close to the firewall. The C43 looks to have more room, easier to access the engine-transmission bellhousing mounting bolts.
I'd like to hear people's thoughts on taking out the engine and transmission together. My mechanic buddy and I were thinking aloud with the car in front of us, and thought maybe of removing the rad, rad support, headlights and front bumper and then sliding out the engine/trans combination together from the front of the car, as opposed to lifting it up and out. But...there is a lot of room between the firewall and engine to get at the bolts, so it could be unnecessary.
What else is recommended to do while the engine is out?
From experience with other cars, and thus 'makes sense' type of thought process, I would replace the following while the engine is out: rear main seal, transmission seal, upper rad hose, lower rad hose, valve cover gaskets, oil pan gasket, transmission cooler lines, oil cooler lines, spark plugs, maybe power steering lines too. Flush all fluids of course. Any other suggestions?
Going on holiday tomorrow, so enough for now. Hopefully this thread will spark some more discussion on the subject.
I've attached some PDF scans of the club202 discussions, plus some WIS printouts. I'll attach a few more in another post.
Last edited by Saaboteur; 09-08-2010 at 04:00 PM.
09-07-2010, 03:25 AM
#5
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12' W204 C63 AMG coupe "T-Rex", 12' W451 Smart Fortwo Pulse (99' W202 C43 AMG sold)
Great idea and description. Keep them coming as I adhere to the concept.
09-07-2010, 04:22 PM
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A190 500E C43 CLK430
Hi SAABoteur from the SAAB country ,,,Sweden, good thread as I am about to pick up one 150 000 km E55 engine tomorrow at the breakers yard. If this exchange will take place right now or be a wintersproject I don't know wich. As I know only the headers from the C43 will have to go onto the new engine and as my car already has a rebuilt tranny beefed up to, as what was told to me, E55 standard it will be plain sailing with only reprogramming to the ECU hopefully. Later on there will also be installed one rearend LSD 3.06 the bigger one 210 mm diffhousing. I will follow this with interest, thankyou...Roger
09-07-2010, 04:41 PM
#8
MBWorld Fanatic!
How much could one sell the stock 4.3 motor for? Mine has 126k miles on it
I have the money saved up for this right now and Im thinking about doing it almost every day but Im still not sure I should. I just paid of my car and I officially own it but Im back in college and thats kinda holding me back coz Im thinking I might need money for something else. I already have the W210 E55 transmission in my car
I have the money saved up for this right now and Im thinking about doing it almost every day but Im still not sure I should. I just paid of my car and I officially own it but Im back in college and thats kinda holding me back coz Im thinking I might need money for something else. I already have the W210 E55 transmission in my car
09-07-2010, 05:30 PM
#9
MBWorld Fanatic!
How much could one sell the stock 4.3 motor for? Mine has 126k miles on it
I have the money saved up for this right now and Im thinking about doing it almost every day but Im still not sure I should. I just paid of my car and I officially own it but Im back in college and thats kinda holding me back coz Im thinking I might need money for something else. I already have the W210 E55 transmission in my car
I have the money saved up for this right now and Im thinking about doing it almost every day but Im still not sure I should. I just paid of my car and I officially own it but Im back in college and thats kinda holding me back coz Im thinking I might need money for something else. I already have the W210 E55 transmission in my car
1.) 80k - $2500 + shipping
2.) 115k - $1700 + shipping
So I'm guessing you could get around $1,500 for yours, maybe a little more if you find a local buyer
09-07-2010, 07:45 PM
#10
MBWorld Fanatic!
Good stuff here Saab. One of the little things but an important thing you have to do when swapping these motors is buy the small aluminum water pipe that you would need to fit on the back of the 5.4L cylinder head. It comes stck on the back of the C43 head because the C43 has a tranny cooler or heater core,can't remember which, that is fed from this pipe. You will need this pipe. As far as the ECU is concerned it should aapt as I know a few guys that have done the swap with no ecu or power issues at all. Speedy Benz's car is one example as I know the mechanics who did that swap.
Also I would put on a new MAF.
A big mistake I made by not doing this when I first had Jeffrey do my swap.
Also I would put on a new MAF.
A big mistake I made by not doing this when I first had Jeffrey do my swap.
Last edited by ProjectC55; 09-07-2010 at 07:47 PM.
09-08-2010, 12:26 AM
#11
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Good stuff here Saab. One of the little things but an important thing you have to do when swapping these motors is buy the small aluminum water pipe that you would need to fit on the back of the 5.4L cylinder head. It comes stck on the back of the C43 head because the C43 has a tranny cooler or heater core,can't remember which, that is fed from this pipe. You will need this pipe. As far as the ECU is concerned it should aapt as I know a few guys that have done the swap with no ecu or power issues at all. Speedy Benz's car is one example as I know the mechanics who did that swap.
Also I would put on a new MAF. A big mistake I made by not doing this when I first had Jeffrey do my swap.
Also I would put on a new MAF.
A big mistake I made by not doing this when I first had Jeffrey do my swap.Also, re: the MAF - "new" as in new stock for C43, or new for E55?
09-08-2010, 11:33 AM
#12
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2004 Chrysler Crossfire
Great thread! This is probably the easiest MB swap out there. You just nee to re-use your exhaust manifolds. I posted the following info on another thread but thought it would be good here regarding ECU's:
Am mentioned it may not be needed but it is possible to program a 55 ECU to the C43. the C43 uses the Bosch ME 2.0 The only 55 that uses this ECU is the pre-2003 E55 and maybe the ML55. The ECU can be ulocked and then using developer mode in DAS can be programmed to the car like it was OEM to the car. This is the approach I used to get a CL500 engine into my car. I went with the 500 because I couldn't afford a 55K engine. I chose the 500 because it is better suited to forced induction (lower compression) than a n/a 43 or n/a 55. I am gathering parts now for a rear mount turbo. this set up has the potential to to produce more HP than the 55K. I will use a 55K ECU to control it.
Am mentioned it may not be needed but it is possible to program a 55 ECU to the C43. the C43 uses the Bosch ME 2.0 The only 55 that uses this ECU is the pre-2003 E55 and maybe the ML55. The ECU can be ulocked and then using developer mode in DAS can be programmed to the car like it was OEM to the car. This is the approach I used to get a CL500 engine into my car. I went with the 500 because I couldn't afford a 55K engine. I chose the 500 because it is better suited to forced induction (lower compression) than a n/a 43 or n/a 55. I am gathering parts now for a rear mount turbo. this set up has the potential to to produce more HP than the 55K. I will use a 55K ECU to control it.
Last edited by LantanaML320; 09-08-2010 at 11:35 AM.
09-08-2010, 05:23 PM
#13
MBWorld Fanatic!
Nope! It's a a metal fitting on the back of the C43 cylinder head. You would pluck out the Freeze plug out the back of the 5.4L head and tap this water fitting in. The E55 and C43 both use the same MAF.
09-08-2010, 05:37 PM
#14
MBWorld Fanatic!
I posted the following info on another thread but thought it would be good here regarding ECU's:
Am mentioned it may not be needed but it is possible to program a 55 ECU to the C43. the C43 uses the Bosch ME 2.0 The only 55 that uses this ECU is the pre-2003 E55 and maybe the ML55. The ECU can be ulocked and then using developer mode in DAS can be programmed to the car like it was OEM to the car. This is the approach I used to get a CL500 engine into my car. I went with the 500 because I couldn't afford a 55K engine.
Am mentioned it may not be needed but it is possible to program a 55 ECU to the C43. the C43 uses the Bosch ME 2.0 The only 55 that uses this ECU is the pre-2003 E55 and maybe the ML55. The ECU can be ulocked and then using developer mode in DAS can be programmed to the car like it was OEM to the car. This is the approach I used to get a CL500 engine into my car. I went with the 500 because I couldn't afford a 55K engine.
The N/A 5.4L motor FI is still gonna put out way more TQ and HP. The M113 in the C43 has a lower compression ratio than the 5.0L motor 10.0:1 which is still no big deal.Potential to make BIG hp will also depend on how the car is setup and your ability to tune.
Any of these these three motors will make great pwr F/I.
09-08-2010, 06:41 PM
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2004 Chrysler Crossfire
Not necessary to go thru all that drama with the C43. The 98 to 99 E55's both use the same Bosch ECU as a 98 to 99 C43 ME2.0. Just drop the motor in and turn the key Not gonna make much of a difference because the compression range is so close 10:1(5.0L) vs 10:5.1 in the earlier 98 to 99 5.4L motor The N/A 5.4L motor FI is still gonna put out way more TQ and HP. The M113 in the C43 has a lower compression ratio than the 5.0L motor 10.0:1 which is still no big deal.
Potential to make BIG hp will also depend on how the car is setup and your ability to tune.
Any of these these three motors will make great pwr F/I.
Not gonna make much of a difference because the compression range is so close 10:1(5.0L) vs 10:5.1 in the earlier 98 to 99 5.4L motor The N/A 5.4L motor FI is still gonna put out way more TQ and HP. The M113 in the C43 has a lower compression ratio than the 5.0L motor 10.0:1 which is still no big deal.Potential to make BIG hp will also depend on how the car is setup and your ability to tune.
Any of these these three motors will make great pwr F/I.
09-08-2010, 07:30 PM
#16
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Are you sure they are the same actual part number? ME 2.0 ECU were used in all the MB's at some point but contain different engine software depending on the application.someone gives me the part number off their C43 ECU I will cross reference the number in EPC Net. I would need the number that starts with "A" and not the Bosch number.
Then we took my traction control ECU and put it in together with the ME 2.8 ECU and the lights went off. We clrd the info off the ME 2.8 and gave it back to my friend at MB.
After all the tests and trials we finally went with my C43 CU with the C43 traction control unit back in the car and she runs like a BEAST till this day. By the way I also had my ECU modded where a board was soldered on where I can plug a chip in and out.
Last edited by ProjectC55; 09-08-2010 at 07:57 PM.
09-12-2010, 03:43 PM
#17
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12' W204 C63 AMG coupe "T-Rex", 12' W451 Smart Fortwo Pulse (99' W202 C43 AMG sold)
OK, if you have a good 5.4l engine available, what kind of transmission (box and diff) should you be looking at?
09-12-2010, 05:56 PM
#18
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I'm thinking for ease and for cost issues, one should just keep the stock transmission, if it's in good shape.
Diff - a limited slip of some sort. I think Money-One described in another thread how he adapted a CLK55's diff to work with the 202, and then dropped in the Quaife LSD into that diff.
The other options are Kleeman/Phantom Grip (but these aren't true LSDs), or again, doing what Money-One described in another thread, adapting a 190E's LSD to the car.
Diff - a limited slip of some sort. I think Money-One described in another thread how he adapted a CLK55's diff to work with the 202, and then dropped in the Quaife LSD into that diff.
The other options are Kleeman/Phantom Grip (but these aren't true LSDs), or again, doing what Money-One described in another thread, adapting a 190E's LSD to the car.
09-12-2010, 06:01 PM
#19
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I'm thinking for ease and for cost issues, one should just keep the stock transmission, if it's in good shape.
Diff - a limited slip of some sort. I think Money-One described in another thread how he adapted a CLK55's diff to work with the 202, and then dropped in the Quaife LSD into that diff.
The other options are Kleeman/Phantom Grip (but these aren't true LSDs), or again, doing what Money-One described in another thread, adapting a 190E's LSD to the car.
Diff - a limited slip of some sort. I think Money-One described in another thread how he adapted a CLK55's diff to work with the 202, and then dropped in the Quaife LSD into that diff.
The other options are Kleeman/Phantom Grip (but these aren't true LSDs), or again, doing what Money-One described in another thread, adapting a 190E's LSD to the car.
Some guy located in Seattle PM'd me about making a custom LSD dif but I have yet to hear back from him
09-12-2010, 09:55 PM
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2004 Chrysler Crossfire
There is a company coming out with the Quaiffe type (torsen) rear end for the Crossfire. you may want to check on this as the C43 may have the same rear end. the Crossfire, Like the R170 SLK use a 3.07:1 and a 3.27 rear ends. The 3.07 comes in the SRT/SLK32
09-13-2010, 01:16 AM
#21
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I believe the C43 uses a 3.07 rear end
09-14-2010, 08:39 PM
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C43/2jz, Ml63, C32
Correct with the 3.07 rear end gearing.
I found unbolting the transmission from the engine while it is still in the car helps alot.
With the engine out I suggest replacing the circulation pump and the idler pulley. If you opt not to do that. Then I would suggest you remove the idler pulley bolt out and cutting off about 1/2" from the tip. This is very important because when the engine is back in the car it is virtually impossible to replace the pump or pulley without taking the radiator out. With this mod. all you have to do is take the engine mounts loose and jack it up and you can just barely sneak it out while tugging on the loose radiator. Sure beats taking the radiator out
Regarding engines bolting in. The 100% bolt in is the E55 and CLK55. The S55, CL55, ML55 may sit in there but could be close depending on the oil pan. A simple upper and lower oil pan swap would be required. Along with the oil pump.
Engine electrical harness might have to be swaped depending on engine sourced.
That is all I can think of off hand. something comes to mind Ill post it.
I found unbolting the transmission from the engine while it is still in the car helps alot.
With the engine out I suggest replacing the circulation pump and the idler pulley. If you opt not to do that. Then I would suggest you remove the idler pulley bolt out and cutting off about 1/2" from the tip. This is very important because when the engine is back in the car it is virtually impossible to replace the pump or pulley without taking the radiator out. With this mod. all you have to do is take the engine mounts loose and jack it up and you can just barely sneak it out while tugging on the loose radiator. Sure beats taking the radiator out
Regarding engines bolting in. The 100% bolt in is the E55 and CLK55. The S55, CL55, ML55 may sit in there but could be close depending on the oil pan. A simple upper and lower oil pan swap would be required. Along with the oil pump.
Engine electrical harness might have to be swaped depending on engine sourced.
That is all I can think of off hand. something comes to mind Ill post it.
09-15-2010, 01:38 AM
#23
MBWorld Fanatic!
Thread Starter
Money-one, thanks for your input to the thread.
Can you clarify on the S/CL/ML engines....would the C43 oil pans swap into those engines, or would one need an E or CLK pan?
Can you clarify on the S/CL/ML engines....would the C43 oil pans swap into those engines, or would one need an E or CLK pan?
09-15-2010, 10:11 PM
#25
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C43/2jz, Ml63, C32
Also there isn't much demand for C43 engines so don't expect to receive much.
This is the w202 V8 lower oil pan configuration. Notice how it leaves room for the sway bar. This is achieved by the upper oil pan setting the lower one back a few inches. The Clk and E have the exact same pans.
This is the lower pan 215,220,163. There is a slight chance it will fit in but will be very close to the sway bar if installed in a w202. Swapping the C43 pan to these engines is not a big deal but when exchanging the oil pumps you need to swap pickups off of the pump because one is lower than the other.
This applies to the other chassis you mentioned as direct bolt in. Just something to think about when your locating engines.
This is the w202 V8 lower oil pan configuration. Notice how it leaves room for the sway bar. This is achieved by the upper oil pan setting the lower one back a few inches. The Clk and E have the exact same pans.
This is the lower pan 215,220,163. There is a slight chance it will fit in but will be very close to the sway bar if installed in a w202. Swapping the C43 pan to these engines is not a big deal but when exchanging the oil pumps you need to swap pickups off of the pump because one is lower than the other.
This applies to the other chassis you mentioned as direct bolt in. Just something to think about when your locating engines.
Last edited by money-one; 09-15-2010 at 10:21 PM.
