2014 GL350 x166. As of now (knock wood) the engine is working fine with no issues. But I notice I get 1-2 quarts less oil out of it then I should, and I suspect there may be a sludge buildup.

If the engine ultimately fails for this reason, is there any shop that can reliably -- and economically -- rebuild the engine, or is that the end of the vehicle? My car is otherwise in fine shape (once I replace the transfer case chain, that is). But it looks like the engine bay is really tight and there seems to be more stuff going on then with the OM642's that are in the Sprinter vans.

 

I'd say if you are in country where mechanics charge $10/hr, rebuilding is definitely good option.
I hear MB USA is offering factory rebuilds for less than 10 grands and that seems to be good option for clean vehicle who blow the engine.

 

Imma poke da bear here...

kajtek1, why aren't you reassuring 350gunner that sludging is unpossible on these engines?
350gunner, are you sure that your engine isn't using 1-2 quarts of oil between changes? If you're putting 8 quarts in and getting 7 quarts out after 7k miles... why worry? On the other hand, if you put 6 quarts in and the dipstick says you're full... I'd question that.

 

That's a good question but unfortunately it's not burning oil. Dipstick is full after adding 6 or 6.5 quarts added, and dipstick remains full until the next oil change.

I've tested for residual oil in the sump after using an oil extractor by popping the drain pan nut and between the two methods I still did not get out more than 6.5 quarts.

 

WHAT ???

 

I think the days of getting a shop to do a rebuild on a motor and put it back in are kind of over. There are some extenuating circumstances, of course, if we're talking about something particularly rare or if you're having a shop build a motor for a specific rulebook or purpose. But there's a fairly significant amount of risk with an in-house rebuild that most shops aren't going to want to take on. The first thing they have to worry about is that they quote you a rebuild and once they open it up, they find that there are more parts that need to be replaced. For example, they might assume that the crankshaft can be re-used but the discover that there are deep gouges on the journals that require either some spray-welding, heat-treating, and some turning or a brand new one for about three grand. Now they're coming back to you with a bigger price tag and meanwhile your vehicle is inoperable and taking up space with your only two options being to pay the man or send a flat bed and a bunch of Rubbermaid bins. Even if the job goes to plan, now that shop is on the hook for anything that might cause a bring-back and they'll take a hit even if they expressly state that there's zero warranty on the work. If they make an assembly error, it won't be obvious until the engine is re-installed and test-fired at the earliest and that's a lot of labor - and gaskets! - to pull it out and crack it back open. And if they give you a quote where they plan to replace everything - new crank, new rods, new pistons, new timing sprockets, new valves, new valve springs, new oil pump, etc etc etc, the cost in parts alone is going to start to approach, if not eclipse, the price for a reman engine from the open market. And we haven't even talked about the labor for the techs and the machine shop yet.

Now, if you're going to pull it in to your own garage and rebuild it yourself, that's a different story. You can pick and choose what's good enough to re-use and what needs to be replaced. If you shop well and don't have a completely thrashed motor, you can give it a really good refresh for around $2k-$3k, all-in. I'm not saying that it will be as good as having a factory rebuild motor dropped in, but I'd estimate that it's 75% as good for 30% of the price. And if you consider that taking the OM642 apart, marveling at its engineering, and putting it back together is really a kind of therapy that you don't have to go and pay for, you might even decide that you can make money on the deal!

 

WHO SAID that sludging is impossible?

 

https://mbworld.org/forums/diesel-fo...0-bluetec.html
Am I the only one who read this thread?
Kaj maintains that engine sludging is darn near impossible.
See post 10.
See post 12.

 

Gotcha. Sludging usually happens with irregular oil changes and fuel with a high biodiesel content. Pretty much unheard of in Canada (we don't have more than B5), but from what I gather quite relevant in some US states where the pumps put out B20.