W124 oil change, click sound
i have a 1995 E320 cabriolet w/ 80k miles and only drive about 3k/yr, mostly wknds and summer time.
do you think i should change oil once a year regardless of miles?
also, is it worth using synthetic vs. regular?
lastly, when the engine is cold, the first 3-5 minutes, there's some light clicking sounds from the engine. what could cause that?
i'm changing oil this am and will try to see what happens.
thx in advance for everyone's input.
Patrick
I use regular oil, not synthetic. Since oils have improved over the years, and the oil sump is 7 qts for this car, I've extended my oil changes from 3K to 4K or 5K.
Changing every year should be okay for your car. If you want to let it go to 18 months between changes, that would be okay too. I also have a 70s muscle car that sees fewer miles. I can easily go 3-4 years between oil changes. Others have, and proved that these extended oil change intervals are not harmful to the engine with oil testing.
Given your driving habits, I see no need for you to use synthetic oil.
any ideas on the clicking sound from engine during the first 3-5 minutes when i first turn on the engine - usually when the engine is cold. is that common for the w124 6 cylinders when the engine is cold?
after the temperature get to 60 degrees C, and for sure by 80 degrees, the sound is gone and the car sounds great.
thx.
Patrick
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Patrick
is it still lifters?
fyi, i do use synthic oil, but that did not make the clicking sound go away. also, the sound is in the first 3-5 minutes or so in the am when the temperature is below 80 deg C on the indicator.
also, i do not hear the clicking sound when the engine is in idle or when the car is coasting - only when i am accelerating and from about 1100 RPM to about 3000 RPM. the sound goes away when i left the throttle.
lastly, the power also appears to be less, but that could be my imagination as i try to be gentle w/ the throttle when the engine is cold.
any other thoughts guys?
Patrick
is it still lifters?
fyi, i do use synthic oil, but that did not make the clicking sound go away. also, the sound is in the first 3-5 minutes or so in the am when the temperature is below 80 deg C on the indicator.
also, i do not hear the clicking sound when the engine is in idle or when the car is coasting - only when i am accelerating and from about 1100 RPM to about 3000 RPM. the sound goes away when i left the throttle.
lastly, the power also appears to be less, but that could be my imagination as i try to be gentle w/ the throttle when the engine is cold.
any other thoughts guys?
Patrick
btw, i'm pretty sure i used mobile 1 on it 3 months ago, but i could always try changing the oil again...i can't recall exactly, but i think it was 5-30W from costco.
is that ok for norcal temp?
Patrick
Link/discussion regarding what kind of oil to use:
https://mbworld.org/forums/e-class-w...d-oil-use.html
This could be making noise as well, happened to me as well. (take a look at the thread below)
https://mbworld.org/forums/e-class-w...en-starts.html
Good luck!
could that make a difference between click or no clicking sound?
i thot it was pretty safe since it was synthtic?
Patrick
guess what?
with the warmer weather, the engine no longer makes clicking sounds in the morning. i was going to change from 10-30 oil to 10-40, but perhaps no need to for the summer. my questions is could the difference be that major as to cause the clicking sound when the engine is cold?
Patrick
Using synthetic oil in a high mileage car that had been running on mineral oil for a long time can cause leaks etc. I would not do it if I were you.
should i go back to conventional - or stick w/ mobile 1(but switching to 10-40)?
Patrick
without looking it up!!!!!!
Last edited by chodder; May 25, 2009 at 05:59 AM.



