Hello all

Noticed a ticking noise when I put the engine under load, finally took it to a mechanic.

He says it's probably lifters, which I assume means Valve Lifters? or "Cam" which I assume means camshaft?

Told me "I got ****in ripped off" and suggested finding a replacement engine if I don't want to get rid of the car.

The whole reason I bought this car was to have a project to work on. I've got a good bit of experience, but never worked on an engine.

If I have the MB STAR computer, will it have step-by-step instructions on how to get to these parts? I assume it's just under the valve cover?

The mechanic also said there's no way to do the repair without removing the engine, because both cams are linked to the crankshaft. A user on a W212 Facebook group said that's not true and that the job CAN be done.
He also said you must machine the valve cover's mating surface before re-installation.

Any advice you all have would be greatly appreciated.
I can't express how devastated I am.
I spent years saving up for this car, only to drive it 1,000 miles.
Now I'm so depressed I'm drinking myself to sleep every night.
Grown ****ing man crying myself to sleep. So pitiful.

Also, generally, how do you approach this? Start watching videos on engine teardowns to understand how they work?
Start watching videos on lifter replacement?

I was thinking I could just start disassembling the engine and taking really good pictures, video then posting them here, on Facebook groups, Reddit, etc to get opinions. I wouldn't know what to look for but I can absolutely take some great photos/videos.

Any information you guys might have to guide me is welcomed. Thank you for reading.

 

You have been told your lifters are ticking.

If it's only that: go ahead and ignore it or use LUCAS oil or whatever you think is popular to quiet noisy lifters. Zero labor necessary.

Before dismantling your engine be sure your troubleshooting is correct.


Let me ask you this:
What is current mileage: 100 150 200 250kMi ?
How old is your oil mileage ? 5 10 15kMi ?
What oil grade: 10w30 or 5w40 ?
What scanner are you using ?
What are past/future maintenance items ?

 

He said it's either lifters or cam, passenger side bank only.
The noise is bad enough that I don't want to drive it, and I will not drive it if I think there's a possibility that whatever is wrong might cause more collateral damage to other parts of the engine if not addressed.

An idea I posted elsewhere, since I'm inexperienced with engine diagnostics:
I will buy multiple GoPro's, and a very high quality microphone, and take high quality video with lighting and with audio of the symptom, and then post it here, Facebook W212 group, Reddit etc.
This, in theory, would "crowdsource" the diagnostics.

I would also like to do the above, but gradually disassemble the engine, showing high quality video and photos of what I find, with the hope that identifying the root issue might happen.

Current mileage: 91,000 mi (purchased at 89, devastated that I only got to drive it 1.5k miles)
Oil was just replaced by me, old oil was previous owner. I took a sample to send to Blackstone Labs. Have not yet sent the sample.
Oil: Liquid Molly 5W-40 kit from FCP Euro
Scanner: Foxwell NT530, have an OpenPort but haven't setup software yet to use it. Also have STAR computer/software.
Past:
-Replaced destroyed front passenger coilover
-Replaced front passenger CV
-Oil, filter, cabin air filter just done
-Cleaned and lubricated sunroof track
-Cleaned engine bay
-Replaced bent wheels, all new tires
-Replaced all TPMS

Planned future:
-Engine air filter
-Transmission service
-Coolant replacement
-All new brake pads and rotors, fluid replacement
-Power steering flush
-Bushings, starting with the ones that look the worst
-Replace all underbody covers
-The list you gave me as a reply to one of my first posts here after buying the car
-Replace all airmatic lines, and reinstall entire airmatic system

Thing is, I will not do ANY more work from the above list until I know the engine and transmission are healthy first.

 

100k on fresh LM 5W-40 oil.

can you capture an MP3 soundclip of the noise you're concerned with ?

There's a chance this is VVT or Tensioner rattle.
Let us hear it
✌️

 

100%

Can’t thank you enough!!!

Just asked coworker to bring in his GoPro with mic tomorrow. Will follow up then.

 

I see now reading through my post about past and future repair items,
The car history report shows damage to the front passenger corner.
This is evident by the urgent need to replace the coilver, cv, wheel etc that came from that corner.
I wonder if something close to the engine in that corner, maybe something that sends oil to that bay where the noise is coming from, was affected by the collision and these are all symptoms.

I can put $1,000 to $1,500 a month into this project. I wonder if I can daily drive it after 6-9 months.

 

A lot of us will come help you daily drive your project car. Everyone holds a different perspective, we a shared focus.

In the end you turn the wrench to great spares from PELICANPARTS dot com or seek help from a good local shop.

It can be overwhelming if you're unprepared. These excellent cars are very well build to be predictable. With that said use a float charger to preserve your system battery from draining.

 

As I advised in your other post, let us hear the noise. Please do not condemn the engine before full diagnosis. These M273 are, in my opinion, bullet-proof after the 2007/8 manufacturing date. At 91K miles, it must have been abused to no end to require a replacement.

Since you also added the noise is from the right side (passenger side), please record at the front and at the back (where the PCV centrifuge is located)

 

Thank you both.

Update: Recorded video and audio of the four corners of the engine with OBD data, but the ticking sound was less pronounced than ever before and seemed intermittent. It was 10x worse when I heard it in the shop.

I'm going to re-do the video before sharing it; two quick questions in the meantime:
1. Should I get sound samples of those 4 corners of the engine at cold start and then at what temp? drive it around a bit then sample again? I'm also going to leave the mic in the engine bay and drive around. The sound is most pronounced when driving around.
2. I spent all last night watching videos of the replacement of the PCV breather / valve and see it's only $30/60/100 on FCP Euro. Can I replace that just for the hell of it?

 

I wouldn't rush at swapping parts to fix a problem you don't know what it is.

Fix what's already bad then focus on normal maintenance (PCV, Mounts, Dif, Plugs...).

 

-Recorded video with audio and OBD overlay of startup, idle, 2,000 RPM, 2,500 RPM, and 3,000 RPM of driver's side of engine for baseline
-Recorded video with audio and OBD overlay of startup, idle, 2,000 RPM, 2,500 RPM, and 3,000 RPM of passenger side of engine for troubleshooting
-Took photos of PCV Breather before touching, after wipedown, photos of old and new PCV, and final installed replacement
-Recorded video with audio and OBD overlay of startup, idle, 2,000 RPM, 2,500 RPM, and 3,000 RPM of driver's side of engine for baseline after PCV replacement
-Recorded video with audio and OBD overlay of startup, idle, 2,000 RPM, 2,500 RPM, and 3,000 RPM of passenger side of engine for troubleshooting after PCV replacement
-Took a ride down the street and drove home with the microphone in the below location

Note: If the engine cranks but the "Start/Stop" button is released prematurely (I think?) the engine does this struggling to turn over sound. 90-95% of the time it is started, it does NOT sound like this and cranks immediately.
As of my posting this, the HD version of the video will be available in 17 minutes.


Microphone location for the below video
<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/J-vJVFYzn-U?si=KWrnPRRIACAVt0nW" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen></iframe>
https://youtu.be/J-vJVFYzn-U?si=mkLRvuqoCYtBfyoP

 

Video is up!
From the list of recordings, please let me know if you'd like to hear any of those.
They take about 20-30 minutes each to edit and upload.

 

It almost sounds more like a "gurgling" or "puffing / popping" sound now that I've listened to the recording 10 times.

 

What I hear from YT Video is heavily unbalanced cylinders and likely exhaust leaks.

Don't waste the tranny squeezing power out of this engine - Instead try to fix it if possible.
​​​​​​

 

Thank you for your insight

What does that mean? What should I do next?

 

Check leaks around the manifold, cat connections, and muffler. Not worth it to adjust anything else until the exhaust is corrected.

 

10-4! On it!!

Thank you and Cali for the help!!!

 

Juan, do you think the intake plenum on this engine can have the broken flaps issue ?

Baseline:
I think we should read the fuel pressure and ALT Voltage before we scratch our head.

All the best.

 

Usually the lever/linkage at the front of the intake plenum breaks (trigger soft code, no light), and sometimes the sensor that checks if the flaps have moved also gets damaged. The lever can be seen with a flashlight, and you can tell easily. The sensor requires a scanner.

 

I attempted to get data from the Mercedes-specific scan tool.
The tool dumps raw data onto a memory card. I've attempted to de-obfuscate the data:

"Vehicle Version"

"System Data"

"System Data" continued

Lastly, here are photos of menu options of the Foxwell-NT530
https://imgur.com/a/bFCNAKP

 

I see now how unhelpful a dump of data is.
My apologies CaliBenzDriver
I will attempt to produce a graph of fuel pressure and alt voltage and report my results if they are satisfactory.

 

I will try to get an answer on this!

Note: the engine has a consistent stutter now when idling. Roughly every 3 seconds, RPM will dip very slightly. So slight that the change cannot be seen in the tachometer, but heard and felt if sitting still with quiet surroundings.

 

In theory, your ECU cannot find any fault with the engine at all. Not even misfire, nor a problem with the intake manifold.

Perhaps best to address the exhaust issue, once fixed the engine will be extremely quiet, and able to run more balanced. Then, check if that hiccup/stutter is still there.

 

One arm appears to be intact, the other I can see about 25% of it. That 25% is intact.



I've attached a video of a "gurgling" sound coming from the driver's side of the engine. The gurgle is followed by a slight dip in RPM's.
The sound comes from this circled area.

 

@CaliBenzDriver
Video of Fuel Rail pressure and ECU Voltage. I could not find Alternator Voltage in the list of options in Torque with the generic bluetooth OBD reader. This is a drive around the neighborhood.