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Long story short. My timing covers were leaking. Did passenger side, then did driver side. To get the cover properly sealed, I took off the oil filter housing. To get to the oil filter housing, one of the bolts ran behind the turbo coolant lines. When I touched that it broke. Also piece broke off inside the water pump and when I tried to get it out, it fell back into the pump. So here we are. I cleaned the surface as well as I could, but there are still some high rust spots and what looks like pressed in gasket. Its not coming off.
Plastic scrapers aren't taking off the rust spots and baked in gasket.
Everything was covered in oil when I started this job. Been doing a lot of cleaning.
So my options are as I see it
- Leave as is, install gasket and pump
- Thin layer of rtv on gasket. very thin. Will probably seal any imperfections. Install gasket and pump.
- Not use MB gasket and RTV all the way. Not really want to do that
- Try to get the rust off with sandpaper.
- Something else?
Last edited by waterzap99; Aug 15, 2023 at 09:49 AM.
Was able to clean it out with very fine (dark grey) scouring pads and some Chemical Guys all purpose cleaner. Just by hand cutting off pieces and cleaning. No nicks or scratches, but very time consuming.
The thing that looks like scratch on top is just piece of lint.
Still waiting for my pump.
As far as gaskets go. I know Mercedes says not to put any RTV on the gasket.
Just the gasket dry? Or very thin film of RTV to make sure no leaks?
I once did an oil pan on a Ford Ranger. Instructions said no RTV. Followed everything 100%. Torque specs, everything.
Still leaked afterwards. Should have done the RTV.
FWIW, I have always put a little gasket sealer on with a water pump. There are bound to be some imperfections or boo-boos on the sealing surfaces and a little light coating of sealant couldn't possibly hurt, is how I look at it.
Should be a rubber O-ring for a gasket. Sealer used only in a few spots to ensure the o-ring stays in place on the pump during assembly.
Surface preparation is of the utmost importance. Leave any old color on the sealing surface and guess who gets to forever smell coolant. Takes very little to stink and it will forever until you take it apart again to do it right.
I use the soft stainless bristle toothbrush style guy with flammable brake cleaner to remove every trace of the O-rings.
Last edited by JohnLane; Aug 20, 2023 at 01:16 PM.
I just got a new MB pump. The part where the one idler pully goes in is not even threaded. Searching around that seems to be the way they are shipped now.
Have to finish assembling our own parts now.
I have a tap and die set. Is there a trick to make sure it cuts straight, or just go for it and hope for the best.
Was able to cut it, was easy. I have read other threads where you now have to cut own threads in one of the holes.
If I had to do it again, would probably have bought aftermarket water pump. The finish isn't as good as the one I took off. Hopefully works fine, will probably see tomorrow. Just doesnt seem to be same quality.
Dont use gasket maker or only use gasket maker. The gasket has enough squish to make up for old gasket, surface pitting, imperfections. You can also just use gasket maker in a pinch tbh. I've seen a lot of thermostat gaskets in my time made of the stuff that are "fine"
In need of resealing my drivers side cam cover (I did my passenger side which came out awesome), but as indicated, the oil filter housing is in the way. It appears there are a couple of different style oil filter housings on the M278. Mine is a 2015, and looks to be the more difficult one. I'm afraid to go down this road after seeing what could happen with the job and lines breaking etc.
Is it a real nightmare to remove the oil filter housing? How did you drain the coolant?
Its not a nightmare, but there are just a lot of bolts. Just take your time and take photos of where the bolts belong. Drained the coolant via the petcock on the driver side if I remember correctly.
I think you will need to remove the thermostat too.
Get a new gasket for the oil filter housing.
Also, there are two oil pipes that goes into the housing. I replaced those gaskets too. I don't know what the part numbers were, but the parts guy at the dealership gave them to me.
Just to add. The whole process of replacing the turbo lines, water pump, oil filter gaskets, cam adjusters, front cover sealant etc was a big pain and took me many weeks.
But knock on wood, the engine runs smooth and there are no leaks or oil seepage.
If I can give one tip though. If you are going to drain the oil and do the filter housing. Lift up the car and also replace the oil pan gasket. Its not difficult, at least mine wasn't (rwd car), and the gasket is only $20
Clean out the oil pan before you put in the new gasket.
After driving 500 miles and pulling out the oil dipstick I can barely see the oil now, it stays clear much longer.
Over time crud just forms in the oil pan and it makes the oil dirtier a bit faster.
Last edited by waterzap99; Oct 19, 2023 at 11:24 AM.
Its not a nightmare, but there are just a lot of bolts. Just take your time and take photos of where the bolts belong. Drained the coolant via the petcock on the driver side if I remember correctly.
I think you will need to remove the thermostat too.
Get a new gasket for the oil filter housing.
Also, there are two oil pipes that goes into the housing. I replaced those gaskets too. I don't know what the part numbers were, but the parts guy at the dealership gave them to me.
Just to add. The whole process of replacing the turbo lines, water pump, oil filter gaskets, cam adjusters, front cover sealant etc was a big pain and took me many weeks.
But knock on wood, the engine runs smooth and there are no leaks or oil seepage.
If I can give one tip though. If you are going to drain the oil and do the filter housing. Lift up the car and also replace the oil pan gasket. Its not difficult, at least mine wasn't (rwd car), and the gasket is only $20
Clean out the oil pan before you put in the new gasket.
After driving 500 miles and pulling out the oil dipstick I can barely see the oil now, it stays clear much longer.
Over time crud just forms in the oil pan and it makes the oil dirtier a bit faster.
Great info and thanks for such a quick response. I feel pretty good about tackling this. I've done alot of maintenance on this car myself (brakes, spark plugs, Transmission and Diff service). I do have a 3rd party warranty on it, but that ends up costing me in differential expense - ie. they only pay for aftermarket parts and only pay 140/hr labor etc. So I save that warranty for any costly components. This job is inexpensive from a parts perspective, just all labor.
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