rocketflyer

so i think i have a really bad head gasket leak..

i originally thought it was something outside of the engine but now i just found a bunch of gunk in the oil. all the extra coolant i was adding was getting burned off while i was actively driving the car, and now that it has sat for a while its really apparent in the oil.

anyways, paying someone to do it, but while the engine is opened i have a chance to upgrade or throw in additional things while only having to pay for the part. what are some things i can do that make sense if im already cracking the motor apart?

btw this is a 100% stock E55.. never been modded before

desired_speeds

port the heads.

Schweinhund

Yeah, maybe port matching and polishing. Maybe extrude hone. Probably minimal gain. Maybe go for some headers. Maybe , maybe. maybe ! Never been in one.

saintz

Change the valve cover gaskets. I'm assuming they need to take those off to get the heads off.

CharlyE500

How much is to do the head gazquet ?

-fad

Hi

What year W210 e55?
How many miles on the motor?
Service history?
Was engine burning oil between oil changes?
Any tapping noise from the engine at first start up cold?
Headgasket failing sounds rare for this motor, wondering what conditions were the cause of the failure?

At minimum, internally I would check timing chain stretch, chain tensioner(s), condition of the head-valves-passages ie. warped head, condition of the cylinder walls, water pump, oil pump, misc gaskets-hoses-and all places where the oil and water mixed where only oil is supposed to be...

If service history is not up to date, perhaps this is a good time to bring it up to date: engine & trans mounts, suspension bushings, address any leaks...

Hope this helps, let us know what your tech advises needs to be done.

cudaized

I hope that it is just what you suspect, the head gasket. Have the mechanic check for a cracked cylinder head. It is not very common, but it could happen. Have him pressure check it. Has the engine overheated? Check for warped head.


Maybe have the mechanic dissasemble the head(s). Take a look at the valves, seats, seals, springs, etc. Timing belt guides... I'm sure that I missed somethings.

tsquare

+1 if miles are north of 80k and you plan on keeping the car awhile

BlownV8

If you have the heads off, change the timing chain, guides/rails, and tensioners.

Fabio D

Oil pump for sure, remember, water in the oil would damage or scratch internally

Fabio Daniel

desired_speeds

wouldn't it be cheaper to just get a used engine, replace all the maintenance items and drop it in?

snooozie

Here's an E55 engine on ebay....autogator.com 2400.00 obo
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...K%3AMEWAX%3AIT

rocketflyer

they just found that the timing chain is stretched... now repairs cost is doubling they are saying..

i bought the car a year ago and it always had a ticking sound.. ive only had the car for 10k miles so i was never really sure what it was.. i've been chasing the problem and always suspected something was wrong with it but couldnt figure it out.. it had a tapping noise but i thought it was coming from the cats being too old

car hasnt overheated, but the temps did hit pretty high at one point cause there was no coolant.. it almost hit the red mark on the temp gauge but i immediately pulled over on the highway and let it cool for about 10-15 mins.. then drove it home.. not sure if this is enough temp to warp the motor

car has about 127k miles on it now.. i bought it at 114k.. always leaked coolant since i originally bought it.

not really sure what to do now.. would it be better to buy a replacement engine?

-fad

Thanks for the update and sharing the history of the car. Sorry to hear about the timing chain stretch. With such low miles, the headgasket failure is not common to the W210 E55. Most E55's of this era had adequate maintenance in their early lives, as they were sold with factory maintenance included. I have heard that "some" 113.980 AMG motors happen to have a cold start up ticking that have not affected performance or longevity.

Would you like to keep the car? If so, exploring the used E55 motor swap may be the most cost effective remedy (if that incoming motor is in acceptable shape).

Rebuilding the original motor is the other option. Depending on parts needed and their costs, this repair may range in cost from a few thousand $ to several $ thousand. If you choose this route, opening the motor & inspecting/ spec'ing worn parts / compression check/ cylinder walls/ bearings/ will reveal exactly what parts will be needed to bring the motor back to life- can't really guess what will be needed without opening it up. This route will likely need an open checkbook $ to complete the rebuild.

What is the condition of the rest of the mechanicals? ie transmission, brakes, rear end, suspension, electrical? This (+/-) wear condition of any or all of these systems may also play a factor in your decision.

Keep up updated, the board is a great resource.

snooozie

I think you should check the engine out on ebay and see what the condition or warranty they have. Also, its ebay and you can always dispute with them and paypal. Also, find out how much to swap the engine vs fixing the engine as it is. If the difference is really not that much, I would prefer, in my opinion to fix it. As you will be getting new parts under warranty and a better gauge of the car as you have driven it yourself vs trying your luck on a used engine...having no history of the thing

armaniE55

+1

Bellefonte

The temp of the engine does run warm vs other cars, or maybe it is how the gauge is calibrated vs others. I've read a thread here that talks about it.

If you're in traffic or in a southern state during the summer months, the gauge can be at about 10 o'clock (I forget the degrees of this level).

If you're loosing that much coolant, you need to check on the main problematic area. This would be at the bottom left side of the radiator, viewed from sitting in the driver's seat. You're looking for the rubber hose coming out of the radiator. I'm not sure it if can be seen from the car on the ground. It is easiest to view it on a lift. Drips/stains on the inside of the plastic under-shield will help with identifying if this is where your coolant issue is coming from.

I would rethink the engine swap/rebuilt.

Fix all the bolt-ons and call it a day.

snooozie

Does anyone know if water wetter from Redline help to lower the temp in the summer months??

rocketflyer

thanks for all the advice..

i'm leaning towards a motorswap now.. im finding motors for around 3500.

I really do want to open it up and see what's wrong but i don't want it to be a can of worms once the motor is apart.. feels like theres too much of a risk of spending lots of $$, whereas the motor swap is more predictable.

snooozie

Check out the E55 engine on ebay...i think it's a 2001. I bought one of the rims from him. Guy gives me a good deal.

-fad

RE: Water Wetter (WW) Not sure if WW is OK to run with MB coolant, but....

I ran it previously in my '94 E500 (w/ 40% MB coolant/ 60% distilled H20). It helped lower temps just a tad, but not significantly. On heavy 100 degree dry days, in stop and go driving the coolant temps rose to the same degree as without WW.

If your MB cooling system is working as the factory intended, WW is not needed. Best to check to see if all the elements of your cooling system is 100%: Water Pump (+pulley+belt+tensioner), Thermostat, Fan Clutch(+pulley), Coolant and Coolant Mix, Radiator, Hoses, Clamps, Electric Fans (operation and cut in), Overflow Cap, Overflow Bottle, Airflow through the Rad fins (sometimes blocked with debris from years of use), a/c-HVAC system....if any of these items are not operating correctly or not allowing full pressure the cooling system is not operating at peak efficiency.

Currently running fresh 50/50 MB coolant/ distilled H20 in my '01 E55 with new OE thermostat, new OE fan clutch, new OE overflow cap and gauge temp reads a steady 85-90 degrees in the SF Bay Area stop and go with a/c on. As a maintenance check, I verified aux electric fan operation with a/c on.

Hope this helps

-fad

If you are doing motor swap, be sure to have the incoming motor checked out or guaranteed if possible: compression check, looking at the plugs, removing oil pan and looking at the bottom end, remove valve covers and review chain/stretch/tensioners/etc.

Even with a swap with a low mileage motor, you may wish to r/r a few things as preventative maintenance for the next 100k miles: h20 pump, oil pump, mono belt+tensioner, valve cover gaskets, plugs and wires...there is not too much luckily as this set up is pretty long lived if maintained.

When your existing motor is removed you can freshen up chassis front end ball joints, bushings, motor mounts, trans mounts...

hope this helps

Ausmbtech

I don't want t throw a spanner in the works.......but are you sure it's a blown head gasket?

I've actually never seen a blown head gasket on any M112/M113, But I have seen PLENTY of internally leaking oil coolers which will give the same loss of coolant and oil will become contaiminated.

Have you done compression and leak down test? I would definately be doing this first as I have seen M112/M113 engines rebuilt before for nothing other than a leaking oil cooler.

Definately something to consider before you open your wallet!

-fad

Thanks Ausmbtech for sharing your experience- wondering also?

-What appox. mileage do the M113 oil coolers seem to be failing?
-Any other high mileage M113 repairs seem to be popping up regularly?
-What's the highest mileage M113 you've seen?
-Had any M113 motors needing rebuilding (upper/lower)?
-Timing stretch common?

Thanks!

Ausmbtech

There doesn't seem to be a common milage that the oil coolers fail, they are the same coolers for m112 2.4l through to M113 5.4L's. no real rhyme or reason, but alomost all have been 8yrs or older unlike M271's coolers which I've seen fail whilst still under warranty.

I've seen M113's with 500k kms (350k mi's), if they have good maintainence then they really don't have many issues.

M112/M113's are very tough eninges, they just need good quality oil and frequent changes and they seem to last ages.

I've seen very very few chain problems, noisy but never a failure, but they are very obvious if they have a problem.

Very unusual to have any M112/M113 out of the car for any rebuilding, most common would be piston rings but it's usually due to poor service history