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I tend to suspect that it is as you have guessed, from the crankcase. I like the idea of having it checked out by a lab. It seems like an excessive amount of material to be coming from the crankcase, did you mention the mileage on the motor already? (didn't notice). Did you take a pic when it was still on/in the rotor hollow?
I just went out to my shop and pulled an M112k SC off the shelf that I removed at about 140,000 miles (input shaft failure) and as you can see, there is very little, if any, accumulation in the rotor hollows (and the snout is pretty clean as well).
On a side note, hadn't looked at the intake side of an m112k SC in a while and now I see why you were asking about dust shields (I assumed you were talking about the shields that are integral to the bearing) ... I would still say that they probably should be left in place and the rotor/gearbox assy should be withdrawn when you get to re-greasing the bearings.
Hope that helps....
and do keep us updated,
Chris
The mileage on the car is 180k KM or about 112k Miles. Not a very high mileage car, so it's a little worrying.
And yes, those were the dust shields I was referring too. Since it is best to leave them in place, it would definitely make repacking the bearings (more-so cleaning them) rather difficult, since there wouldn't be a through-hole. I suspect it would take 1-2 hours of meticulously cleaning them.
EDIT: Would running a catch can from the breather tube be worthwhile? With the V6 there is definitely room for one.
EDIT 2: I uploaded a picture of the rotor in its current state. You can see that there is still a deposit in there running along the inner contour.
Originally Posted by StarvingArtist
Is it road grime getting past your air filters. Do you run k&n.
Yes the car is running K/N. I've only had the car for ~18k miles, but the car came with them, so who knows how long they've been in place.
I was going to switch to a NeedsWings style CAI, but it also uses K/N so I'm a little worried. I will make a note to get the cotton filters from MB on my next trip out there.
Last edited by Maverick32; Jan 10, 2017 at 09:02 AM.
The mileage on the car is 180k KM or about 112k Miles. Not a very high mileage car, so it's a little worrying.
And yes, those were the dust shields I was referring too. Since it is best to leave them in place, it would definitely make repacking the bearings (more-so cleaning them) rather difficult, since there wouldn't be a through-hole. I suspect it would take 1-2 hours of meticulously cleaning them.
EDIT: Would running a catch can from the breather tube be worthwhile? With the V6 there is definitely room for one.
EDIT 2: I uploaded a picture of the rotor in its current state. You can see that there is still a deposit in there running along the inner contour.
Yes the car is running K/N. I've only had the car for ~18k miles, but the car came with them, so who knows how long they've been in place.
I was going to switch to a NeedsWings style CAI, but it also uses K/N so I'm a little worried. I will make a note to get the cotton filters from MB on my next trip out there.
Great insight/suggestion StarvingArtist!
I didn't think to ask about K & Ns, but that is actually a very likely source for the high volume of goop/grime. Not sure how it explains the apparent ferrous content, but this makes lab analysis more intriguing than ever (send a sample of this material and a sample of your oil). At some point, it might be useful to do a leakdown test.
The M112k dust shields do present a challenge. While it might be possible that they can be removed for inspecting grease condition/volume ... in order to re-grease the bearings, the rotors (and inner races) will have to be withdrawn. If I come across anything more specific on this, I will shoot it your way.
I like the catch can idea. I actually have a Needswings catch can set up on 2 of my cars (slk32 and sl55).
Thanks guys for all the help. I can't be overstated how helpful you were. I'll keep this thread bookmarked. I am going to put everything back together over the next few days or so, and then I will send the samples to blackstone.
I used the new jet oil from mobil. The 387 mobil jet oil. I was only able to extract out 80ml of the old with a syringe and an clear tubing. It was pretty dark and it does have that barn like smell to it. I am pretty sure that was all there was in there. I was on a flat surface and I found a German site that shows the inside of the SC and that that full oil level should be just below the fill hole with 150ml of oil. I put 150ml of oil in and it did not overflow of the fill hole so I am pretty sure that it is filled with the correct amount. I also read that the benefit of the 387 is that it has better lubrication like the mobil 264 has but it has longer wear properties like the mobil jet oil 2 has so it is "supposed" to be the best of both worlds. I hope this was helpful for anyone else viewing this thread. ( I used a ball end allen 5mm to remove the fill plug and wrapped it with teflon tape.) **Note it is a bit tricky (pita) trying to get it back in at an angle and screw it in I dropped it 2 times during the process freaking out that it fell into the unknown, but i finally got it... happy supercharger and peace of mind.
Here is link to purchase the 387 oil in 1 quart, only place I could find to get it .
Hey i work for a company called skymart and we have a warehouse full of exxonmobil 387. If you contact me I sure one of the sales guys can help you out with a couple cans.
Hey i work for a company called skymart and we have a warehouse full of exxonmobil 387. If you contact me I sure one of the sales guys can help you out with a couple cans.
I attempted to, briefly, to open the front of the SC, but decided against it for now. It's pretty cold outside (about 5F, and about 25 in the garage), so I didn't want to risk breaking a bolt, or something else. I think I will wait until the spring to give it another go, should I believe it needs it.
The rotors spin freely, and completely silently. The rattle I was hearing must be coming from the loose clutch plate.
I opened the rear part of the SC again. The contaminant within the rotor veins was not goopy, but rather a solid stuck to the inside. I managed to gingery scrape it off with a plastic tool, and vacuumed all the pieces out with a small tube. Luckily they came off in rather large chunks.
The pieces are slightly magnetic, with the consistency of wet chalk. Thoughts on whether it is still the oil contaminant?
Did you ever find out what the black metal material was? i have the same stuff in my surge tanks and on the gold side of the sc rotor, were you spraying meth or burning oil?
I am getting ready to swap out my SC oil. I hear some people saying to use teflon tape on the bolt, others say loctite- which is better? I do plan on changing it a few time to flush out the old crap.
not sure why there is not a recommended fluid change interval from Mercedes. I have asked at least 6 high volume reputable shops, they all say - "Leave it Alone" replacement not necessary since it's a sealed system with no outside contaminants.
Agreed, If it is not broken why fix.
If you still change your engine oil every 8,000 miles please comment. Changing the supercharger oil for piece of mind every 150,000 miles or so will prevent wear and damage.
The bearings for the supercharger are expensive and rare why wait until they fail.
High performance engine require extensive maintenance beyond the owners manual. Racing Engines are beyond extensive.
The oil change for supercharger is easy and cheap.
You can sit and wait or prepare for race day.
Cheers, Gator
Teflon for the plug. I think you may be confusing it with the pulley bolt. That comes with teflon, but everybody seems to use loctite on it.
My car, which I bought 100% stock and would bet money no one had ever touched that plug but me.... had teflon on it.... from the factory. (Not talking pulley bolt, SC oil plug, clearly had old teflon)
I find it crazy that people are reporting 30 coming out and 120 going in..
Never heard of any stories of people having failures or the dealer replacing it or new members coming here saying their supercharger failed because of no oil...
What's the REAL deal?
Last edited by Das Geld 2; Feb 28, 2019 at 12:43 AM.
You can buy the oil on eBay - it comes in a quart $33 also get a 100ml syringe. The c32 takes 125ml if you want to just measure it. make sure you put a level on the top of the supercharger. You make just use the "filler hole" method like a diff'
You can buy the oil on eBay - it comes in a quart $33 also get a 100ml syringe. The c32 takes 125ml if you want to just measure it. make sure you put a level on the top of the supercharger. You make just use the "filler hole" method like a diff'
"You make just use the "filler hole" method like a diff'"
Are you quite sure about that? Where did you get that information?
Last edited by DH1951; Jun 24, 2022 at 10:44 PM.
Reason: Added quote.
happy supercharger and peace of mind.
