Fixed my fuel tank leak. If anyone recalls, I replaced the pickup/sock on the bottom over the summer and a fresh float on the sending unit. I did NOT replace the o-ring, well talk about a ******* move. It leaked anytime the tank was full until a decent amount was used in there. Sloshed around. Drove me bat****. New o-rings from LMC and I was cured. Well, it should be cured. I was able to remove the retaining ring by hand with the old. New one took a pile more pressure and a brass drift to seal it all up.

Cold started truck today post injector shimming, cranked less and smoked less. Entire truck was not shaking. So I guess it was worth $75! Temps were only in the upper 30s/low 40s, but so far so good. If you are a cheapskate or limited budget, it seems to be worth the trouble.

Pic of the tank and some of my help.

 

That's something I should do on my 38 gallon rear tank. But it doesn't do it all the time So, have you come to any conclusions about that compression reading being higher?

 

 

What's that 126-chassis MB you got there? Looks like another sitting in front of it, too.

 

300SEL. Fuel distributor in mail back from CIS Flowtech, should drive even better after. In front of that is a 300SDL. Spare head being rebuilt. I also have a 300SD not pictured. Beside those are a few E23 745i BMW.

 

That M103 is a great motor. Had a 2.6 in my 190E when I lived in Germany. Wish I would have brought that car back. CIS is one thing on my M117 that I'm ready to get rid of. That and the 722 automatic trans. Can't argue with the reliability of the 617 in your SD or the 603 in the SDL. Both would receive manual swaps in my opinion, perhaps a bigger turbo too. I drove an '86 260E with the same 2.6 M103 my 190 had with the 4-speed manual and it was loads of fun. Do wish it would have been one fitted with a 5-speed, but the car never felt "too big" for a manual, nor did it take away from the luxury and quality of the ride.

When it comes to the 7-series BMW, I'm partial to the E32 and E38 bodies, but my favorites are between the E30 and E34. There was an E34 M5 for sale up the road a few years back that I regret not picking up... Buddy of mine had an E30 station wagon when we were in high school, and that thing was perfect for cruising all over Europe in the summer.

 

This M103 has 325k on it. Head off twice, first around 270k for a valve job. Second to install ARPs with another gasket due to the famous M103 oil leak on rear of the engine by No 6 exhaust. So far, so good. Lost/used about 0.5qt in 5000 miles. Not bad!

CIS is not terrible, but let me tell you my fuel dizzy was wasted. Factory spec is 135cc at full load, mine was about 120cc on four holes...two were barely over 100cc! Bottom half could not hold pressure. Two injectors leaking, two would not pop at correct pressure, two worked fine as did cold start. Injectors have about 120k on them. I am hoping for a drastic difference in cold starts with this, the catalyst is also gutted so it has picked up noticeable power as it was partially plugged. The car is very quirky with such a tight converter and second gear starts plus a 3.46:1 diff. Should have had a 2.88:1, FGS, and a looser converter.

SD looks like crap, fresh interior I did early last year. It has a Sanden swap from Klima Kit, best thing I ever did for the car next to fresh injectors. SDL has a blown gasket like all early heads suffer due to insufficiently reinforced oil pressure gallery by No 1 cylinder. I acquired a No 17 cast, but aside from a good cast the rest is wasted. Guides are iron in the factory, these beat the **** out of the sodium filled and chromed (!) exhaust valves and the intakes. Not cheap to replace :/ Of course I am doing springs. Bronze guides are in it, waiting for valves to hone the guides. Injectors are rebuilt for it too, should drive beautiful.

I can do balljoints on a W126, once removed from chassis, in under an hour now.

E32...I had an 06/88 750iL for years. Started consuming oil on passenger bank, so I parted it. Great cruiser. The E23 745i are neat, I make a drop in Tial F38 conversion wastegate for them. E34 M5s are the current bargain for M power on the street. Grab while cheap! For me, I stick with the 745i. I have four currently I think. Two even have the rear seat radio!

 

I have a 560 SEL with 2 bullet holes on the driver side door, fuel pumps are bad and ignition switch broke twice. Its been sitting for more than 10 years now.
Hitman you know anything about repairing and adjusting the fuel distribution box?

 

Tons. I just sold my 560 to a pal actually, he wanted it super bad LOL Cams were timed 0/0 (three woodruff keys!!) I resealed two part intake plenum. MB and BMW of this era were engineered to stay on road super easy.

Most critical thing are the chain guides on the driver side.

PM me your digits, I will help ya out.

 

Sounds good my man, as soon as I order some new pumps and clean out the fuel tank Ill holler at ya.

 

Seriously, do not crank it till you do upper chain guides. OEM MB are only a few bux more than crappy Meyle or Febi. I have pin puller if you wanna bum it, same with chain tool. I have the huge balljoint jig too, just R&R'd a pair in under an hour...after the spindles pulled.

 

Yeah, the original motor in my 500SE had the guides go out. Was planning on doing them soon, but they seemed okay and oil pressure was fine. Was barely half a mile from the house when suddenly the car just "shut off". I knew when it wouldn't turn over anymore the guides had gone and the piston slammed into the valves...

Got a replacement Euro motor and did the guides immediately using all MB parts. Well worth it. Now the spare block is set aside to make a bellhousing for a T5.

Plans in the upcoming weeks includes refreshing the entire front end, including ball joints.

 

Here are the ball joints I just did and rectifier failed in the alternator. The lug overheated! Ordered a new one last night from The Zone. 20% off online order, free freight. Cannot beat that.

That big block of steel is the OE MB ball joint press. It is easily 20lbs! It works for W126, W123, and W116s I think. One of the best tools I have purchased for these vehicles. It has installed seven sets of ball joints at least.

 

This ain't the gosh dang Mercedes forum for cryin' out loud....

 

We are back on the road chaps! Put 15 miles on him today, no issues. HVAC works and I needed it due to this rain, humidity! I am going to replace the alternator cable lug too, it is kind of ratty due to the old rectifier issue. It is 6awg, in the event anyone needs to know.

No white smoke on cold start, I still am liking the injector work. I will tell more when colder out.