Engine rebuilds

[kurt535]

how long is a piece of string....it's a 3.0 litre m103 merc engine. not bad. 139k miles; had a regular serviced life. should i purchase it....my plan is to have it rebuilt now ive bought the car (190e) to put it in. i am tempted to 'zero' time the engine. all things being equal, im wondering what people's £ experiences have been with rebuilds. bear in mind the engine isn't exotica - if anything, its engineering is really old school top quality merc.

thoughts welcomed

[PaulKemp]

If it ain’t broke...

I’ve rebuilt a number of Pinto’s, usually adding bhp in the process, if you are just putting an engine in some basic checks would suffice. Once you start replacing internals the price skyrockets, I never know when to stop.
Gaskets, better use the best!
Bearings, seals, nuts and bolts, may as well use all ARP!
Water pump, oil pump and on the madness goes.

[PositronicRay]

kurt535 said:

how long is a piece of string....it's a 3.0 litre m103 merc engine. not bad. 139k miles; had a regular serviced life. should i purchase it....my plan is to have it rebuilt now ive bought the car (190e) to put it in. i am tempted to 'zero' time the engine. all things being equal, im wondering what people's £ experiences have been with rebuilds. bear in mind the engine isn't exotica - if anything, its engineering is really old school top quality merc.

thoughts welcomed

My Mercs 125k 25 y/o M104. Engine and trans perfect, best things on the car. I certainly wouldn't be opening them up.

[anonymous-user]

As the engines out of the car, a "Look around" is quick, cheap and easy. Pop the cam cover and sump off, look at the big ends, the tappets etc.

At that mileage, the injectors and turbo will be worn, so i'd probably budget to put a new turbo and get your injectors re-furbished.

If you can access a borescope, then a quick look into the cyls without taking the head off would be peace of mind as well.

[PositronicRay]

Max_Torque said:

As the engines out of the car, a "Look around" is quick, cheap and easy. Pop the cam cover and sump off, look at the big ends, the tappets etc.

At that mileage, the injectors and turbo will be worn, so i'd probably budget to put a new turbo and get your injectors re-furbished.

If you can access a borescope, then a quick look into the cyls without taking the head off would be peace of mind as well.

Didn't know they turboed that unit.

[anonymous-user]

PositronicRay said:

Max_Torque said:

As the engines out of the car, a "Look around" is quick, cheap and easy. Pop the cam cover and sump off, look at the big ends, the tappets etc.

At that mileage, the injectors and turbo will be worn, so i'd probably budget to put a new turbo and get your injectors re-furbished.

If you can access a borescope, then a quick look into the cyls without taking the head off would be peace of mind as well.

Didn't know they turboed that unit.

I assumed it was a turbo, no idea if it is or not tbh! (must be f slow if not.... ;-)

[PositronicRay]

Max_Torque said:

PositronicRay said:

Max_Torque said:

As the engines out of the car, a "Look around" is quick, cheap and easy. Pop the cam cover and sump off, look at the big ends, the tappets etc.

At that mileage, the injectors and turbo will be worn, so i'd probably budget to put a new turbo and get your injectors re-furbished.

If you can access a borescope, then a quick look into the cyls without taking the head off would be peace of mind as well.

Didn't know they turboed that unit.

I assumed it was a turbo, no idea if it is or not tbh! (must be f slow if not.... ;-)

80s 12v straight 6.