broken glow plug what to do now

well i did it,broke the # 4 glow plug.Heated the engine up,have the mb socket,knew it was gonna be a pain to remove let it soak a couple hours ,tried to work it out but it still broke.Now im trying to figure out what to do.i have seen the extraction kits but not sure which one would be best.should i not drive it till i can either get an extraction kit ? might just see what the local mb backlog is as well.This is the third one i have changed and have not had any issues till now.I figure im still gonna have three left to deal with so it might be worthwhile to get the removal kit.Iv got a 2008

I am in the same situation with my 2007. At least it is #4! My number 2 broke off. Both are fairly easy to access. I live in Alaska and was worried about cold starting but it seems to work just fine so far - we don't have below zero temps yet but well below freezing and it turns over just fine.

I have been looking at extractor kits too. There are a lot of choices and some very expensive. I replaced 4-5-6 and 1 but stopped after 2 snapped so who knows what lurks at #3. By the time you pay the shop to do the extraction - you could pay for an extractor. Of course, there is no guarantee it will work when we do it ourselves but it is very tempting.

If you do take it to the shop, have them replace the ones you have not done yet. Then you should be good for a while. I almost wonder if we should prophylactically remove them now and then just to make sure they stay unstuck. Too bad some of them are awkward to get in to.

It seems the GPs are involved in the regeneration process so maybe running on 5 for long-term is not great but it certainly will not inhibit your ability to start.

This is what we use!
http://mueller-kueps.com/product-catalog/vehicle-specialty-tools/glow-plug-drill-kit-m8x1/
The best to date we have used! EVER!

A bit fragile, I bought 10 off kits for the T1N and 906 Sprinter like yours -Both available.

That stated you have to go easy or wreck the head.
Dennis

lindenengineering said:

This is what we use!
http://mueller-kueps.com/product-catalog/vehicle-specialty-tools/glow-plug-drill-kit-m8x1/
The best to date we have used! EVER!

A bit fragile, I bought 10 off kits for the T1N and 906 Sprinter like yours -Both available.

That stated you have to go easy or wreck the head.
Dennis

Click to expand...

I noticed there is a company that rents the Klapp kit i believe its called.It comes with some sort of air connection that blows out any chips and such .Have you ever used that one Dennis?Also on the Mueller that you use does it drill out original threads and then you re tap larger and use a larger glow plug or will it leave existing threads?I do see what you mean about go slow looking at the new glow plug they are very small.If i were to bet on it i think the plug that broke is aftermarket i dont see the little red ring that the mb plugs do but im not 100 percent sure,i was frustrated yesterday when things went south on me,and walked away.I knew what i was in for at that point

sleeper bird said:

I noticed there is a company that rents the Klapp kit i believe its called.It comes with some sort of air connection that blows out any chips and such .Have you ever used that one Dennis?Also on the Mueller that you use does it drill out original threads and then you re tap larger and use a larger glow plug or will it leave existing threads?I do see what you mean about go slow looking at the new glow plug they are very small.If i were to bet on it i think the plug that broke is aftermarket i dont see the little red ring that the mb plugs do but im not 100 percent sure,i was frustrated yesterday when things went south on me,and walked away.I knew what i was in for at that point

Click to expand...

Well first it's a Klamm --But renting one might end up you getting a Klapped out one!!
You don't need to remove the injector in most cases to keep air pressure in the cylinder for swarf ejection.
The same goes for the Mueller tool.
The adaptors are in the kit to instantly break out the central hard wire, essential for accurate centralized drilling of the broken body.

The stepped drill if used properly, will cut the threaded boss section out leaving the open sleeve section visible. In fact as you cut through the remaining portion you will often smell the stink of diesel carbon that has dwelt in the cavity.

Again if used properly the original threads will be intact (if not previously torn out) and a thread tap is provided to clean them up once the glow plug has been extracted.
You will need a slide hammer (it's not in the kit I showed to bounce the old injector out!)
Should the glow plug thread be ripped out I use a nutsert insert to recover the head.

We charge $200 per hole to extract and at times it can take more than two hours per injector to get them out. WE have even driven the rig to blow out glow plug remnants that won't budge at times. These having been drilled to the danger point of busting through the casting sections. (talk about sounding like my late aunt's ex MOD BSA M21 motorcycle--ex dispatch rider WW2 when she blows Capt'n)

Yes the most troublesome are glow plugs that are aftermarket, Made in China
or simply badly installed by someone previously.
Dennis

Boy i sure wish you were close at 200.00 a hole that is very reasonable.I think before i make any rash decisions i will contact my local mb and see what they say.Im sure they will be more but in this case probably will be worth it,as long as they dont tell me head has to be removed.
So just to make sure i understand Dennis,there should be pressure on the head to remove debris with both extractors?am i correct?As always i-we value your help and opinion.

No there is no pressure needed.
The old busted glow plug is obviously locked the hole . As you cut you clear with compressed shop air.
Having cut the threads in the old glow plug shank and screwed in the pull rod you simply withdraw the old glow plug with the slide hammer and adapter. comes out much like the regular removal if it was intact
Dennis

Decided to schedule a appt with mercedes.they cant give me an exact price.I will update.Im worried about this for sure

well just received the dreaded call the mb dealership said the extraction tool broke,now i believe its stuck in there.where i live in the south we have inspection every two years for diesels luckily i just had it done but in two years from now it will not pass with a cel code,so the van will be useless after that .Im sad today.

Oh and they quoted me 700.00 per hole i had one,not sure what the bill will be as they could not get it out.

Ouch. Sorry to hear that. What's next, remove the head(s)?

drive it for now,mb said the fix, head replacement im assuming would be more than the van is worth.Iv had good luck with my local dealership,But i do find it odd that i made an appt explained what needed to be done and what cylinder it was and it took two days to try to get it out and a third to put it back together.They probably didn't want to mess with it

I was just at my mechanics last week.
He had another sprinter with same issue.
Came to him with glow plug broken and other shop tried to drill
It out.
Time for a new head .He had pulled the motor out to remove the head .Said that was the easiest way .
He also won’t let any other techs there do glowplugs. That way it’s on him if it breaks.

yea im thinking new head time,Looking around just the head is a couple grand.Sad part is the engine runs strong,every other oil change i have the oil sent to blackstone and it shows good health at 195.000 miles.I love the van and have really gone the extra mile to be proactive on maintenance things(probably overboard)to let a 69.00 glow plug put the nail in the coffin for my van.

The head itself may not need to be replaced, although that would be the dealership option. Dennis has mentioned spark erosion and other methods to repair an otherwise serviceable head. Those options may require head removal, but necessarily replacement with a new head.

lockrob said:

...
He also won’t let any other techs there do glow plugs. That way it’s on him if it breaks.

Click to expand...

I can understand that. Although there are procedures which can improve success, posts/threads here indicate that successful glow plug removal may be affected by bad luck situations. It's not necessarily all skill.

vic

sleeper bird said:

yea im thinking new head time,Looking around just the head is a couple grand.Sad part is the engine runs strong,every other oil change i have the oil sent to blackstone and it shows good health at 195.000 miles.I love the van and have really gone the extra mile to be proactive on maintenance things(probably overboard)to let a 69.00 glow plug put the nail in the coffin for my van.

Click to expand...

If the plug hole is sealed and stable I wouldn't toss the vehicle over this, especially if it runs well and is in good shape otherwise, rather just leave things as they are. I doubt you will even notice the loss of function of a single glow plug (especially down in LA.) You can either ignore the light or install a resistor to spoof the controller.

smiller said:

If the plug hole is sealed and stable I wouldn't toss the vehicle over this, especially if it runs well and is in good shape otherwise, rather just leave things as they are. I doubt you will even notice the loss of function of a single glow plug (especially down in LA.) You can either ignore the light or install a resistor to spoof the controller.

Click to expand...

Good point.

Engine operation will need to be monitored though. A glow plug seal face leak will not be immediately obvious, but should show evidence eventually if there is a problem. (The leak will be under the injector gallery aluminum cover.)

An initial simple test will be to listen for a chuffing sound. If that is heard, there is likely a leak.

vic

Added:
I believe that an ignition ballast resistor will substitute a load to simulate an installed glow plug.

sleeper bird said:

drive it for now,mb said the fix, head replacement im assuming would be more than the van is worth.Iv had good luck with my local dealership,But i do find it odd that i made an appt explained what needed to be done and what cylinder it was and it took two days to try to get it out and a third to put it back together.They probably didn't want to mess with it

Click to expand...

Hey Sleeperbird.
What has probably happened is that the drilling went off a bit cocksided--easy to do if you don't use a drill guide and not that Mueller tool--that's why I posted it the best I've use YET!

Using "zee ould" fashioned way we use (I used) a 10" aircraft drill by the now the long gone Chicago Latrobe company (remember these machine cutting tools made the much vaunted & time honoured MD (not MB) B17)

Its very easy to go off and cut in it the head tube. (I have one in at the moment that was at a dealer and they left a "souvenir" in the head!! Notably the stem of a thread tap.
Having tried to cut threads into the sleeve body of the glow plug they went into the head glow plug hole port as well by drill drifting using a jobber length drill bit! ---then tried to pull the part out. Of course you are now trying to pull the fixed down head off the engine insitu--Something has to give!--the thread tap pulling device!

I suppose I am tempted to ask can you take a "fotie" of the effort that went wrong?
Commiserations
Dennis

lindenengineering said:

Hey Sleeperbird.
What has probably happened is that the drilling went off a bit cocksided--easy to do if you don't use a drill guide and not that Mueller tool--that's why I posted it the best I've use YET!

Using "zee ould" fashioned way we use (I used) a 10" aircraft drill by the now the long gone Chicago Latrobe company (remember these machine cutting tools made the much vaunted & time honoured MD (not MB) B17)

Its very easy to go off and cut in it the head tube. (I have one in at the moment that was at a dealer and they left a "souvenir" in the head!! Notably the stem of a thread tap.
Having tried to cut threads into the sleeve body of the glow plug they went into the head glow plug hole port as well by drill drifting using a jobber length drill bit! ---then tried to pull the part out. Of course you are now trying to pull the fixed down head off the engine insitu--Something has to give!--the thread tap pulling device!

I suppose I am tempted to ask can you take a "fotie" of the effort that went wrong?
Commiserations
Dennis

Click to expand...

i should be getting it back Monday,and will remove resonator and have a look and take a pic. Hindsight's 20/20 but i wish i had got the extractor you mentioned and tried it myself.I have a lot more vested interest in making sure i did it correctly.After much agonizing over that i figured the dealership wood be well equipped for it.but i believe i was wrong.

I bet its a tap broke off in there.

This begs the question (at least for me). With a 2008 (NCV3, OM642) and about 36,000 miles on it living in the Dallas TX area (the van was always here - no rust belt or high salt area exposure) does it make sense to replace all the glow plugs and use thread compound when doing so or just leave them in?

I did replace one glow plug about 5,000 miles ago with no issues and used thread compound when putting in the new Bosch plug.

The van runs fine with no issues.