Engine and Transmission Removed: What else?

So I'm removing the engine and transmission to have cylinder head repaired/replaced.

2002 w/ 300k
What else should I do while the engine/transmission are out?

1. New wiring harness
2. Updated flex plate

I'm up for ideas.
Thanks.
 
D

Deleted member 50714

Guest
Water pump.
Thermostat.
Serp belt.
Every thing the serp belt rolls around.
Radiator and cap.
All hoses common to radiator.
Front and rear main seals.
Oil cooler.
Torque converter seal.
Flex plate.
 
Water pump.
Thermostat.
Serp belt.
Every thing the serp belt rolls around.
Radiator and cap.
Oil cooler.
These have all been replaced in the last 50k.

Most of the radiator hoses are new. I'll replace the few that I couldn't easily get to now that the engine is out.

Rear and main seals: Will I access the rear main seal when I replace the flex plate?

Front main seal: I replaced the HB not too long ago and would rather not take it off to replace the front main seal.

Thanks for the good advice.

Anything else?
 

lindenengineering

Well-known member
The most important!

Send your removed injectors out for test & examination at a Bosch FIE specialist.
Cost per injector test is around $50 a pop, & if one or more are found defective they will usually refund the test fees when you buy a replacement (s).

Do what us Pros do in the business!
When the head(s) come off, the injectors ALWAYS go out for test. Even moreso now with ball and seat style injectors you find on T1N engines and all Cummins 5,7 units & that also includes GMC 6,6 units (notorious for failures).

Dennis
 

MikeP

Member
Maybe way off topic but while all that is out I'd check, if not already replaced brake lines and fuel lines as well as check driveshaft plus carrier.
Be good time to get any hard to get to spots of rust, too!
 

Midwestdrifter

Engineer In Residence
Engine and trans mounts are probably tired?

Check the ground strap for condition.

A bit of firewall insulation, and below the floor can reduce noise and improve cab temps.

Check your recirculate damper/linkage and pivot stud for cracking and condition.

Add insulation to your AC ducts if its missing

Replace oil cooler gasket.

confirm Aux water pump is in good shape.

Consider replacing your OM612 intake manifold with the later OM647 version. I am not sure, but the new EGR valve design may be compatible with the ECM/harness, and it is MUCH easier to work on. You will need to drill and tap 1-2 holes in the head, but its pretty straightforward.

Consider an A/C system refresh. New dryer, O-rings, TX valve, and recharge. drain some oil from the compressor housing drain bolt, and check for condition. If its a nice clear amber, replace the oil removed, and it should be good for a long while. Check the compressor clutch air gap as well.

Flush your evaporator core out. Spray with foam cleaner and then rinse thoroughly (in place).
 
The engine and transmission are out. (Never pulled an engine out of a vehicle before and was able to do this alone thanks to this forum.) Split the transmission and engine and put the engine on a stand.

My boys (13 and 14) and I began the tear down and got the head off Monday. (This started because I had coolant leaking out of #1 injector bore). With the head off and cleaned up I could not see any signs of a crack or problem with the head gasket.

All cylinders and pistons look good. The cross-hatching is still clearly visible on the cylinder walls and no play in the pistons. (Piston 1 was wet, the rest were dry, but #4 injector was very oily? Any thoughts?)

I took the head into a machine shop that said they had worked on Sprinter 5cyl. heads before.
I'm waiting to hear back for the pressure test results.

Questions: Am I playing with fire if they say they can fix the head? What is the recommendation: fix or replace the head? (there is a $1300 difference between the two).

Where can I find the specs for machining the head? I've read slightly different figures in different threads.

Thanks.
 

Midwestdrifter

Engineer In Residence
I would put a bore gauge on the cylinders, and plastigauge a few rods and main bearings. If the head passes inspection, and they figure out the coolant leak source, I would reuse.
 
D

Deleted member 50714

Guest
The engine and transmission are out. (Never pulled an engine out of a vehicle before and was able to do this alone thanks to this forum.) Split the transmission and engine and put the engine on a stand.

My boys (13 and 14) and I began the tear down and got the head off Monday. (This started because I had coolant leaking out of #1 injector bore). With the head off and cleaned up I could not see any signs of a crack or problem with the head gasket.

All cylinders and pistons look good. The cross-hatching is still clearly visible on the cylinder walls and no play in the pistons. (Piston 1 was wet, the rest were dry, but #4 injector was very oily? Any thoughts?)

I took the head into a machine shop that said they had worked on Sprinter 5cyl. heads before.
I'm waiting to hear back for the pressure test results.

Questions: Am I playing with fire if they say they can fix the head? What is the recommendation: fix or replace the head? (there is a $1300 difference between the two).

Where can I find the specs for machining the head? I've read slightly different figures in different threads.

Thanks.
I was trying to flip a Dodge car I picked up for $200 bucks. Needed a new head because of crack the length of spark plug hole. The machine shop talked me into plugging and re-machining hole. It didn't work. I had to do double work and make less profit. I guess any head issues could be evaluated on a case by case basis but I am lazy and if had any doubts, go with new.
 
I received a call from the machinist: head cracked around the base of the #1 injector hole; cannot be repaired. (Sound right?) He said he'd seen the same thing happen on a Duramax head, but never on one of these.

That makes the decision easy.
 

Midwestdrifter

Engineer In Residence
A crack in this location would allow coolant from the head jacket to flow into the area around the injection. At least if the crack was in the right position. Appears to match your symptoms.
 

Nautamaran

2004 140” HRC 2500 (Crewed)
... That makes the decision easy.
There appears to be very little extra meat on the head... the acceptable height range is just 0.3mm / .0118”, not much, and assumes enough valve seat height, so finding a crack is probably better news than hearing “it’s going to be really really close... wanna try anyway?”
(and, to be fair, the very first line of the head measurement section on pg 9-22 of the shop manual reads “DO NOT MACHINE THE CYLINDER HEAD SURFACE”)

-dave
 

Midwestdrifter

Engineer In Residence
I think Dennis recommended no more than 1.5 thousands? Which is just a light buff really.

I would take a very close look at the top end of cylinder 5. Just in case there was an event that caused the cracking. More likely it was a casting flaw, or assembly error. Head failures seem pretty rare on the 612/647 thankfully.

What source is your shop using for a new head? There were a couple mentioned (besides MB). Not all use the best quality valves if I remember correctly.
 
Trying to figure out what caused the head failure has been a little difficult:
The temp gauge/scan gauge never showed temps higher than 180F this winter. We drove it to Big Bend, Texas and back (2200 miles round trip) the last week of December without any problems. The weather turned bad in January and we let the Sprinter sit for most of January and February. When we drove it again we noticed the heater acting erratic. The air would be hot or cold fluctuating with the opening and closing of the thermostat. As I was trying to figure out why the heater wasn't working I opened the coolant reservoir and the radiator cap blew off from pressure and the coolant was low. Then I found the wires to the coolant sensor has corroded. So I began to dig for answers and found coolant spilling out of injector #1.

With coolant bubbling out of #1 the van would still drive fine, full power, etc. This is what makes me think there isn't another problem (am I crazy for thinking this?).

I'm doing all the work myself. I have a lead on 2 complete engines for a good price. One is running and the other has a cracked piston. The seller thinks the head from the engine with the cracked piston is not damaged.

So my thinking is: Buy the two engines. Have the head from the engine with a cracked piston tested. If it tests out as good, put five new injectors in it and put it on my block, which will leave me with a back up engine as well.
 

Midwestdrifter

Engineer In Residence
Flush the block cooling passages, have the injectors tested, and don't worry about it. (Well check #5 for damage). The damage you describe is likely a head flaw. Detailed photos would help us though.
 
Update: After the first head was deemed junk I traveled to Arkansas to pick up a complete engine and a parts engine (cracked #5 piston). Took the head from the parts engine to the machine shop with three very stuck glow plugs. The P.O. had already broken the tops off, but I tried baking the head in an oven, tapping the inside of the GP and pulling out: nothing. The head pressure tested good, and there was no warp. The older gentleman running the machine shop told me that he was the only one in the shop willing to drill out the glow plugs and then added, "I guess it takes 50 years of experience to do the job." I called today and he had drilled the glow plugs out without incident. Now I'm just waiting on them to finish the valve job. In a previous conversation I had mentioned to him that MB didn't recommend resurfacing the head, to which he said, "That's because they want you to buy a new head; don't worry we can take up to .0010" off without causing a problem." This made me feel good because it lined up with what Dennis has said in other places. So I should receive the head within a week, and then it's time to put it all back together.
 
The top end rebuild begins tomorrow: I got the head back from the machine shop and it looks great.

The Sprinter Manual regarding cylinder head bolt torque and sequence says 44ft. lbs. in sequence and then a 90 degree in sequence and then another 90 degree:

Is this still correct and the best way to do it?
 
Everything is back together. I tried to start the engine, but the battery needed a charge.

Question: After an upper end overhaul should it crank quieter than it has in the last 150k miles of ownership?
 

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