Hey guys, joined yotatech a while back to get some insight for this truck. At that time its was owned by my younger brother, and I was helping him with several things on it. He had big plans for this beast and I was looking forward to helping him with it. Unfortunately he passed away earlier this year. I managed to obtain the truck, and I plan to do all of the things we talked about and drive this thing until they stop selling fuel(or start making my own).

The truck is a 91 extended cab 4wd with the 3.0 and has been fairly unmodifed so far. Other than the front grille guard that was on it(and not very rigid) the only things I have done are a thorough cleaning inside and out. Including and undercarriage powerwash and repaint. Also, cleaned up the factory wheels and resprayed them, removed the stress cracked and rusty rear bumper and junky, non fitting tool box.

Plans for the future include a mild lift, some new shocks and bushings to increase ride quality, probably a set of 33x12.5s and most importantly... a mercedes diesel powerplant!


Havent taken too many pictures yet, but I plan to try and document this build as best I can. It wont be wheeled much at all(at least not hard), considering its sentimental value, but it will be a capable, clean, reliable truck for years to come.

Here it is day one, as I got it minus the tool box and rear bumper:


IMG_0270 by racerpat9, on Flickr


IMG_0273 by racerpat9, on Flickr


IMG_0275 by racerpat9, on Flickr

 

Also, Im plannig to order a 2" body lift to help with clearance for the merc diesel. I'm looking at the one offered by Rocky MT Susp. I know body lifts are generally frowned upon, but diesel power will be well worth it.

 

Oooohhh Diesel! Subscribed. Good luck with the build!

 

Subn to this as well. Sorry to hear abt your brother. Good luck with the build!

Oh and as much as body lifts are frowned on I haven't had any problems out of mine. And it seems they only frown becuase you can see the frame.

 

Welcome to the family...
Sorry to hear about your brother...
look up the OM617 thread here for info on a merc conversion
not sure the body lift is 100% necessary...
As for seeing the frame that can be dealt with if you get some "Ice and water shield" roofing product from Lowes/HD you can make the rubber fender liners longer to cover the gap and also make some custom ones to hide the gap between the body and frame. just use the stock ones as a partial template to get the upper profile with all the bends/curves right.

Good luck and keep us posted.

 

Sorry about your brother. I'm sure you will make the truck just as glorious as he planned. Good luck with everything.

 

Well gentlemen, the project is underway! Just brought home an 84 300sd. Got a hell of a deal on it. It was too dark to take any pictures by the time I got home, but Ill have some up tomorrow.

The car is missing the radiator and the alternator, but it fired right up when I went to check it out. Only ran it for about 3 seconds since they had already swiped the radiator, but it sounds healthy as best I can tell in that short of time. Going to clean the hell out of it and get it ready to come out of the Merc tomorrow. I'll most likely do the timing chain and any other maintanence things while I have it out. Then Ill see about the adaptor plate and getting the yota flywheel redrilled and match balanced.

I'll keep the updates coming!

 

Hey good luck on the build. DO you think you will have to beefup the front suspension to handle the extra weight?

 

I have always wanted a diesel. My have to try your way later on. Looking foward to seeing your build. Your brother would be proud and now you got something to keep the connection going. Wishing you the best.

 

Thanks again guys. I plan to do this as cleanly as possible. To make this reliable and comfortable enough to be daily driven.

From what I have seen, the other guys doing these swaps havent had any front suspension issues. Im not sure how much this engine weighs since it is cast iron block and head, but i know its not NEARLY as bad as a 4bt. Snapped a few quick shots of the benz, uploading what I have so far to flikr now.

Cleaned up the engine bay, and started removing all connections. down to just motor mounts and tranny now.

 

Far as I know about the only change anyone doing the MB diesel swap makes to the IAS front suspension is heavy duty shocks.

 

Sub'd. I want a diesel someday.

 

well sweet I have always heard that you need to sas. thats awesome. good luck.

 

OK, finally got around to uploading some pictures. Forgot to take any of the truck, but I snapped a few of the Benz and the diesel. Already have it out and any important parts i may need removed from the car. Will likely haul it to the scrap yard tomorrow and recoup nearly all of what I have into it so far. (I love when it works out like that!)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/26831842@N05/6058090828/http://www.flickr.com/photos/26831842@N05/6058090828/ by http://www.flickr.com/people/26831842@N05/, on Flickr

http://www.flickr.com/photos/26831842@N05/6057544231/http://www.flickr.com/photos/26831842@N05/6057544231/ by http://www.flickr.com/people/26831842@N05/, on Flickr

http://www.flickr.com/photos/26831842@N05/6058092742/http://www.flickr.com/photos/26831842@N05/6058092742/ by http://www.flickr.com/people/26831842@N05/, on Flickr

Anyone know if something attaches here? Ill likely post on one of the diesel specific boards, but just in case:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/26831842@N05/6058093320/http://www.flickr.com/photos/26831842@N05/6058093320/ by http://www.flickr.com/people/26831842@N05/, on Flickr

http://www.flickr.com/photos/26831842@N05/6057551213/http://www.flickr.com/photos/26831842@N05/6057551213/ by http://www.flickr.com/people/26831842@N05/, on Flickr

 

Also, I have given the engine a proper cleaning, and it looks much better now!

 

That's the primer pump on the MB 617's injection pump. Nothing attaches there except your thumb. You bleed the system after you change the fuel filter or have the system open for any reason. You'll be glad you have it, especially when doing a swap. That's the older style version, which are known to be faulty, but if you feel fluid resistance (if there's still any fuel in the system) it's probably still okay. I think it unlocks by unscrewing a few turns before using.

Good luck on the swap. That's a great engine, though heavy and it requires occasional valve adjustments. Are you looking to run bio fuel? What are your plans to couple to the transmission?

 

Thanks hank. The previous owner mentioned that those were prone to failure, and that this one needs to be replaced. I am in fact looking to get into bio fuel. Its something I have wanted to do for a while, just never had a diesel to put it in.

As for the transmission, I plan to make an adapter plate with some 3/8" plate since there are no commercially available adapters. I will likely have the driveshafts modded and push the tranny back a couple inches for additional clearance. Its going to be a tight squeeze, and I very much want to try to leave room for the a/c condensor... and maybe an intercooler... but a/c takes priority for sure!

 

Hey guys, havent had much time to work on the beast lately. I did finally get my 2" body lift in today. Going out to get started on it now. It seems pretty straight forward, but there are four pieces of 2" square tubing about an inch thick that Im not 100% sure where they go. My guess would be bed support? No hardware was supplied, but I have the means to weld them on if they are infact for that purpose.

Other than that, I have ordered a couple things for the merc engine and arranged for the driveshafts to be shortened and lengthened by a very reputable shop. just need to pull the 3.0 and take some measurements to see just how much Ill need to move the tranny back. Ill get some new photos soon!

 

suscribed this sounds intresting make sure you take lots of pics wana see how this turns out
best of luck on it

 

Hey pat... gotta love when they give you parts with no instructions...NOT. lol...