WK Grand Cherokee Diesel

[The Dark Side of Will]

Jeep dash ptsd...

As a rule of thumb, all shrader valves leak, even if you can't see it. You need to install a new pair of caps with a high quality oring in the cap. Maybe change the valves from a completionist standpoint, but definitely install caps.

My wife drove an xj for the first few years we were together. I replaced the heater core in that puppy. Same song and dance.

Stock up on r134a while you can.

Oh yeah, perfect seals are expensive. I'm thinking new valves will leak less than the 16 year old 235,000 mile units I have now. I have caps over them and will continue to do so. The pressure under the cap audibly hisses when I remove the cap... I'm thinking that's not ok. Just like everything else on this HEEP, it needs a bit of work.

ALLTRBO suggested the license plate CRD HEEP... maybe I'm ready for that now, since I can't fit "Diesel Avenger" on a license plate.

[The Dark Side of Will]

I'm looking at repairing the oil cooler leaks in the last weekends of October and into November. The oil cooler is literally the first thing installed in the OM642 valley when the engine is built, so R&R'ing it requires removing EVERYTHING in the valley: fuel rails, fuel filter, intake manifolds & associated junk, turbo, turbo pedestal/Y-pipe, wiring and a bazillion little brackets and fiddly things that Germans love to come up with.

The OM642 and later OM648's have "swirl flaps" in the intake runners. The actuator that moves these swirl flaps is mounted below the intake manifolds... and fails. Replacing them requires manifold removal. People eliminate them completely with no ill effects, so I'm looking at doing that as a preventive at the same time as I replace the oil cooler seals. Eliminating the swirl flaps requires plugging the holes in the manifolds used by the shafts that turn the flaps. There is an outfit that will clean up the manifolds, remove the swirl flaps and weld the holes up... on an exchange basis. While I'm looking at getting an extra set of manifolds, the exchange basis may require having the Jeep down for a while.

There are two different types of manifolds. The 2007-2009 manifolds (that I have) have a large EGR thingy integral with the back end of one of the manifolds and no water connection for a water cooled turbo. The 2010+ manifolds do not have the giant EGR thingy, but have a turbo water connection. The location of the turbo water connection looks like it will interfere with the Jeep compressor outlet tube to the intercooler. If I decide to swap manifolds to ditch the EGR, then I may need to cut off and weld up the turbo water connection. I was hoping I could just cap it so I could some day upgrade to a water cooled turbo

I also don't know what other parts changed from the '07-'09 engines to the '10 engines with regard to EGR. If I ditch EGR, I'll also need a tune in order to turn off the check engine light...

I'm also looking at getting a ~30L eBay/Offshore ultrasonic cleaner for dealing with some of these icky grimy parts that will come off the Jeep.

So yay for another 12+ hours of labor for a $3 part buried deep inside a major assembly of the vehicle.

Edit: Also looking at resealing valve covers while I have everything apart. It looks like the right side valve cover is leaking at its right rear corner, thanks to the right bank up pipe wrapping around it to go to the turbo and the turbo down pipe wrapping around it to go to the catalyst just a little lower on the firewall. Might as well wire brush the valve covers and have them clear Cerakoted to stay shiny

[ericjon262]

I'm also looking at getting a ~30L eBay/Offshore ultrasonic cleaner to dealing with some of these icky grimy parts that will come off the Jeep.

you absolutely will not regret a decision to do so.

this solution seems pretty bang up as well.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09KK6KR3Z?ps ... ct_details

This is the sink I have. it has a drain on the side, if I ever get crazy, I might pick up a small pump and setup a "kidney loop" to filter shit out and pump it back into the top of the sink.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07DJ23WKV?ps ... ct_details

it makes short work of crappy cleaning. it's one of my new "must have" tools.

[The Dark Side of Will]

Thanks! Of course my next question was going to be "Which one actually works?", but you gave a good answer already!

Any idea what that cleaning solution is? Just Purple Power without the purple?

[The Dark Side of Will]

There are two different types of manifolds.

There are FOUR types of manifolds, as van and car manifolds are different, as are the '07-'09 and '10+ as previously noted.

A relatively smooth way to eliminate EGR might be to install van manifolds on a car engine and just block off the EGR flange on the turbo cast Y-pipe (and leaver the EGR cooler out when reassembling the engine).

In related news, the EGR cooler is a pancake that sits below the manifolds and above the oil cooler, so it *ALSO* has to come out in order to R&R the oil cooler.

Of course if I ditch EGR, then I have to get an EGR delete tune at the same time. The best time to get one was five years ago, but the second best is right fucking now. I'm going to have to let the wallet heal for a while after this job...

[ericjon262]

Thanks! Of course my next question was going to be "Which one actually works?", but you gave a good answer already!

Any idea what that cleaning solution is? Just Purple Power without the purple?

I'm not sure if the ultra sonic action, or the hot solution does more, but either way, it can make short work of messy jobs. I'm about to use mine to clean the L31 pistons for the Pig.

I have no idea what the solution is, but it's awesome stuff. I have a couple of gallons at the house, when I do the pistons I might try and start logging what goes in and how much it cleans the stuff up and see how it lasts. FWIW, it's concentrated, you're supposed to dilute it 5:1 IIRC. I may try a couple other solutions as well later, but I'm pretty happy with this one.

[The Dark Side of Will]

There are two different types of manifolds.

There are FOUR types of manifolds, as van and car manifolds are different, as are the '07-'09 and '10+ as previously noted.

There are FOUR LIGHTS...

There are FIVE types of manifolds. I randomly found an example on eBay of a 2010+ Sprinter left manifold that did not even have the swirl flap pivot bosses machined from the factory. That auction listed the PN, so I did some digging and found the PN for its counterpart. They have different callouts in MB's parts system, but the left on says "Without EPA10 low emission". So now I have PNs for "everything-delete" manifolds that I can order from eBay Europe.

Obvi since I'm considering an "everything delete", I'll need a tune to go along with it. OTOH, I don't need to have the everything-delete manifolds modified to remove the swirl flaps, so that helps the dollar situation, just not as much as adding a tune to the budget hurts it.

Of course I need to look at coolant plumbing in a little more detail. There's a coolant pipe that wraps around the back of the engine and comes up the right side of the engine... it's quite an intricate piece. It has the magical function of being in the way of accessing EVERY bolt that must be removed in order to remove the turbo. I need to look closely at where it comes from to figure out if it will still have a connection if (when) I switch to the everything-delete manifolds, and/or how I ensure it connects to something.

[The Dark Side of Will]

Will post a big write-up with a lot of pics once I get the whole thing done.

I cleaned and cleaned and cleaned and wire brushed and Cerakoted the OM642 valley. I sprayed the Cerakote two weeks ago, then had drill last weekend. I finally was able to look at it this weekend. Wherever the Cerakote puddled, it left small reasonably hard white deposits. I'm not worried about those, and puddling was unavoidable given the geometry of the workpiece. Otherwise coverage was good and my objectives, in terms of protecting my work cleaning the valley and making future messes easier to clean up, were both met.

I cleaned the oil cooler outside and inside and reinstalled it with the original bolts lightly snug. I'm using the genuine Mercedes Vyton replacement seals from idParts. I only lightly snugged the bolts because they're torx and I'll replace them with ARP stainless 12pt.

I was also able to audit all the required bolts this weekend and now I have a list to order from ARP. I'll be using ARP stainless for the weathering and corrosion rather than strength. Most of the bolts I'm replacing are in exhaust joints. The factory bolts are inverted torx. Because they are on the back of the engine and difficult to access, getting the tool on them straight can be iffy. With inverted torx, one tool slip ruins the fastener and you're F@#$ed. I had exactly that problem on one of the bolts securing the EGR elbow to the turbo Y-pipe. It rounded and I had to use a chisel to cut the corrugated metal EGR pipe in order to remove the turbo and Y-pipe. Forget that noise. 12 point is where it's at.

[The Dark Side of Will]

Oh yeah, I received the intake manifolds a few weeks back and sent them and the off to a Jeep diesel/OM642/Sprinter (weird niche overlapping multiple markets) in CO for port + polish. Currently waiting for them to come back so I can shine up the intake manifolds, have them Cerakoted and send the Y-pipe and turbo pedestal off to Jet-Hot along with the headers for my dad's Datsun.

[The Dark Side of Will]

The outfit says they should be done with the manifolds and Y-pipe by the end of the week, so maybe by the end of next week I'll have them back.

[The Dark Side of Will]

Just paid the invoice, so the manifolds and Y-pipe should be on their way back today or Tuesday

[The Dark Side of Will]

Manifolds arrived back Thursday or Friday. I didn't get the chance to do anything with them over this weekend, but I did make a lot of progress on The Mule's coil harnesses.

[The Dark Side of Will]

Plans for this weekend include test fitting the Sprinter left manifold with the Jeep (OM642 car application) fuel lines. I will most likely modify the manifold to fit the original fuel lines, rather than trying to retrofit AND modify the Sprinter fuel lines.

I bought a set of Sprinter fuel lines off eBay and on spending a very few minutes checking them out, it's clear the connection end hangs out further from the valve cover and would interfere with the electrical centers in the Jeep, so I can't just swap the Sprinter lines in.

Because the interference with the original fuel lines and the Sprinter manifold involves a heater connection on the manifold that is not present on the Jeep/car manifolds, I'd rather cut that down and weld it up permanently than try to cap it and deal with it forever, in addition to modified fuel lines.

[The Dark Side of Will]

Manifold modification is done. I'm thinking I'll be ok posting pics once I get the manifolds installed. If I'd started posting pics right away, then I'd look like a dumbass who dragged this out since October

[The Dark Side of Will]

While removing the heater hose nipple that Benz installed VERY tightly, I accidentally dinged the intake to cylinder head mating surface. While I had the manifold at the shop to have the empty heater connection welded shut, I asked them to stone down the 3 dings that I'd put in the surface. Someone had the bright idea to resurface it instead of stoning those spots down. Despite the presence of the OE surface as an example, the resulting resurface is not as good as the OE surface. Since the manifold to head interface uses a metal shim gasket, a very fine surface finish is necessary to ensure it seals. Oooops.

I was hoping to be able to wire brush the manifolds and drop them off for Cerakoting this weekend but... nope.

[The Dark Side of Will]

Euro-market "everything delete" manifolds are modified for the heater connection difference, resurfaced, wire brushed, Cerakoted and INSTALLED.

Will do a big write up once complete, but currently digging out all the bits and bobs that have been stashed for months and figuring out how to reassemble the thing.

For the two bolts in the middle of each manifold, there's actually a gap in the column around the bolt underneath the plenum. It's weird... I started to think about popping them in the mill to pocket the as-cast gap, then tapping spacers into the milled pockets. Then I reminded myself that Benz built millions of these engines, they will run until you don't feel like running them anymore, and a few of them run 50 psi of boost... They're fine.

The manifold bolts are F@#$%ing M7 though. They get tightened to 142 inlbs. The aforemented ones with the gaps relaxed a little as I tightened the rest of them down. I guess I'll retorque a final time before I button it up.