Thanks Tom, I enjoyed that. The ending was great, the hero won.
Hi,
ChowdahQ attendees may recall that my arrival at the picnic was delayed
until close to 1pm because I 'sprung an oil leak' enroute. Driving along
in the 1975 W115 300D at about 65 mph on Interstate 95, I happened to
glance at my oil pressure gauge (which I frequently do, of course) to see
it down to between 15 and 30, (YIKES!) where it is normally pegged at 45
while at speed. Lordy. My first thought was of poor Angie Raymond when
she lost the oil cooler line and toasted the engine. Not a happy
thought.... especially since I was 50 miles from home, and still about
10-15 miles from ChowdahQ!
Since the needle was steady at about 25 or so, I decided to make a run for
it. I looked for the next exit (about 3 miles) and then found a gas
station. Looking underneath only confirmed my fears.... there appeared to
be a steady drip with engine off, and a steady STREAM with the engine
running. Day um. It appeared to originate somewhere near the front
driver's side of the engine, (oil filter assembly, dipstick, who knows)
but I couldn't see the source. I doubted that it could be the oil filter,
since I knew that hadn't been touched since BEFORE the PREVIOUS ChowdahQ!!
:) I threw in 3 quarts from my trunk, bought another qt from the station
($4.99!!) and got directions to the nearest auto store which turned out to
be Advance Auto Parts about 5 miles away. I left a little puddle for them
at the gas station, and another at Advance. I bought two gallons of oil,
and headed out via backroads for ChowdahQ. It was now ChowdahQ or Bust!
:) I figured that since I used about 3 qts in 50 miles, I could make it
to the picnic, and with two gallons in reserve, I could make it home
again. No problem. :)
So I arrived at ChowdahQ, had a grand time with all the guys and gals, and
then headed out about 3:30pm for home.... where I had company arriving at
5pm and I was scheduled to do the cooking/ grilling. I envisioned myself
arriving home, making a grand entrance aboard an AAA flatbed to a house
full of hungry guests!! :) Damn the torpedoes, Full Steam ahead!
So I took mostly back roads thru Rhode Island--- a very pretty drive, btw,
although I can't say I was in the frame of mind to fully appreciate it at
that point, with one eye on the oil pressure gauge the entire time! I
also did about 35-40 miles on I-95. I actually arrived home at 4:50pm
without stopping and without incident, before any guests arrived, making
sure to park the Mercedes where it wouldn't do any damage to my freshly
coated new driveway..... and quite non-chalantly got right down to the
business of preparing dinner. No sweat. I didn't even want to look at
the oil dipstick. Damn that is a great car.
Well, I didn't get a chance to even look at it for a week. (I have other
cars.) I finally got it up in the air a bit, .... no leak unless it is
running. OK, it's a pressure thing. Started it up, and sure enough, a
gusher pouring onto the floor. Good Grief, Charley Brown! :) Tracking
the leak to its source was no easy task, since I had to get under it and
look up into a a steady stream of oil on my face/glasses etc. ... "and
down to the ground came a-bubbling crude,... oil that is, ...Texas Tea!"
:) I finally found the problem: a line running from the injection pump
to the vacuum pump with a banjo bolt and copper sealing washers. It
appears that the copper washer(s) was blown at the vacuum pump end, and
oil was just pouring out. I shut it down and tried torqueing it a bit
more.... no dice. That actually made it a little worse. I then tried to
locate the washers at several local auto shops/ Autozone/hardware stores.
Naturally, no one had anything that small... these are tiny, btw. So I
ordered them from the local dealer, Carriage House Mercedes. In the
meantime, I re-annealed the old washers, thinking I would reuse them if
worse came to worst. I went to pick up the new washers yesterday. .....
there was a screwup somehow. Carriage House ordered the wrong ones, but,
they found the RIGHT ones in stock on the shelf. (That was Grant, btw,...
I believe Dwight knows him also.) So I finally got the chance to install
them after work today and.... PERFECT! Problem solved. Took it out for
test run.....No leak. Hooray!
So, after all that, blowing out 6 quarts in 120 miles, a harrowing,
nerve-wracking drive worrying about blowing the engine and making it
home...... the problem is fixed for a total cost of: $3.39. That is NOT
a misprint !!!! God, I love that car! :) How can I possibly think
about getting rid of it, after a performance like that! It really
doesn't want to die! I am reminded of the famous quote from Genl. George
Patton, upon hearing the response of the Commander of the 101st Airborne,
trapped in Bastogne during the Battle of the Bulge, to the German demand
for surrender: "Nuts" he reportedly said. Patton said, " A man that
eloquent deserves to be rescued." :) This car deserves to be saved.
Also, btw, contrary to the rumor that is circulating around, I did NOT
stage this oil leak to clinch the Jalopy Award at the ChowdahQ, -----
although it didn't hurt. :) It was just a happy coincidence, I swear.
:)
Tom Schuch
SE Connecticut
1975 W115 300D
and all those BMWs
_______________________________________
http://www.okiebenz.com
For new and used parts go to www.okiebenz.com
To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/
To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to:
http://okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com
