I've not heard any exhaust leaks yet - maybe they solved the design issue by 01 or maybe I'm just lucky.
I am overdue for shocks just have not decided if I should go with OEM or after marker. I have a great distrust for anything sold at the discount parts places except for name brand service parts like oil, plugs & filters but I have been happy with everything Napa sells. I may see what they have to offer. I've never been much for any after market performance parts because performance usually means compromise that you did not consider. This is probably what you bumped into with the Rancho shocks. One item I do look at seriously when I need to replace a manifold is small tube headers. Don't let the "Mercedes Gods" know but I'd even replace a set of Mercedes manifolds with small tube headers if they were available! I looked at Borla & they only offer a cat back system for my Jeep. I was under the jeep the other day & realized that the exhaust was already split system with three cylinders (1,4,5) feeding through what looked like pretty clean runners to one cat & the other three (2,3,6) feeding into the other cat before joining in a collector further downstream. I was chasing a noise that I have not been able to ID yet. When I hit a slow bump just right, I hear & feel a clink from the front right - reminds me of a loose ball joint in an old Ford. I've pulled & pushed on everything with the front end on the ground & in the air & have not fount it yet. There is zero play in the hub & everything else feels tight. Thanks, Tom Hargrave www.kegkits.com 256-656-1924 -----Original Message----- From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of ernest breakfield Sent: Saturday, February 02, 2008 5:25 PM To: 'Mercedes Discussion List' Subject: Re: [MBZ] Was Mercedes and long term cost, now Jeep cost hi Tom! i'm also a big fan of those old-school design i-6s. i believe it came from the 258 design, but don't know where it originated. mine oil-scanned out almost looking like new, and compression was only a few percent down in #6 when it was tested at over 200K miles. FWIW, i just had it smogged again, and it tested out extremely well, especially for its age! one thing i didn't think to mention; one of the Achilles Heel issues of the I6 has been the exhaust manifold. with the mileage you've got on yours, i'm surprised you haven't had any issues with it yet, as many people i know have had problems with theirs; mine didn't last much more than about half of what you've got on yours, but it admittedly did spend plenty of time in low-speed/high-heat environments doing its job with little-to-no airflow. most 4.0 owners i know have replaced theirs with something more substantial; Borla seems to be a favorite, though the Banks pieces seem to be proving themselves worthwhile. i'd recommend putting something good in there when the time comes; you can find cheaper pieces, but the 6-8 hours of labor required to swap one is something you won't want to do again. DAMHIK! with the loads you're putting in yours, i'd expect you're going to be looking at shocks and coils sometime soon as well. the XJ has rear leaf springs that didn't last as long as your coils already have, and i replaced it all with OME stuff when it was time and would highly recommend it on basis of performance and ride. (i had already tried using Rancho shocks before that, and hated the ride; even the heavy-duty OME stuff rides better than the adjustable Rancho did on any of their settings.) would still be curious to know how you figured the op costs on your MBZ and the valuations on the HD and BMW motos. the motos just don't hold their value around here like what you suggested, even though the SF Bay area seems to be crazy about BMW motos. cheers! e Tom Hargrave wrote: > The list included only the more expensive items. > > I actually have replaced the belt twice, completely flushed the cooling > system twice, changed out the brake fluid every time I replaced the brakes, > cleaned the battery top regularly and replaced the hood lift shocks. But > these are minor costs that add up to less then $0.001 / mile and I did not > bother to add them to the list. > > The hoses have not been replaced but they are still pliable & show no sign > of swelling or cracking. > > One thing I did learn a long time ago is that it does not pay to buy any > rubber parts from the discount parts chains. The rubber parts they sell are > cheap and as soon as you start using their belts & hoses, you'll start > replacing them every 2 years. I always buy these parts from Napa, the > Dealership or from Rusty. Good rubber parts should last as long as the > factory parts. > > The tires we buy are light truck rated & are not off road. But we always buy > name brand. Also, we buy sets of 4, not 5. I guess I should rotate out the > spare when I rotate tires but I never do. I just check the spare tire > pressure every once in a while. I always run my pressure on the high side & > I discovered that with the jeep, this practice is worth an extra MPG. > > One interesting note is that I usually bring down about 1000 - 1400 pounds > of malt grain & malt extract on my return trips from Wisconsin. Before > loading, I can't see over the roof line but after loading, I can see > straight across the top. I figure the jeep settles about 6 inches. But > handling does not seem to be affected much & I measure no change in highway > mileage. I center load the jeep with the heaviest malt extract stacked right > behind the front seats. > > The 4 liter in-line 6 is really a great engine - from memory, it's the same > engine developed by Jeep in the late 50s and the block has 7 main bearings > while most others only have 4. They manufactured the engine in the Kenosha, > Wisconsin engine plant until Chrysler replaced the platform with a V-6 a few > years ago. I've been by the facility and my wife has done several ISO-9000 > type audits there. They have records of some of these engines running over > 700,000 miles without a rebuild and mine shows no sign of wear at 160,000 > miles. > > My wife has one of the newer Grand Cherokee's with the new V-6 and her > mileage is not as good as mine. She wants to trade mine in for a new one for > her to drive in Wisconsin in a couple of years. If she does then she will > give me her "old one". I'm not convinced that this will be a trade up. > > I understand what you are saying about California gas - I've been in > California and believe it's as bad in Wisconsin. I always top off before > entering Chicago & then buy gas again south of Chicago. If I don't then I > see a 1 MPG drop in mileage. Something to do with the mandatory 10% ethanol > content in all gas sold in Wisconsin. Some stations are now selling gas with > 20% ethanol content & more are switching over. > > Thanks, > Tom Hargrave > www.kegkits.com > 256-656-1924 > > > -----Original Message----- > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] > On Behalf Of ernest breakfield > Sent: Wednesday, January 30, 2008 11:49 PM > To: Mercedes Discussion List > Subject: Re: [MBZ] Was Mercedes and long term cost, now Jeep cost > > hi Tom! > > my XJ has the same motor; great piece, that old straight 6! > bummer though that i have to use California gas; i rarely see > figures like what you're posting except if i'm out of state and/or at > altitude. > > not surprised about your trans going, and i don't think there's > anything you could have done about it; the ChryCo trans (like what's in > the post-'94 Grands) were never known for their reliability. the XJs had > the AW4 and i only got about 1.5x what you have on yours now before i > had to swap mine out, but it had admittedly been used hard; i know many > people who've gotten over 300K miles on the AW4 with no special > maintenance whatsoever. it's a J**p after all, and has been used very > much as one should be! > > maintenance was something i wasn't insane about, but i didn't ever > go slack on with our J**p as it's the Adventure Wagon that takes us to > some of the most beautiful places i've ever seen (mostly in the Great > Unpaved). these days it's even more critical to keep it in shape and > generally have the wife and dog in tow, and i'm not as likely to be able > to get out of where things might go wrong with just a Mountain Bike! > it's great going to those places, but it's critical to make sure you're > going to get *back*, and it's a long way to the Sheriffs from where we > play. maintenance isn't the same sort of issue when breaking down > doesn't mean you whip out the cell phone and wait for AAA to show up, > but rather might mean you're going to die waiting for the next vehicle > to pass by,... but that still doesn't mean i've gone overboard on anything. > i have to wonder about some of those figures; for example, i've put > tires on my XJ several times, and each set (of 5) has always cost more > than what you list for all the tires you've ever used. granted, they're > all off-road worthy, but i made sure they weren't exorbitantly priced... > you must be using very cheap tires! > i've replaced rotors (twice; once because some twit incorrectly > torqued the lug nuts and warped them, and once because i replaced them > with a better set), and the ones i'm using now have been on there for > half the vehicles life. however, what kind of pads are you putting on > that average $9/wheel?! > my Rad went south long before 160K; if yours hasn't yet, you might > want to start looking at it funny; they're plastic tanked single-row > units of pressed steel. if you're going to replace it, you're probably > going to replace it with something better. (while you're at it, if you > haven't already replaced any hoses, you might want to be looking at > them; they can't be in great shape after 160K miles! > i saw you added a water pump to your list in another post; i also > did mine about 150K miles ago, and put a better one in that's lasted > longer than the original ever did. while you're at it, i don't see any > belt in your list, either; if you've got 160K miles on that, it needed > to be replaced *yesterday*! ;-) frankly, it sounds like you might have > been doing the minimal basic maintenance, but i expect you're going to > be looking at repairs soon if you don't get on top of some of the > preventative stuff. > > even if i don't figure in that i've done upgrades to the XJ over the > years as parts have worn out and been replaced by better parts, there's > no way the operating cost of my J**p is as low as my 123 300D... but > then again, my XJ has a good deal more mileage on it than my 300D or > your Grand. talk to me about it again at ~quarter-million miles! ;-) > > OK, so you mentioned 3 other vehicles, but that's just (some) of the > stats on your J**p; 1 down, 3 to go! ;-) > > > cheers! > e > > > Tom Hargrave wrote: > >> Yep, you've done it now........ >> >> The Jeep is a 2001 Grand Cherokee. It has 160,000 miles on the clock and >> has the 6 cylinder in line engine. I get 18 MPG in the city & 21 MPG on >> the highway. >> >> And because of the driving I do, I'm a stickler for details when it >> comes to maintenance & cost. >> >> The jeep has required the following since new: >> ---------------------------------- >> $576 - Regular oil & filter changes >> $104 - Regular spark plug & air filter changes >> $32 - Differential fluid changes >> $72 - 2 complete sets of brake pads & fluid >> $112 - 4 new front rotors >> $880 - 2 new sets of tires >> $49 - 1 new battery >> $280 - 1 Left rear axle >> $1700 - 1 transmission rebuild >> ---------------------------------- >> $3805 - Total >> or $0.024 / mile >> >> I wish my Mercedes cost this little per mile to maintain. I put $1,000 - >> $3,000 per year in the SDL when it was my primary road car. >> >> Remember, I drive about 50K / year. >> >> Tom >> www.kegkits.com >> >> ----- Original Message ----- >> From: Curt Raymond <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >> Received: 1/29/08 6:54 PM >> To: Diesel List <mercedes@okiebenz.com> >> CC: >> Subject: Re: [MBZ] Mercedes and long term cost >> >> >> Ooh you've gone and done it now ;) >> >> I've occasionally wondered about these statements from Tom. I can't >> remember what he's got for a Jeep but I just don't see it. >> Even just fluid and filter changes have to be more as there are more >> fluids... >> >> Of course fuel costs of a w123 300D vs a (for instance) 2.5l YJ probably >> balances in favor of the Jeep but for long distance driving there is no >> comparison. >> Change the MB to a w201 2.2l 5spd and its over the other way. >> >> -Curt >> >> Date: Tue, 29 Jan 2008 15:22:56 -0800 >> From: ernest breakfield <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >> Subject: Re: [MBZ] Mercedes and long term cost >> To: Mercedes Discussion List <mercedes@okiebenz.com> >> Message-ID: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> >> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1; format=flowed >> >> hi Tom! >> >> i have to wonder what models you're talking about; my 123 300D >> hasn't cost nearly as much as my J**p XJ to feed and maintain, and my >> BMW GS Adv (not including farkles) is worth roughly half what it was >> worth new. (i don't have any experience with HDs, but see they're not >> appreciating around here like they once did,...) FWIW, i'm doing a >> little over 2/3 your annual millage. >> >> could you share some specifics? >> >> >> cheers! >> e >> >> >> --------------------------------- >> Be a better friend, newshound, and know-it-all with Yahoo! Mobile. Try >> it now. >> _______________________________________ >> http://www.okiebenz.com >> For new parts see official list sponsor: http://www.buymbparts.com/ >> For used parts email [EMAIL PROTECTED] >> >> To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: >> http://okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com >> >> >> >> >> > _______________________________________ > http://www.okiebenz.com > For new parts see official list sponsor: http://www.buymbparts.com/ > For used parts email [EMAIL PROTECTED] > > To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: > http://okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com > > > > _______________________________________ http://www.okiebenz.com For new parts see official list sponsor: http://www.buymbparts.com/ For used parts email [EMAIL PROTECTED] To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com -- No virus found in this incoming message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. 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