R&R head gasket

[merrill]

ok, so here goes,

about 2 years ago metric motors rebuilt the motor for my 66 230.
after a few months the head gasket showed signs of leaking coolant.

so, i have a new head gasket and the copper spray and am about to R&R the head gasket.


any tips, or tricks before if dive in?

Thanks
Matt

[w113dude]

Just make sure your torque wrench is right on, very important.

[mdsalemi]

By R&R I hope you mean "remove and replace" and not restore.

Might be helpful to get an OEM gasket from Mercedes.

[ja17]

Did you re-torque the head?  You may want to try doing it first.

[waltklatt]

Also did you talk to Metric motors about your problem?

[merrill]

hi,
thanks for the replies,

Walter - yes, talked to metric,  they did not have much to say.

Joe - i did re torque the head,  didn't seem to help

I ordered a new gasket  & seal set from Metric.   so the gasket is not MB OEM. 

I guess i will have to dive in one of these days to swap out the gasket.

thanks again
Matt

[ja17]

Hello Merrill,

Is the gasket an external leakor internal leak?

Joe

[mdsalemi]

so the gasket is not MB OEM. 

Matt, when I changed my water pump, I was told I didn't need to buy a gasket as the non-OEM pump came with one.  I bought one anyway, an MB OEM gasket.  HUGE difference in quality, very obvious.
That being said, I have no idea if there is the same relative level of quality difference between an aftermarket head gasket (which failed and you reordered?) and an OEM one, but given the labor involved, and the potential for serious trouble, let me suggest it is worth a bit of further investigation.  Maybe one of the other members here has had the gaskets side by side and can render an opinion...

[Benz Dr.]

Metrics doesn't sell cheap junk. I believe their gaskets are Elring which are high quality. The idea that you have to buy MB over priced stuff is nonsense. Most of what I would use is OEM parts which are the same pieces that MB uses anyway.

 By leaking, do you mean a gusher or just a light seepage? 190SL's are famous for seeping on the spark plug side.

You waited two years to complain about something that happened after you had it two months!? No wonder the have nothing to say to you......

[mdsalemi]

The idea that you have to buy MB over priced stuff is nonsense.

This was not my suggestion.

However, if one failed after 2 months, I would sure as heck investigate a bit further before investing the time and effort into changing the gasket with the same source as one that failed. Granted it isn't a fair comparison, but the gasket that did come with my Laso water pump was just a thin piece of paper. The MB OEM gasket was substantial; a gasket. It was hardly expensive, a few dollars--but anyone could see the difference.  It just makes some sense here to investigate what you are getting prior to installation.

Since you have to take the head off to change the gasket might be worthwhile to see that the head isn't warped and the surfaces are flat to spec, and nothing else in your field of view here needs to be changed.

[merrill]

Hi all, thanks for the replies,

Joe - its an external leak.  I can see the coolant "stain" running down the block.

Mike - I purchased the gasket from Metric. 

Benz Dr - I didn't wait 2 years to bring this up with metric,  it has just taken me 2 years to get around to deciding to dive in.  Its seepage not a gusher,  I have been driving the car and every now and then I just top off the coolant level.   

Thanks for all the input, I guess I will have to set some time aside and get it done.

[Benz Dr.]

I have the same problem with my car. I noticed that it's leaking a bit so I have to keep filling it up every once in a while. I rebuilt the engine about 15 years ago so I suspect I'll need to pull the head and go through it again.
Slight seeping is more common than you might think.