Noob in search of advice - om617 vs om606
Noob in search of advice - om617 vs om606
Hello everyone
Huge noob here looking for guidance. Ive done some searching but there are so many different setups and so much info out there its sort of overwhelming. Heres my deal
1983 300D, 4spd auto slushbox, bone stock om617.952. 250-300k miles or so. Good compression. Ive done a ton to the car like rebuilding the entire front suspension, fixing the wood trim, replaced all seats from an excellent donor car, the list goes on.
Engine bay wise?
5 new glow plugs
5 new injector nozzles (Monark)
1 new pre-chamber (damaged from neglected glow plug)
Valve adjustment
It runs awesome, IMO, but i could be wrong. Cranks within 1-3 revolutions everytime regardless of temp. Idles/revs insanely smooth. Have taken it on many 800+ mile trips running 70-90mph.
The car itself is sort of rough. Clear coat? Non-existent.
Body damage? Yes
Leaking door seals? Absolutely
Bent core support? Kind of
But it has no rust at all. Cali/Texas car.
And the drivetrain appears to be excellent.
Here it is for reference.
https://flic.kr/p/2c55M2K
So- to me its just a fun daily beater that frequently gets slung down gravel roads at high speeds. I have ~$2000 into the car total, and i can't get anything cooler for that.
Now heres my question.
I want some more power out of it. It barely has the power to get sideways on gravel roads, unless the conditions are right. I just want it to be more responsive. Im guessing something like a 606 swap with supporting mods would be the ultimate goal.
I have located a very clean 1999 E300 with the turbo'd 606 that i can get for ~$1500. While it is maintained well and is in excellent shape inside and out, its pretty rusty.
That wouldn't matter since id be just pulling the engine. Seems like a good deal
Im torn on either getting dieselmeken to work magic on my om617 pump + add a better turbo/supporting mods and then go down the rabbit hole of what transmission/diff do i use (surely the stock 4spd auto wont hold up)
Or
Going all out, swapping the om606 in, and also doing the supporting mods it would need.
I know the answers to my post could vary drastically due to variables such as "what is your end goal with the car" "what are you willing to spend on the car" etc.
-I dont have/expect to have some 500+ hp car from this. I understand those numbers typically require big $$$ to be done properly, going into the engine, etc
-I plan to drive it pretty hard on the dirt and gravel roads, but i would also want to be able to take a longer highway trip in it as well. I understand more issues are possible when modifications of this nature are added, esp on a car so old, but i dont want to get the car to a point where it's broken 90% of the time and has turned into a "toy" and not a car i can somewhat rely on. Im not on a quest to build a vehicle to compete with, just an interesting, beat up, old w123 on mud tires, and make it more fun to drive than a stock one.
Any advice is greatly, greatly appreciated. Forgive me for my lack of knowledge on modifying these.
Yes do the fuel first. That will get you ahead, as any turbo mods will still need more fuel to make use of them