Hi guys, i have an 88 190d 2.5. I wanted to add more horsepower to it with out spending a ton of money. Do you guys know any ways that are relatively inexpensive that would be able to do this? I guess you can list the more expensive ways too but just make sure you say it is an expensive route. thanks.

Sell it and buy a 1985 300SD.
Buy a 1985 300SD, gut the 240D and install the 300SD drive train.
Sell it and buy an E class turbo diesel.
Sell it and buy a 2004 CDI diesel.
Or you are spitting in the wind.

Yes, I own a 1985 300SD and love it.

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Hunter

Have you driven a 190D 2.5? It's got 90 hp and I'm pretty sure it would have no problem at all keeping up with a S-class chassis powered by a 120 HP 617 engine.

The only thing that comes to mind is to find a 602 turbo engine and install it in your car. Of course after all this expense and trouble you "enhanced" car will still not beat a Totota Camry.

MB Diesels are built for economy and reliability - not speed.

In my '00 Dodge 24 v Cummins we put in a K & N high volume air filter. They cost about $50 but pnce or twice a year you wash tehm and put them back in. We also changed the exhaust to 4" diameter. I got more power and about 3-4 mi per gal better mileage.


Basically the diesels love more air in and out. They need to breathe.

Gary

Their are no modifications for that engine. Or any other MB diesel, except the 1996+ W210's. You could change the exhuast to get a little more power thats about it, who needs speed enjoy the fuel mileage.

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At least you realize that I was grinning through my suggestion.

I took my family out cruising two days before the 2004 Woodward Dream Cruise.

We stopped to drool over a 240D in one of the spectator parking areas.
The owner was proud to show under the hood.
He had gutted the 240D and installed a 300SD power train. The owner was proud to show under the hood.
Looked great, like a factory fit, and he was bragging about the awesome power, compared to the original power train.
Some people have lots of extra time and money to play with.
At least he didn't drop a Chevy power train in and try to pass it off as a Mercedes Benz.

Have to disagree with the merits of simply a drop-in cleanable filter. I have seen first-hand dyno data on a Duramax utilizing replicate runs with stock filter, a foam reusable filter, and even no filter and there was absolutely no statistically-significant difference in any of the combinations. The general idea is that a turbo provides enough vacuum that unless your filter is plugged nearly solid, the turbo will still be able to pull air through it. On top of this, the foam filters pass much more dirt than paper. If you can stand hanging out on a GM site long enough, take a look at http://dieselplace.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=10642&PN=1. Some guys there did a fairly exhaustive (and even somewhat scientifically-valid) study of flow and filtering efficiencies of various foam and paper filters and found the paper was far and away better than the reusable foam.

The larger exhaust will probably aid hp some (though lower egt's are the greatest benefit) and a totally different air intake system (e.g. AFE system) may help some as well.

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I was driving an '86 190D 2.5 today. It's got a lot of power. I love it.

They did make a turbo version of that car. Get one of those.

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'05 E320 CDI - 86,000 miles
'86 300SDL - 360,000 miles
'85 300SD - 150,000 miles (sold)
'89 190D - 120,000 miles (sold)
'85 300SD - 317,000 miles (sold)
'98 ML320 - 270,000 miles (sold)
'75 300D - 170,000 miles (sold)
'83 Harley Davidson FLTC (Broken again) :-(
'61 Plymouth Valiant - 60k mikes
2004 Papillon (Oliver)
2005 Tzitzu (Griffon)
2009 Welsh Corgi (Buba)

It's almost impossible to get more than factory rated power from a NON-turbo MB diesel, without spending insane amounts of time & money (ported/flowed head, custom camshafts, etc). Either learn to love the car for what it is (long-lived, safe, and economical) or buy a turbocharged MB diesel.

Now, if you had a TURBO diesel Mercedes, that's a whole 'nother question. Short answer is "yes" you can get more power, mostly in the form of custom fabbing an intercooler.

Best option? Keep the 190D for daily driving, and buy a second "fun" car that's fast, like a 400E, now that they're getting cheap (well under $10k for one with high miles).

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sorry let me reexplain my situation i will be turning 18 tomorrow and dont have the money to buy another car, i was just wondering if it was possible to add some horsepower to it or not, i do love the gas milage i get, but more power would be nice. Would it be possible to drop a 300td engine in there?

It wouldn't be worth it to drop a 603 in.

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there is nothing like a turbo. i don't know whether you can add one to the 190d, but in 1974 i added one to a 1973 220d.

naturally-aspirated, beast was slow and ran into a wall at 84mph.

fitted a rajay turbo. the little 220d became a screamer. after that mod, it would run beyond 110mph. and it had a transformed sense of go, particularly when the turbo spooled up.

in that era, the only places to find diesel fuel were at truck stops along the interstate in metro houston. if i had passed 18wheelers before exiting to refuel, many of them followed me into the stop to find out what had transformed the anemic, n.a. diesel benz.

i had a 220 sparky at the same time. a great little car. drove it all over texas and all over mexico. but in many respects, the d was the most fun to drive. the sparky had an automatic, the d had a manual tranny. in twisty bits, the turboed car was much more interesting because of the compression braking. why i never blew the cylinder head off the engine i shall never know. should have. but that was a stout bit of engine.

both the si and the ci were bullet-proof. traded them in for a pair of 450sel's in 1976. today, i wish i had both of them as members of my collection.

hindsight. often 20-20.

Hello supermoose
There are very few things that can improve your power curve.
Depending upon how it was maintained and generally cared for = what overall condition.
There may be some repairs or maintenance that could improve your current power curve.

On a 1988 190d 2.5, let me think a moment.
How many miles on it?
The following is a quick cheap list to improve your car.
#1. Flush the cooling system. = help keep it at correct temperature.
#2. Oil change. = I prefer synthetic oil Mobile 1 15W-50.
#3. Buy a mightyvac and check your vacuum hoses for leaks, repair all transmission or engine related leaks and repair or plug other system leaks.
#4. Jack up and support the car with stands, check each wheel for wobble = bad bearings, and brake drag, ask your parent or friends to help you check.
#5. Check tire pressure, not less than every 30 days.
#6. Drain the fuel tank and clean the strainer, if it is black with sludge you have trouble.
#7. Replace fuel and air filters.
#8. Clean the inside of intake with a shop towel soaked in throttle cleaner, don't start the engine again until the next day.
#9. Run a can of diesel purge through the engine.

#10. Hang out at mercedesshop.com and diesel repair shops or truck stops.

It is possible to put a F16 engine in the car, if you have enough money.
One of our senior forum members has a signature line that reads:
Speed is a function of money, how fast do you want to go?

Can you post a picture of engine compartment, good indication of vehicle condition.

Question:
Are you in Canada?

car has 150k on it, it was my mom's before mine, a handme down type deal. The one thing my dad has tried to instill in me is if you take care of your equiptment it will take care of you. so i know for a fact since my mom has owned it, early 90's i believe, that it has been well maintained, oil and such changed when it was supposed to. It did sit a year before i got my license and began to drive it, i don't know what effect that would have on it. I am located in PA, not canada. As for the money, i know that money buys speed, but i dont have a ton of it, especially to waste on speed, because everyone knows you can't do 150 mph every where you go.