Hey everybody

I think I'm about to give up on my car

I got it about a year ago...the previous owner sold it because the pins on the harmonic balancer got shredded and the main pulley stopped spinning. He had already fixed it once before and didn't want to fix I again. I got a new balancer/pulley, got it fixed and drove it for 8 months and about 15,000km.

All of a sudden I had a clanking noise coming from the pulleys. Turns out they were banging against each other since the bolt on the main pulley came loose. I fixed it with a new pulley/balancer

I had the alternator fail a month later but not a big deal...got that fixed.

Now, 4 months later after the 2nd balancer replacement, it's not spinning again and the whole accessory belt system is not moving, along with the radiator fan being very wobbly.

Is there something I should be looking at other than just replacing the balancer and main pulley? Why does this keep happening

Are the bolts new, being torqued to spec, of the proper grade and put together with thread locking compound? Can you see any wear on the front of crankshaft from the old balancer wobbling? Try using an industrial grade stud and bearing mount compound in that area.

Is the car modified such as an auto to manual transmission conversion? i'm wondering about a possible imbalance in a flywheel or flexplate.

Good luck!!!

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"Rudeness is a weak man's imitation of strength" - Eric Hoffer

No modifications. I'm not sure about the bolts, I can ask the mechanic, but i doubt it was done with thread locking compound. The 2nd time it was done they told me there was minor wear one the front of the crankshaft but it shouldnt cause any issues. This was a place that rebuilds engines and has been around for many years so i trusted what they said about the crank shaft but now i'm starting to doubt it...

Your crank shaft is worn .The shaft will have a slot to take a key .Then the pulley is located on the shaft ,then the key retains the pulley from moving .If it came off before,,then the reason is that the slot for the pulley key as been opened up due to a loose pulley bolt . These bolts are locked up with a large toque fig .Fail to do this , and the bolt on the pulley will come loose wearing the slot that the key fits in to until it the pulley comes off the shaft .So every new pulley will end up the same toast . You need to work on the slot make a new key to fit it .This is hard but its the only way other than remove the engine to have a new key way put in and a new oversized key made to fit it .

If the slot in the crankshaft is worn sounds like you might need another crankshaft to fix problem. Junkyard Jim told me he saw many good engines go to the scrapyard because of that.

Apparently, your experience with the OM617 engine is limited. The 617 utilizes two cylindrical dowels to index the balancer to the crankshaft.

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Does anybody know a place near Toronto which can help me fix this permanently? I would hate to get rid of this car since the body is nearly perfect and the engine has really good compression

Find a good 617 to put in it.

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84 300SD
85 380SE
83 528e
95 318ic

"Apparently, your experience with the OM617 engine is limited. The 617 utilizes two cylindrical dowels to index the balancer to the crankshaft. "

I would be looking at replacing the dowels, in that case. Same concept, different application. If the dowels are worn from the previous failure, it will repeat itself, same as a worn key on any other crank nose.

I had a similar experience with the GFs old Geo Storm back in the late 90s. Pulley came loose on the interstate going to see her folks, but was under used warranty, so they put on a new one and head gasket, as it overheated the engine. Did it again a year later in almost exactly the same place, an hour out of town. I fixed it this time and did not overheat. New bolt and red Loctite. Third time it sheared the new bolt, almost the exact same location on the highway. Fixed again and traded the car. If it keeps losing the pulley/HB you probably have a cone shaped crank nose now. It may never hold. Only real fix is a new or good used crank, much as I hate to say it.

The 2 cylindrical dowel pin slots are not exactly 180 deg apart. That is so the damper can be installed only one way. You can actually get it off by 180 deg, which will cause the dowel pins to shear off the side as you tighten the crank bolt (how would I know?). You need a mirror to get a clear view, or have the condenser out. I always had the radiator out and doubt you could work with it in the way. I ran into issues the 2nd time I removed a damper to replace a crank seal. The first time was on my other 300D and I had no issues. That time, the dowel pins stayed stuck in the damper, so I thought they were somehow pressed-in by the factory as part of the damper, and found the damper went back on with only one clocking. You can buy new dowel pins cheap here at P-P.

Some say the crankshaft is toast if the dowel pin slots get buggered up. I would be creative before jumping into a crankshaft or engine replacement. If you can get the damper aligned and pressed on, all you need is a way to secure it from turning on the crankshaft. You could weld in the hole or such. Just a few tacks, don't over-do it or you may overheat the crank and melt the seal. You won't be removing that damper easily again, but avoids a major replacement. Drop the finicky German white gloves $$$$ approach and adopt a redneck/3rd-world "get 'er done" mindset. Nothing to lose in trying at this point.

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1984 & 1985 CA 300D's
1964 & 65 Mopar's - Valiant, Dart, Newport
1996 & 2002 Chrysler minivans

Yes but it will do the the same thing , and wear the slot in the crank if it as a loose pulley bolt . If one key slot, or two dowels it will still come loose.

Just got to take the balancer off today...the grooves have definitely seen better days. What would you guys do ? Weld on the balancer at this point?

It looks like it's time for a new crankshaft. The threads are so messed up, you won't get the bolt tight enough. However, if you were to source a longer bolt, clean out the threads real good, you might be able to make it work. Either way, a new hub will be needed as well as a seal, spacer ring, and pins. It is possible to replace the crankshaft without removing the head. Of course the engine will have to come out, and it is a big job, but definitely doable.

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All Diesel Fleet
1985 R107 300SLD TURBODIESEL
2005 E320 CDI (daily)

LOTS of parts for sale!


EGR block kit
http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/diesel-discussion/355250-sale-egr-delete-block-off-plate-kit.html

1985 CA emissions 617 owners- You Need This!
Sanden style A/C Compressor Mounting Kit for your 616/ 617 For Sale + Install Inst.

Sanden Instalation Guide (post 11):
http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/diesel-discussion/367883-sanden-retrofit-installation-guide.html

I am not sure how the dowells are better than normal keyways but they are very easy to mangle putting the balancer etc on the front of the crank.

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[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

You could reinstall and pin it like you would for a belt driven supercharger install.

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