svo conversion questions
 

I have a few questions about an svo conversion I am planning on doing to my '78 300cd. Hopefully some of you seasoned vets can help.

1) Will placing more than one fuel filter in series (lets say 5 micron then 1 micron) on the vo line cause any flow restrictions while running warm?

2) Planning on using 1/8" aluminum sheeting to create a 10-15 gallon tank, any foreseeable issues as far as materials go? I have read not to use copper a few times.

3) Any tips on the cheapest way to purchase solenoid valves?

4) I don't have a perfect understanding of the coolant routing in the car right now (preconversion). Any resources I could look to that have coolant flow diagrams for my car? I have done the generic howstuffworks.com research but I can't imagine that every car has coolant flow exactly like this.

Thanks for the help

RE: svo conversion questions
 

To make it easier on the filters, and mechanical pump, heat the oil before it gets to the filters, then again before it enters the IP. I suggest adding a heater, in line filter and electric fuel pump in the trunk. http://www.greaseon.com has a module that installs in a section of the spare tire cavity called a fuel sump boost which has an adjustable 90* to 150* heater, clear in line filter and electric fuel pump which you can either buy or make your own version. They may also sell solenoid valves, but surely you can also get the soliniod valves from auto parts stores.

RE: svo conversion questions
 

im currently converting a 300D to svo. The main thing to focus on is heating the oil right before the filter. You don't necessarily need to heat the whole tank, just the oil leaving the tank. Also you can buy fairly cheap solenoids from here:

http://www.greasecar.com/product_detail.cfm?prodID=10

grease car is a company that sells conversion kits, but you can buy the valves seperatly, and they work well.

RE: svo conversion questions
 

I drive a 1981 300D Turbo. I bought it 4 months ago for $400., and soon bought and installed the http://greaseon.com very elegant modular SVO kit. ( about $750. ) It took me about 6 hours to install the kit, including draining the tank, cleaning the fuel strainer and attaching a larger ( from 5/16 to 1/2 inch ) fuel line to the new fuel sump chamber with heater and electric fuel boost. Here's a silly photo production of my installation: http://photoshow.comcast.net/watch/nk7Dy8kQ Bruno is the 300D T, Miss Veggie Fuel manager is the kit and I'm ;) bbbear.

Many who drive the 300D, such as believe that it's not necessary to heat the oil, but merely blend it with diesel, the percentage depends on climate and temperture. Others believe that not only must it be heated, the SVO must also be purged and the engine only started with pure diesel. Others believe that you only need to place the filter as close as possible to the IP and heat the oil before it gets to the filter.

Since none of the above has been absolutely proven :Dand I'm not int the least bit religous, I remain somewhat neutral on all of it... but tend to suspect that, since Henry Schuman from Texas has been a Mercedes diesel mechanic since 1977, ol' Henry is right. ;)Still, I do believe in insurance, and just in case, I heat the oil before it goes into the fllter, and again before it goes into the IP.

But if you belong to the religion who believes the VO must be purged with diesel before the engine is started, and the engine must come up to temp before the now very hot oil is allowed to enter the IP... then I strongly suspect the best US kit for that is either from http://www.frybrid.com/parts.htm or a 2 tank system sold by Kent Bergsma, http://www.greaseon.com ( another very solid Mercedes diesel mechanic from Bellingham WA ) who also sells the single tank kits such as mine...

But before I knew anything about indirect injection or 300D's, I had a greasecar.com kit in a creampuff 1990 VW Jetta ecodiesel. It took me 2 weeks to install and about 2 months to finally get it right. I sold it when I bought the 300D T and it was running better than the day I bought it.

Still, I had many reservations about that system. I didn't like the idea of getting rear ended with nearly 15 gallons of 150* oil in my trunk. I was never happy with continuously heating the oil... which can cause skum in the tank and condensation, thus water in the oil... I didn't like the idea of using p mex as a fuel line which ran inside the coolant hose and connected in the VO tank which, although I never had a problem, some said causes the coolant to leak into the VO tank.

Also, even after heating the filter, the temp before the VO inters the IP on my Jetta never got above 120 degrees. :D And if your religion tells you the temp should be at least 150 degrees, ;)well that makes you a sinner.

So IMHO, in the end, you're doing the right thing.... in that you're asking question. I've little doubt that you'll add everything up, tie the knowledge to your own innate inner wisdom and come up with your own right answers.

Best wishes,
charlie munn