I've been kicking around different things I could do to make my 80 truck project a bit more interesting. I got up this morning, started the coffee, and went to Craigslist where I found a Mercedes OM617 5 cyl diesel and trans. I had thought this might be cool in a street rod but the more I think about it, the more I like it. Have any of you guys tried it?

Have you ever driven a Benz with one? I think you will hate life trying to drive it. Even the most powerful turbo model has the same power as a 6.2. And if it isn't the turbo?

There is a guy that sells kits to put them in Jeeps, not much on acceleration, but a good solid running engine. Most people don't ever rebuild them either. Jeeps are much lighter than trucks and they are doggy on the street but beasts on the trails. Tim

Not looking for a monster or anything, just something different under the hood. I did a google search and found several posts equating it to a 300/6. I can live with that. 22-25mpg sounds good too. It may be way more bother than it's worth too. I'm just chasing a rabbit.

put a 4BT cummins in it

that mercedes motor was given to a mercedes race team to experiment with---a special injection pump was built for it and a turbo charger and a supercharger were applied---the car was run at a 24 hour endurance race---it averaged over 200 mph--after the race the car was pulled apart never to run again--mercedes only admitted the obvious improvements- blower turbo pump---a danish racer has been working on the 617 in an attempt to duplicate the results--he broke differntials steadily until he put a chevy truck eaton diff in---now he is breaking transmissions----the injection pump the motor uses has no capacity to be altered--the 617 is a high revving motor and does not do well in trail riding lugging conditions-----there are several guys on 4btswaps that are doing vw tdi motors---these have really good performance support--current builds are into dakotas and the guys are reporting it runs with authority.....

Cheaper said than done. At least around here, the 4bt's are tough to find for any kind of a price.

I've considered performing this swap also. The Mercedes diesels have excellent durability. The engines are relatively light weight, by diesel standards. These engines are also very affordable. Some folks run these engines on alternative fuels.

As others have noted, these engines are low in power. I suspect a 2 wheel drive, short bed, square body ram would weigh about the same as a Mercedes. If this is the case, performance should be similar. You might notice a slight difference in hill climbing ability on the highway because the truck has more air resistance due to a larger frontal area. Lowering the truck a bit would help.

If you want a truck for light duty hauling and general use, this engine may meet your needs. I doubt it would tow much weight.

I have never checked to see if it would fit, but one of these engines may also work in a Dakota or Ram 50. The lighter weight truck would be better suited for the power output.

The Mercedes turbo diesels make more power. The extra power would be very useful. Most of these engines were mated to an automatic transmission. There is a way to connect one of these engines to a manual transmission. I can't recall the exact details now, but a manual transmission would consume less power, so that should also help the performance.

If you have not driven one of the cars, it would be a very good idea to drive one first to determine if you can live with the minimal power output. I've known several people who drove Mercedes Diesels for decades. They were not folks who were known for being in a hurry!



If you want to consider other small diesels, the 4bt has a great reputation. Unfortunately, these engines are expensive! These engines would be easier to swap into a Dodge truck because many of the parts used to fit the 6bt into the Dodge Chassis can be used on the 4bt.

I have also looked at some of the other smaller diesels, such as the Mitsubishi Fuso, Iveco, and Isuzu diesels. Nearly all of these small cab over trucks use turbo diesels. These engines are used in trucks that are rated as 1 tons. Most of these engines will have a little more power than the Mercedes diesels, but will cost a little more as well.

well you can always just use the 6bt---they are being put into 1/2 ton trucks---there is a guy here running one in a 53 buick wagon----