W124 - Found a replacement motor for Rhino, a M104 942

On Saturday, 13th of Mar, I was scheduled to bring Rhino in for an engine swap. From one of the previous posts, I have detailed how the Rhino was running on a 3.2 engine and not a 2.8 M104.

Swapping the 3.2 motors into the 2.8 chassis runs but it is not completely compatible. Some of the issues are:

  1. From the Mercedes factory, the 3.2 is paired with the 722.3 transmissions and the 2.8 is paired with 722.4 instead. The difference between the transmissions is the gear ratio and also the size and dimension of the transmission. The 722.3 is able to handle more torque from the 3.2, has a larger yoke, and possibly have a different long shaft too
  2. ECU is different, I would believe the fuel injection parameter is different for both engine
  3. I am unsure if the injector nozzles and the fuel regulator is the same but I have got them replaced with the 2.8 ones
  4. Due to the mismatch, the idling is not stable
  5. Also, the road tax for 3.2 is almost doubled of 2.8 in Malaysia (RM 3150 vs RM 1700)
The garage started working on the car on Monday, by Tuesday the old motor is out and parts are being removed from the old motor into the replacement 2.8. Come Wednesday afternoon, the new engine has already been mounted into the engine bay and started.

To just be careful, I have asked for the engine number and validated that it is indeed an M104 2.8. What I also gathered is that there are 2 versions for the M104 94x 2.8 engine which are:
  1. M104 942 - 2.8l 145kw deployed in W124
  2. M104 945 - 2.8l 142kw deployed in W210
At the moment the engine has been started and runs smooth. I was told that the car is not as powerful as it was since it is a downgrade from 3.2 to 2.8.

I was also informed that the battery is weak and old and needs replacement. So a new battery replacement will be done.

I have requested for a thorough test to be done before collection.

It's Friday and I have picked the car up and brought it home, there are differences and definitely, I will need to run this engine a little more before flushing the engine oil. Here are the differences:
  1. Idling is smooth - there is hardly any back and forth hunting
  2. Shifting jerk from 1st to 2nd is reduced
  3. The accelerator feedback is smoother now, not as sensitive as it used to be
  4. At 4000 rpm, which is about 140kmh, the engine is quieter and smoother now
  5. Oil pressure gauge is only pointing up to full at all times, earlier it went down to 1.5 to 2 in idle
  6. The acceleration is smoother, without the brut force that was there earlier
  7. Downshifting acceleration is smoother but not faster
I will need to monitor the new motor for oil leaks and such to ensure that there are no surprises, apart from there, definitely a step up into being a nicer and smoother drive.

Now the correct motor - M104 942 series

Old M104 995 motor removed making way for the 2.8



The alternator is dirty and a 120A replacement will be done soon.


On the hoist and ready to go


New motor lowered into the engine bay

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