On balancing.....
It makes for good conversation and something to keep in mind for the future. If I come across a pickup and sensor in a junk yard I will pick it up for you. I havent messed with mine yet, so I am like a fish out of water here. The only stuff I know is what I have passed on to you.

You are correct on the MB starter. It is quite a bit larger (longer and in diameter) than the jeep ones. It weighs about 5-8 lbs more too. I was surprised, but really glad to see that you can use a jeep starter to turn over the diesel.

When you machined (modified) your jeep flywheel, did you fill in all 6 holes first and then start from scratch drilling for the Mercedes bolt pattern, or were you able to reuse some of the holes?

none of the holes were matcing so all had to be done.also jeep has larger holes too.when i was thinking about this a while back,do you think it would be possible to cut out center of MB auto flywheel and cutout jeep flywheel and weld the two together?:humm:it would give you right bolt pattern.also keep in mind bolt hole spacer that MB has,use that to mock up bolt holes or if you take it to machine shop you can just bring that instead whole engine.i even had to fit that in there because bolts were too long and are goffy shape,and i realy wanted to use what i had and only buy what i had to:yeah:

I think that would screw up the balance to much. I think their would be a lot more room for problems, if not immediately certainly down the road.

How tough was it to line up the transmission to mark your adapter plate and to be sure the alignment was correct?? Any tips on getting the alignment right?

i used hole transfer tool that i made and transfered 3 holes and drilled into 5/16 steel plate.than i put bell on it and drilled rest of holes that were used.than from center i transfered dowel pins on block of MB and transfered those holes and used original MB adapter and drilled rest of holes.5/16 steel plate only made sense than because it is perfect fit for input shaft..

aligment tool i made is piece of rod woth welded small rod with point on one end and same size small rod on the other end but is sliding with pinch bolt on,so you can move it for different sizes and lock it in.

if you are not confident to do this by your self you can always remove MB adapter and jeep bell housing and take it to machine shop and have them do it for you.you will need to have 6 holes drilled for engine side (4 bolt holes and 2 dowel pins if i remember corectly) and bolt holes for bell housing but dont drill bolt holes for starter just yet.that will assure you being 100% aligned. i hope it all makes sense

yep. sure does. thanks! :U:

talking with the mechanic at work... He threw out the idea to me of finding a flywheel and pressure plate from a manual OM617. This would eliminate the need to machine the jeep flywheel. I know this will be a little tougher to find, but might be worth it? What are your thoughts on this approach.

I started drawing the adapter plate in autocad. Ill post design drawings. I should start my own build thread.

that was what i wanted to do in the first place but wasn't able to find flywheel and clutch for my engine.if you can get a set,that would be great.there is posibility of getting set but from europe.when i was in europe last year i wanted to get set over there and bring it with me ,but had to order and wait 2-3 weeks which i didnt have. if you can get that set get it,it will be a lot easier. start your own thread and take pics and post in there too.don't be like me,i found about this site after i finished project and wish i could post pics of stuff that i did to show you guys.also good thing is that you are getting idea from internet and asking questions.
good luck

Am gonna have to put everything on permanant hold. I seem to have blown out a disc in my back while on vacation last week:argh: and Doc says only cure is back surgery.:ouch: At the moment I can't move out of bed. So I will get back at it as soon as I can move again. It seems I may be laid up for months. :argh::booo:

Thanks Vlado, I will give ya a call over next couple weeks ; I appreciate ya being such a good friend. :c::c:

lol....

Anyway...stickshift MB's are VERY hard to find....not impossible, and better if you are in the states.....but if you can, then it's a very good start.

:rake:
it sucks that you got hurt as i realy wanted to see jour project. but hey i can take that jeep and engine off your hands as i am sure you dont want it to rust up and take space in your garage:cry: