OM617 in a Honda Odyssey, or similar?
 

I bought a naturally-aspirated MB 300D last summer with a OM617 and I really like it.

I've wanted to get something diesel for the family (there's 6 of us all together), but my wife really wanted a minivan. So...

Anybody seen a diesel swap into a Honda Odyssey or the like?

That would be a tough swap. Transverse V6 replaced with an inline 6 mounted lengthways - that would take a LOT of fabrication. I would think an Aerostar would be a better candidate...

yes, any RWD will make it less painful. you will likely loose center console area due to engine length and the dogbox having to move back..... would be cool to do though....

Aerostar, or Astro, the Astos are "newer" so the wife might not compalin. The aerostars are dated and the porno red interior it's as baller as it was in the 80's

Caravan with a Kubota 2203 or VW diesel would work
 

I have seen youtube videos of a guy in BC, Canada who has done a couple vans now. I think he used a vw 1.9L, IIRC. Mechanical IP, not electronic, so the ECM was not needed. He cut and welded the half shafts together to convert the VW output from the 5 speed to the Caravan outboard shafts to the wheels.

Claims to get 30 to 35 mpg.

Rick

Not possible. Legally or technically.
Its front wheel drive. Not only would half the engine be sticking out of the hood, it wouldn't fit between the wheels.

Seen the Honda. The 1.9 L would fit. 30 to 35mpg is a bit too high for that size. 20 to 25mpg seems to be more realistic.

The VW might be do-able. You also might be able to adapt an OM616 - the 2.4 liter 4-cylinder version of the OM617. The only problem is they aren't a turbo motor and don't have the piston cooling oil squirters like the OM617 turbo. You can put a turbo on one, but without the oil squirters to cool the pistons it won't have the longevity of the OM617, or even of the NA OM616. Also since the cam isn't optimized for a turbo, the power increase won't be as significant compared to a NA OM616 as what you get going from a NA OM617 to the OM617 turbo.

So when you do an engine swap, what part of the car counts for something like smog testing, historic plates, etc.? A lot of states don't test or require adherence for vehicles from before a given year. I wouldn't want to swap a 1978 OM616 into a 2005 Odyssey or such and then find out that the van won't pass muster because it's being held to 2005 standards.

I'm currently in OH, but I'm military and move a lot. Could easily register the car in either FL, OH, or possibly VA, if that matters.

That all depends on where you register it. If registration requires smog testing the minimum you'll have to pass is the testing standards for the year of the vehicle. Federal EPA says that you can't put an older engine in a vehicle unless it can pass the emmissions standards for in effect the year the vehicle was built.

In some places if a diesel wasn't available in the US for that model year vehicle you're flat out of luck. That's the way it works here in WA - unless it is more than 25 years old. Anything more than 25 years old is exempt from smog testing. You may have a 25+ year old vehicle that is diesel powered with a title that says its gasoline powered, but nobody is going to notice or really care since you don't have to pass a smog test to register, sell, or re-register it...