Originally Posted by LantanaTX
I like your goal and hope you succeed. When I mentioned putting a V8 in my car, there were plenty who said can't be done, and buy an SRT. If I had listened to those people I wouldn't be having all the fun I am having now and we might not have 55K Crossfires terrorising the streets.
If I was attempting what you are doing I think I would get a ML350 engine which is our same engine but is a 3.7L and you are starting with 268HP. You can get these cheap and after selling your original engine you wouldn't be out much at all. Before putting the 3.7 in I would mill the heads to raise the compression ratio to 11:1 At the moment I can't remember the manufacturer but there is cam company in CA that will regrind your cams for a few hundred bucks. Removing the secondary unmonitored CATS will also give a gain. Add this to some of the mods you are doing and I think you would have a very good running V6.
Your engine is worth about $1,500 and here is a 3.7 that would go right in.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/MERCEDES-ML-CLASS-ML350-ENGINE-03-04-05-06-35K-MILES-_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQhashZitem2a00eea9eaQQitemZ18040 4267498QQptZMotorsQ5fCarQ5fTruckQ5fPartsQ5fAccesso ries
Hate to burst your bubble but your HP/TQ numbers are from the new E35 M272 engine that is found in the newer body ML350s. The E37 M112 found in the older body ones is only rated at 235/254 HP/TQ.
Originally Posted by JHM2K
Would this mate up to a manual?
Yes, it's possible to get this motor mated up to a 6-speed. We were going to do a 55k with a manual so this would be a walk in the park. LOL