FLU419 SEE HMMH HME Owners group

[alpine44]

That's surprising that Daimler-Benz would go so cheap on a critical piece of engineering like that:

- You know, their U.S. marketing message is "the best or nothing"

But clearly the marketing is fluff, or sure seems so.

"Nothing" would almost be better than this clog-o-rama.

 

[The FLU farm]

That's surprising that Daimler-Benz would go so cheap on a critical piece of engineering like that.

I think the strainer is adequate, but Mercedes obviously didn't take into account that many FLUs would end up sitting in rat infested woods for extended periods of time, sometimes without a fuel cap.

Having done a fair share of strainer cleaning myself, having a larger one would be helpful. Or would've been - now the amount of crap in the tank has diminished/been treated to the point that the cleanings are much farther apart than they used to be.

 

[Mark1954]

Does anyone know offhand the length and fittings on this hose. Mine has developed a leak and I wanted to have a replacement built before I disassemble this one. Thx for any help you can provide.

 

[farmertan]

new guy here and first off thanks to everyone for all the info. i have been working on my newused see so far fixed a 100 things with only a 100 to go. my 4x4 switch wouldnt move but it looks newish under the cab, if i press down on the plastic notched sleeve inside it turns just fine im thinking im missing a spring under cap? has anyone had there cap off that could tell me before i order a new switch?

 

[alpine44]

View attachment 693985new guy here and first off thanks to everyone for all the info. i have been working on my newused see so far fixed a 100 things with only a 100 to go. my 4x4 switch wouldnt move but it looks newish under the cab, if i press down on the plastic notched sleeve inside it turns just fine im thinking im missing a spring under cap? has anyone had there cap off that could tell me before i order a new switch?

There was no spring under my lever cap. The cam section of the valve has a very poor mechanical advantage and any amount of grit will stop the valve from moving. I found that penetrating oil makes things worse, so I removed the valve (a bear of a job with the cab in the normal position), pushed the roll pin out, cleaned the cam section, reassembled and reinstalled. Now it works nicely.

Pushing the inner piece down with a spring would be problematic as the pneumatic section of the valve is actuated by a plunger going up and down. In other words, the axial movement of the cam piece selects the functions, not its rotation.

 

[farmertan]

thanks alpine, i was thinking that roll pin had imbeded into the plastic but your right even with a screwdriver pushing it down its gritty and sticky. maybe i can find a mechanically inclined 5 yr old to climb in there and take it off, luckily i just removed the spare tire hope i don't loose any of the crush washers. In the win category i fixed the dome light after figuring out a mouse had climbed up the A pillar until he got to the roof and the hole was too small with the wire so he chewed the wire in half and built a nest in the headliner, i know who am i to cry with only 3 wires chewed on when some guys have the whole harness destroyed.

 

[peakbagger]

I think the strainer is adequate, but Mercedes obviously didn't take into account that many FLUs would end up sitting in rat infested woods for extended periods of time, sometimes without a fuel cap.

Having done a fair share of strainer cleaning myself, having a larger one would be helpful. Or would've been - now the amount of crap in the tank has diminished/been treated to the point that the cleanings are much farther apart than they used to be.

FYI. My 1300L chassis "designed from scratch" for the German military in the eighties (20 years after the SEE chassis fuel system was designed) which initially had a similar OM352 engine, gravity fuel system and produced during the same era doesn't have the strainer (unless I haven't found it yet). It does have a disposable clear plastic inline strainer with a visible fuel element downstream of the fuel pump on the injector. Since its on the downstream side of the fuel pump I expect there isn't any worries about leaky O rings but if the tank is full of crap it may make it to the fuel pump. I expect it has a strainer sock in the tank (but haven't looked). My 1300L sat in storage for some unknown period of time and it too had some crap in the tank which the filter catches. I expect someone could get rid of the stock strainer on the suction side of the fuel pump and put an inline filter on the downstream. That gets rid of the potential for air leaks at the strainer (although the flexible hoses on top of the tank would remain).

 

[Another Ahab]

thanks alpine, i was thinking that roll pin had imbeded into the plastic but your right even with a screwdriver pushing it down its gritty and sticky. maybe i can find a mechanically inclined 5 yr old to climb in there and take it off, luckily i just removed the spare tire hope i don't loose any of the crush washers. In the win category i fixed the dome light after figuring out a mouse had climbed up the A pillar until he got to the roof and the hole was too small with the wire so he chewed the wire in half and built a nest in the headliner, i know who am i to cry with only 3 wires chewed on when some guys have the whole harness destroyed.

A little crying is good, it'll help you. Never hold back.

It relieves the stress.

 

[The FLU farm]

FYI. My 1300L chassis "designed from scratch" for the German military in the eighties (20 years after the SEE chassis fuel system was designed) which initially had a similar OM352 engine, gravity fuel system and produced during the same era doesn't have the strainer (unless I haven't found it yet). It does have a disposable clear plastic inline strainer with a visible fuel element downstream of the fuel pump on the injector. Since its on the downstream side of the fuel pump I expect there isn't any worries about leaky O rings but if the tank is full of crap it may make it to the fuel pump. I expect it has a strainer sock in the tank (but haven't looked). My 1300L sat in storage for some unknown period of time and it too had some crap in the tank which the filter catches. I expect someone could get rid of the stock strainer on the suction side of the fuel pump and put an inline filter on the downstream. That gets rid of the potential for air leaks at the strainer (although the flexible hoses on top of the tank would remain).

As I've learned (usually the hard way) more about the FLU's fuel system - up to but not including the injector pump - I've largely changed my mind about it.
At first it was "Let's rip this crap out and replace it all, using rubber hose and...". These days I think it's a well functioning setup. Not perfect, but certainly fully functional.
Replacing the plastic hose, as needed, is cheap and easy. Replacing the washers at the banjos is, too. Eliminating the leak at the strainer cup was only a matter of finding the correct size O-ring.

Now I can't really remember the last time I had to prime a FLU. I've even stopped putting fuel in the strainer cup after cleaning it out.
I still like to take a look in the strainer on occasion, to see if there's any crap or water in it. Basic preventive maintenance, really.

It'd be nice to have a clear hose entering the fuel filters, so any air leaks could be spotted with relative ease. And I call it relative since the hood still has to be slid to the left to see it.

Now, without age-induced air leaks the stock setup seems to works fine - until there is bacteria, fungus, water, or lots of rust in the tank. Again, I don't blame Mercedes for that part. It's up to us to get rid of whatever crap is in the tank, regardless of how it ended up in there, and then keep the system clean.

 

[peakbagger]

Darn you are tempting fate . As we both have learned the hard way, there is no substitute or quick fix with the fuel systems (same with the air system). Either do it once start to finish with the right parts or have intermittent half fixes work for a bit and then fail when you really need it.

 

[The FLU farm]

Yeah, it took me a while to quit thinking "Well, now it's probably fine", after attacking yet another portion of the fuel line. But in the process I became more and more familiar with it.
At this point I "only" have one tank with fungus/bacteria in it (biocide working as this is written) and one with rust and (most likely) traces of water.
After reading up on it, a lot, the only thing I'm really concerned with now is getting water into the pump and injectors. Solids are stopped in the strainer and filters.

Tempting fate? Been doing that my whole life, so I'm not likely to stop now. Heck, the act of getting a FLU is tempting fate all by itself.

 

[Another Ahab]

Tempting fate? Been doing that my whole life, so I'm not likely to stop now. Heck, the act of getting a FLU is tempting fate all by itself.

 

[alpine44]

Yeah, it took me a while to quit thinking "Well, now it's probably fine", after attacking yet another portion of the fuel line. But in the process I became more and more familiar with it.
At this point I "only" have one tank with fungus/bacteria in it (biocide working as this is written) and one with rust and (most likely) traces of water.
After reading up on it, a lot, the only thing I'm really concerned with now is getting water into the pump and injectors. Solids are stopped in the strainer and filters.

Tempting fate? Been doing that my whole life, so I'm not likely to stop now. Heck, the act of getting a FLU is tempting fate all by itself.

Unless you have gallons of water in the tank, the two strainers and two filter housings will separate water out.

As far as rust and other crap on the inner tank surfaces is concerned, should I use a chain or lead shot to shake this off after pulling the tank?

My system holds prime but I have to clean the strainer screen several times a day even after draining and decanting the fuel twice.

 

[alpine44]

thanks alpine, i was thinking that roll pin had imbeded into the plastic but your right even with a screwdriver pushing it down its gritty and sticky. maybe i can find a mechanically inclined 5 yr old to climb in there and take it off, luckily i just removed the spare tire hope i don't loose any of the crush washers.

Tilting the cab makes working on the 4WD/Diff lock valve easy.

 

[Another Ahab]

As far as rust and other crap on the inner tank surfaces is concerned, should I use a chain or lead shot to shake this off after pulling the tank?

Now there's a really good idea.

 

[The FLU farm]

Unless you have gallons of water in the tank, the two strainers and two filter housings will separate water out.

As far as rust and other crap on the inner tank surfaces is concerned, should I use a chain or lead shot to shake this off after pulling the tank?

The rusty tank with water in it was full...of water (sure wish that one was aluminum, not steel). But the water itself wasn't the problem, the real issue was that GP had tried starting the SEE. That moved the water all the way into the second filter.

For removing the rust, I have tried the chain method. While it wasn't for rust removal purposes, I can attest to that it's no fun to play maracas with a 30-plus gallon tank, let alone with the weight of a heavy chain in it.
Instead, I'd get a gallon or two of N-Terpinal, Evapo-Rust, or any of the other rust removal liquids available now. Turn the tank every 12 hours or so until all six sides have been submerged, dump it out, rinse, and be done with it.

 

[Gifu]

Where do I get one?

Hey guys! I read the first... 50 pages... then realized this goes on for... another 288 pages! I'll go back and keep reading, lots of good info here. It seems that I can find these in running driving condition through some large equipment dealers... but the prices are $20k. Where as the Gov auctions (when they come up) are closer to $5k-8k. (but with missing parts, flat tires, and how do I get something shipped that may or may not run?).

Advice, thoughts, ideas, anecdotes, stories and warnings are appreciated. I'll be shipping to Truckee in the People's Republic of Kalifornia.

 

[The FLU farm]

Dang, Gifu, I was supposed to be in Truckee (well, a bit north of) next week, but that's not happening.
Anyway, I'm afraid that the answers to most of your questions, with the exception of shipping details, can be found on pages 51 through 337.
Read until your eyes are bleeding. Many of us did.

 

[rtrask]

Where do I get one?

Hey guys! I read the first... 50 pages... then realized this goes on for... another 288 pages! I'll go back and keep reading, lots of good info here. It seems that I can find these in running driving condition through some large equipment dealers... but the prices are $20k. Where as the Gov auctions (when they come up) are closer to $5k-8k. (but with missing parts, flat tires, and how do I get something shipped that may or may not run?).

Advice, thoughts, ideas, anecdotes, stories and warnings are appreciated. I'll be shipping to Truckee in the People's Republic of Kalifornia.

I sent you a PM, I am a newbie I bought mine in May. The Admins don't allow posts on auction sites.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G935A using Tapatalk

 

[farmertan]

I'm hoping i never have to tilt the cab... I did get the valve out and cleaned up but the roll pin did embed half way up the first ramp so i filed it with a points file and it works great. I am thinking a lot of these 4x4 switches get thrown away when they get gritty and someone reams on it and the roll pin dents the cheap plastic, next time i now know you can pull the cap and nut inside the cab and remove roll pin and pull the plastic parts for touch up with a file if it starts to act up again. Fedexplosion came today with another box of goodies so back to work.