Mercedes OM606: The Diesel 2JZ 

Is the OM606 the best German diesel engine ever? 🤔

OM606 and 1.9 tdi have got to be some of the best diesels made for cars, hands down.

you forgot to mention that his engine also revs really high for a diesel engine, in stock form it revs to 5500 rpm and with aftermarket parts, some rev to over 7000rpm, ON A DIESEL!

Fun fact:OM606 can handle the boost until 5.4 bar after that the block is broken. From Golan Dieselmeken.

Since it's indirect injection, it's capable of reving super high for a diesel, upwards to 7k rpm

I'm driving a turbo OM606 for almost 10 years now as a daily. It's not making a ton of power. Currently pushing 260hp and 557nm on a stock pump with just intercooler and Chinese turbo for 150usd on 1.55 bar of boost without any smoke. The car is buttery smooth. Super easy to make lots of power, super easy, and cheap to maintain. Note that if you want it to rev higher you should consider changing the valve springs. With the stock springs, I doubt it can rev higher than 5500 rpm.

These things are super reliable and do a good job in a lot of setups. I swap them into nearly everything, my grandma´s wheelchair runs an OM606. It´s stock, but once it´s on boost the short wheelbase still makes it a handful, she said.

My E300 had the non turbo version. Fantastic engine, took awhile to get going but once it did it was great. I commuted each day and it averaged 33-35 mpg. Sold the car at 225,000 miles, still running strong.

om 605 is an honorable mention, it is the same engine with 5 cylinders

stop hyping these engines, the prices are going up

Having owned both OM606 and M57. I can say OM606 far more fun to work on than M57. I havent tuned these engines only serviced. I like the m57 more because its far more easy to tune. I have chiptune on E60 530D Lci M57 and it has somewhere around 300hp/600nm and 14 seconds on a 1/4 mile. But cons of m57 are that you have to remove some emission systems to make it "reliable" its not gonna blow up if you dont but it will give headaches with egr, dpf and swirl flaps. I have done those and it is so fun to drive. I like the torque of diesels. Ps. Very nice to see that somebody from US has recognised these EU diesels capabilities.

I always thought it was called the diesel 2JZ due to it's tuning potential.

Gotta talk about the om605 too, the 5 cylinder variant of the same design. Imagine the 606 but with that odd cylinder count grunt. Too bad that never made it to the states.

Also the 606 will always hold the crown for the best 90's diesel, but everyone seems to be working their way to it's successor the OM648. Direct injection, huge amounts of torque and low rpm's, 12v cummins power while staying around the same weight as the 606.

DPumpUK seems to be the most intuitive and experienced source on Mercedes diesels.

I swapped one into my 2003 ram 1500 and it out performed what the 1500 could handle. After it was involved in an accident it was transferred into my '95 F350 where it lives today and I have a spare at work under the work bench lol.

been waiting for this one for a while!!! love the OM606 especially in the SDL wagon

Correction: "Toyota 2JZ: The gasoline OM606"

Man I love the diesels . . . Love the video thank's for all the effort.

This is one of my favorite diesel engines out there, it would be my preferred swap for a lot of things

When the OM602 in my 1993 300D spun a bearing I was considering swapping a 606 in, but I chose to just rebuild my 602 due to as you mentioned, the cost. But after running the numbers on that rebuild it probably would have been cheaper to just swap it lol.

I have the om603 in my 1987 w124. Great engine and good power. Very reliable and good on fuel. Love reliable sound of mercedes diesel.

It’s a fantastic engine and a great engine swap option if you can find one for a good price.

FINALLY! I haven’t even watched yet and I’m so pumped.

I started my apprenticeship working for MB in the late 90s, I always enjoyed working on these and did so for many years in Europe.

Supposedly the first year OM606 (which we didn't get in the US) got a mechanical injection pump but they all have electronic pumps otherwise. All of the US OM606's had electronic pumps. The Mechanical pump from a OM603 is a direct bolt on and that's what people do here in the states if they are removing the engine from its original W210 chassis and putting it in something else. In the states, the turbo OM606 ONLY came in the 1998 and 1999 W210 E300TD Sedans. The N/A OM606 was in the 1996 and 1997 W210 E300D sedans. Most W210 sedans are E320's with gas V6's so the diesels are really as hard as they say they are to find. Running and driving donor cars used to be dirt cheap even 5 years ago but people have figured out what they are by now and they've tripled in value. The late 90s S class did not have a diesel option in the US and I have no idea about the G wagon. TLDR: In the US you want the engine from a 98 or 99 E class diesel sedan and pretty much any OM603 injection pump. Send the pump out for a rebuild + bigger elements, slap a big turbo on it and that's it, have fun!

I just bought my turbo diesel last Thursday and I'm in love with the car

I love this been waiting for this vid

It's a superb motor but the next one, the OM648 CDI is the best motor. It's bigger, twin cam ,24valves, but it has a much more advanced injection system, it runs cleaner, it's more efficient, it has way more power, it's quiet, it has a variable geometry turbo, it has more power in a more realistic way, and it's know to be even lower maintenance and longer lasting. They require oil changes every 12,000 miles and they regularly get over 1,000,000 miles. It was the last inline 6 mercedes put in a car and it was the premier of the modern common rail diesel in Europe the revolutionized diesel performance. It also came in a much better car, the W210 was one of the worst chassis for the E class but it had that amazing diesel. The W211 CDI is an amazing breakthrough with it electronic wiring harness, to have a inline 6 computer controlled mercedes turbodiesel, it incredible. It drives much faster and it's an all aluminum chassis that is resistant to rust. I have one and it's really fast, it has big block torque, it's lay down, 0-60 in 6.6 second in stock form, cruising 130mph with 30mpg or more. I can get 40 mpg on renewable diesel. no smoke, no soot, reliable. It'sa better motor but the OM606 is indirect injection so it's very good on straight vegetable oil. People can get at least 400hp and 750ft/lbs of torque when they delete the EGR, and upgrade the turbo to a large billet wheel with ceramic ball bearins, enlarge the intercooler and add on the Mercedes C30 AMG injectors and E400CDI fuel pump. And it's possible to get more power and efficiency with hydrogen injection or propane injection. High power OM606 are not drivable motors with holset turbos'. The OM648 using the same Variable geometry turbo still are building boost at 1200rpm and hit full boost at 1600 and make power between 2000 to 4000. It's a smooth, pliable, realistic power. It's an amazing motor, it actually sounds a lot like a Lexus with a small inline 6 inthe 90's, it's a creme puff, it's so smooth and light the way it builds power, but it's really does have the power of a 8.2liter Cadillac V8 in 1970 with the fuel economy of a 1978 Rabbit diesel. Once you start running it on Renewable diesel there's no comparisson, a gas V8 motor you can't afford make a lot of power, with the diesel it's extremely economical and environmentally efficient and you have have as much power as you want all the time without losing much fuel economy.

The mercedes diesels are insane. Got a buddy with a 240d with 350k miles and i have a om603 with 300k. Both still run amazing

I liked the 606 better when no one in the states knew about them. Now everyone wants one and they’re double in value. 😅 made 400whp with mine with some bolt on mods.

Wanted one for a couple of years now. Rich from DeBoss Garage got one from his place up in Canada and did a couple of uploads on it. Great engine!

Excellent video.

First used a OM606 because it was the cheapest way to get 500 bhp period. Back then I could get a solid engine for 150-200$ , large element pump for 1200$ and a brand new HX40 for 500$... Fabricate the rest. Just a stock 3-400 gas engine would've been over 3000$, as for tuned gas engines, to get +500 bhp would've meant at least 1500$ in ECU and tuning, not to mention the core engine cost, supporting mods etc. Nowadays 606s have gotten rarer, more expensive and standalone ecus have gotten cheaper

Nice video!

it is difficult to understand how you did a video on this engine without DieselPumpUK. Those dudes make insane power with these, the coolest diesel swaps, and they manufacture brandnew parts, including pumps. I suggest a follow-up

Worth mentioning as well is that these engines run over a Mil in km's quite easily and still keep running strong. Where most engines don't make that, or you have to swap major components

i have a om602, they just work and they are really tuff, they never give a problem if jou just do the oil changes

Hi from the uk Most definitely the best passenger car diesel ever and without electronics however being a truck nut and biker as for best sounding I get confused I love the screaming detriot diesel 6 8 & 12 v 71s and love the sound of the rolls royce eagle engines labouring a great slogging diesel knock but unfortunately no bloody power Keep up the good work

Swapped one into my Land Cruiser and gave her 4500 rpm for hours on end trying to get out of a snow storm and she never never skipped a beat. Saw 1600 on the egt gauge and it’s still running good two winters later!

Great engine i swapped my rodbender om603 for the om606 on my w140 wow what an engine! Love it!

I have 5 of them legendary engines. They are after getting scarce here in Ireland within the last 2 years. I was lucky in that I gathered them just as they were getting scarce

Great video. Gave it a thumbs up even though I secretly wanted to do the opposite in order to keep this information on the "down-low". I recently gave my son my 99 E300TD. It's the same one that he rode to the hospital in his mother belly in on his birthday in 2005. He has been driving it for a little over a year now. So, we rebuilt the entire suspension and put a stage 2 tune and an HX35 turbski on it. Have the boost set low for now at 17psi (more than enough for a 17 year old driver). It is just shy of 400k miles. I want to get a spare motor to stash away, but as others mention, they are getting so expensive because people are figuring out what a great motor they are. Sooooo Shhhhhhhhhhh🤫

My brother bought a stripped body of a Mercedes 190 Cosworth and 3 broken OM606 engines and then proceedes to build a new, completely functional OM606 engine and putting it in the 190. It has become his pride and joy and honestly I can't blame him. Recently he's been trying to find a way to fit a Garrett on it and is aiming to get the engine up to 500hp. Everytime he comes to visit you can hear him from several kilometers away and not going to lie I'm pretty jealous both at the stunning car and at his skills 😭

I have a C250 Turbodiesel from 97 with the OM605, basicly the same just as a 5 cylinder. There was also the OM604 wich is the 4 cylinder version. And i love that thing, sounds good and drives good. And stock they already have pretty high boost pressure, the 606 i think has 1.9 bar. Mine prob a bit less, but you hear the turbina so clearly. And even the automatic transmission can hold a lot of power.

Owner of an OM-646 CLK-220 CDi here and also an OM-601 190-D. My stock CLK sounds amazing on the throttle, it's very responsive and rev-happy, Merc must have tuned the ecu for sports coupé use and probably a dual-mass flywheel. Mercedes imo is the King of Diesel engines and I love their diesels to death. Merc diesel ftw.

Love the BleepinJeep shirt! Can’t wait to have a 606 in my Comanche

I mean this is the only oversquared diesel engine I know, adding the DOHC, that's what makes it sound like petrol engines. It revs high because of that and it's a really nice package. I wish Mercedes would have kept it in production for more years or even create some production line for it and other iconic engines made by them so you can purchase new OEM parts right now.

My Father had back in the days a 1994 Mercedes E 300 D manual - it was so rare to get these cars with a manual Gearbox you dont even know... It had the OM606 Engine with 136HP - it sounded with a stock exhaust under load like a Gasoline Engine. It was such a cool car, i would love to buy that car back but sadly i dont know where it is :(

Om606 turbo vs m57 will be so great video

I own 1991 w124 with om606 N/A swap, love the car, engine in the car is just perfect

Regarding the talk about camshafts, I think the NA shafts have a little more lift and are preferred

Definitely the best 3.0 diesel engine ever made 🔥🫡 The best or nothing 🔝

You forgot about Japanese diesels. Big in Australia. Our Nissan Patrols and Toyota Landcruisers with 4.2 litre diesels can get an easy 200 - 250hp and 700nm of torque… and many many examples have close to 1 million km’s, 700,000 miles with even being opened, ever!

Do one on the BMW 335D M57 motor! I know probably not as saught after but those turbos really give some 6.0 powerstroke whistle vibes 😆

I have a 2003 c class with the 2.2 Liter 4 Zylinder. Its an absolut mileeater and Power too .

both are 3L i6 iron block aluminum head dohc holds alot of power and revs to the moon, I also have a container full of them ready to ship over from europe if anyone is looking for one.

There all about diesels in Europe from when I was a young man being stationed there in the mid to late 1980’s to today when I go back to the Azores to visit my wife’s family. The Toyota Hilux is huge in the off road scene over there. I couldn’t imagine trying to drive my Ram 3500 6.7 diesel over there! ✌🏽

I have om603 in my w201. Stock internals and pushing 400hp. Holset hx40 and 7mm dieselpump

I’v been pushing 3 bar from an hx40 and modified injection pump on my daily driven all factory internal n/a and hasn’t failed yet. Wouldn’t recommend it as these engine are getting expensive now. But don’t always believe everything on the internet... Btw I would love get my hands on an m57, no favourites in my camp 😊

so much underrated engine .... can you talk about the models of uz engine in term of displacement and tuning capabilities... so much love from iraq

nice to be able to fit a mechanical injection pump to the om 606.

You should do video about Volkswagen 1.9 TDI. I think it is the best diesel engine ever made.

Great! Thanks

DieselPumpUK 😃

Black smoke racing team is the specialists for om engines, they got one of the best drift cars in whole europe

Thanks for thr great information. What suggestions do you have for none electronic auto transmission to use with beefed up om606? I plan to use the 606 in my 1985 g280 wagon. Thanks

Few things to add. Nothing to correct. The USM only got the turbo variant in the e300td in 98-99. This engine is idi so It behaves much more like a petrol engine than a diesel. While they do make more torque than hp its nothing like a common raid. Maybe 50-60 more ft-lbs than hp. The major draw is its ability to drive a mech pump or an electric pump. With a mech pump from a om603, rebuilt with bigger elements, you can fire and run the engine like a carby petrol. This allows you to dump it in any chassis you can fit it in.

The scania 16.4 liter is beautiful when it comes to the sound you can call it work damage

I had this engine in a 1999 E300. I loved that engine, but the W210 is a chassis of issues as it is during the engine of the Mercedes brand that I knew and loved. I have a Tahoe with the 5.3L V8. I think the M606 would be a perfect match for my Tahoe.

Nice! I want one to swap into a defender! Do the td5 please!!!

1. M57 2. Om606 3. 1.9 tdi M57 just easier to obtain and tune thats my reasoning for it being 1st.

changing the glow plugs and those clear plastic fuel filter return lines huge pain in the ass... but last of the IDI

I want one so bad!

It is THE BEST S P O R T diesel engine ever! More than that, VERY CHEAP to get 500+ hp RELIABLE (only from scrapyard parts). Only those which never driven one don't know what is about. This diesel pulls as a gasoline engine, not as a truck diesel as 99% of modern and old diesels. I will get one soon. With or without shell. I have a briliant project in mind.. :D. If i will be able to buy all the parts needed, a new youtube channel will be started for that project.

M104 with a single turbo is a monster and I’m pretty sure uses the same crank and block as the om606..

I'm surprised there was no mention of Team Boosted's OM606 Datsun in this video

I have one for sale for 3000 obo. Its a 95 E300D, it has the NA OM606.910 and Bosch mechanical diesel pump. The body itself is rusting in various spots, i need to spray a quick squirt of starting fluid to get the car started but once its running its running. Located in Middle Tennessee.

Sounded like a smaller version of a fast turning diesel super stock pulling tractor engine. Those things turn lots faster than their ag stock siblings.

I always preferred the OM648.

What do you think about the om612? Was also in the wj grand Cherokee.

sounds like a very good engine. what model cars did these engine come witth in the USA?

hi u mind letting us know how to tune/operate the mechanical pump so it links with a bigger turbo..we need another video of this engine

I had a '95 E300d W/606. At about 240k miles the oil pump disintegrated while cruising down the freeway. Broken oil pump shaft. Catastrophic engine failure. Never did figure out why it let go. Rare failure.

Have you done a video on the om607?

Hi, Im looking at a 1994 Gwagon that has 173000km, the body looks great, no rust, question: 173000 km is that a lot of km for this engine and if not, what should I look for when I see it, yes Im planning to have it inspected, loved your video, straight forward, just as I like it

There’s other small things that a different between turbo and non turbo valve springs is a good example

The Ecodiesel reigns supreme

What about the bmw m57 diesel? I think thats a good comparison its an inline 6 3.0 but it is newer around 2010-15 i think

lets not forget that the om606 also has a petrol variant , the m104. Which in its own right is another 2jz esque engine .

Now can you make a video on the lci n57s? I guess more specific US models. But lci are all pretty much same for Europe and USA as far as im aware.

The sound is that good because its a Prechamber engine. This is why it rattles like hell and let it rev like a petrol engine

What year do I need to look for with the Mechanical Pump and Turbo

Best diesal engine ever made.

I should have put it in my s13!

I didn't expect it to actually sound like a 2jz

No joke, it sounds just like the skyline in 2f2f

the om 648 is amazing, very tunable (euro companies) and super eco (personal best of 51 mpg at 70 mph) around 32-37 in town if I'm careful. Mercedes should go back to the straight 6. I have a 2005 e320 with 250K miles.

OM606, M57, 1.9 TDI, 2.4D in Volvos and the 2.4 JTDm are one of the best diesels hands down. I would also put as a bonus the 4.2 TDI and the 5.0 TDI. 4.2 is a lot more reliable and I have seen a remaped A8 smoke the S8 with the V10 FSI.

Hey, I thought about replacing my main engines in my boat with two of these. It now has two 318 Chrysler gas engines. At 230 HP, each, maybe a turbo models would be good.