Quote:
Originally Posted by spannerrash
There is a theory that the detent pin that holds the tensioner in the start position fails and so the tensioner is free to rattle on first startup until engine oil pressure builds up.
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The pin gets jammed when the stupid filter-gauze that lives in the bottom of the tensioner breaks up and is forced through the tensioner by oil pressure. It ruins the o-rings and the bits get jammed in the pin mechanism. Its only the driver's side too - the passenger side one is the other way up so the bits of gauze sink to the bottom of the piston housing and do no damage.
Having discovered this, I am going to take the gauze out of any more on which I change the plastic pads. The W8 and W12 suffered the same problem but that generally writes the car off because the tensioners for those are four figures each.
There are some guys in Eastern Europe who can rebuild them but I haven't sent a set off yet.
I would rather whittle one from a block of cheese than fit a chinesium copy. The chinese ones are known to leak oil externally, and I would not trust anything made in china for such a critical engine function. V6 tensioners are cheaper though as there were many more of those engines.
Luckily for V8 owners, the D2 and D3 share the same tensioner so we've got another 3-4 years before they become obsolete.