Engine cranks for a second and stops

[Noureddine Marigh]

Greetings,
Recently, I replaced the head-gasket on 97 Mercedes E320. The head was machined and I put on new bolts and torqued them to the specs. I put everything back together but I ran into this problem that I am trying to resolve. I am not sure what is this component called but if you look at the images, you will see that it not seated on the valve cover as it should (image #1). Inside this component, there is a gap that’s approximately 3/4″ round and it’s placed over what looks like a knob that sticks out of the valve cover and spins freely inside this thing. The first thought that came to my mind was that the camshaft was not seated/torqued properly as they took them out as the shop to resurface the head. I removed all brackets and checked to make sure it was installed properly; everything looks good there (I think). Back to image #1, the surface of the head is aligned with and valve cover surface, when I move my finger over, I can barely feel there is a groove in between, so I keep going back to the camshaft that is probably not aligned with something else. I decided to not install it and start the engine to make sure everything else works and something else came up. The engine cranks for 1 sec or less and stops. Battery, starter, etc., are good, there is spark, there is fuel, no issues there. I went ahead and tried to crank it manually and it turns only for about 45 degrees and stops. I am almost positive that there is a connection between this cranking issue and how that component is not aligned with the camshaft as I described in the beginning. Is it possible that the camshaft is bent though I can’t visually tell? What are other things to check for? Right now I would like to focus on getting the camshaft aligned with that thing and if I get to do so, I think the engine should turn over. Also, can I manually try turn the engine with both camshafts removed to make sure nothing inside the block is causing any issues?

I have an audio of what the short cranking sounds if that may help.

Thank you for taking the time to read this, I would appreciate any kind of response!

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• 1_2014-12-04-2.jpg

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