amorboy

The car is 1987 190E 2.3 liter automatic. The car will sometimes start on warm weather but almost never when the temperature drops below 50F. Here is what I found out last week after many hours of frustration.

The CSV does not get power during start-up (cold) thus it won't squirt fuel to the chamber. When the CSV is energized (voltage applied) it should supply atomized fuel but with no power coming to it, starting the car when cold is a problem.

Could someone knowledgeable in CIS-E help me find the culprit/s for this problem? I have some experience with CIS in Porsche cars. Any suggestions, recommendations, etc. is much appreciated. Thanks.

Tony

andrew maris

I believe it might be the OVP or the engine coolant temp sensor.

MTI

From a "diagnostic tree" point of view, the fact that it will start and run reasonably well when the climate is agreeable probably rules out the OVP, since if it was malfunctioning, it wouldn't care what Al Roker had to say that morning.

That leads to the ECU, which again seems to be working reasonably well in shirt sleeve weather. So, the downstream culprits may be the air temp sensor in the intake and it's cousin the engine temp sensor which are supposed to provide the ECU with the current meteorlogical situation. Also suspect the vacuum line to the CSV.

MTI

Check This Link for Info on the CSV

amorboy

MTI,

Thanks for your input regarding the problem I'm having with my car. My other problem is findng a reference manual with schematic or wiring diagrams. Based from your experience, how much would it cost to have this problem corrected by a Mercedes shop. A ball part estimate will give me a better feel whether to keep the car or not.

The car never had any major problem the last 19 years except the last 6 months. I really like to keep the car and spend a reasonable amount of money to keep it running. Appreciate your assistance.

Tony

MTI

Most Mercedes tech guys usually diagnose pretty quickly, typically within an hour, unless it's a problem that's difficult to reproduce (sporadic failure, inconsistent fault, temperature or load specific, etc.) You might need to leave the car overnight one afternoon, so that they can do a true "cold start."