Vacuum pump problemos....
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Joined: Jun 2007
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From: Palm Springs, California, USA... But hopefully San Antonio, Texas in the near future.
1983 Mercedes-Benz 240D
Vacuum pump problemos....
Hey everyone my 240D had a bit of a BF today when I was driving to school. I noticed how the brake booster stopped working and it took a really hard force on the pedal just to get small stop...then I thought well i'll just turn the car off! I'm sure the brakes will be fine 
So I turned the key to the off position and pulled it out, low and behold the car still kept running... At this point I was like "alright.... what the hell" lol I even put it in gear and moved it 10 feet and it still didnt turn off also, the battery light came on... lucky for me a German motor mechanic was 20 feet away, so I put it in gear and started heading twords his shop then the tramission went into limp mode and would not shift.. So I finally got there and they were able to turn it off. They told me I was having baaaad vacuum problems, which I kind of knew already because my door locks wernt working but I guess it might be the pump, So I was wondering does anyone know how big of a job this is? and how much I can expect to pay? I looked up a new vacuum pump on ebay and it was like 200$ so i got that, but for the labor... anyone been in the same situation? You know these cars are awesome!!!!!! but what the hell were the Germans thinking when they installed vacuum door locks and stuff.... Well if anyone has an info please please let me know! thank you! 
So I turned the key to the off position and pulled it out, low and behold the car still kept running... At this point I was like "alright.... what the hell" lol I even put it in gear and moved it 10 feet and it still didnt turn off also, the battery light came on... lucky for me a German motor mechanic was 20 feet away, so I put it in gear and started heading twords his shop then the tramission went into limp mode and would not shift.. So I finally got there and they were able to turn it off. They told me I was having baaaad vacuum problems, which I kind of knew already because my door locks wernt working but I guess it might be the pump, So I was wondering does anyone know how big of a job this is? and how much I can expect to pay? I looked up a new vacuum pump on ebay and it was like 200$ so i got that, but for the labor... anyone been in the same situation? You know these cars are awesome!!!!!! but what the hell were the Germans thinking when they installed vacuum door locks and stuff.... Well if anyone has an info please please let me know! thank you!
Almost a Member!
Joined: May 2008
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1983 240D 356K, 1985 300D 268K
I had the same problem with my 83 240D. I bought a vacuum pump repair kit and when I got the vacuum pump off, found the guts were in pieces. I got a new one for 306 bucks at AutohausAZ. It is not too hard to replace yourself. First, disconnect the brake booster line and see if there is any vacuum on the line. It is also possible you have a major break in a vacuum line somewhere instead of a problem with the pump. If you have no suction at the brake booster line at all, replace the pump. I just did this myself, so I still remember how!
