severecaraddict

I picked up a '96 E300 diesel w/99k yesterday that was a bank repo. I bought it knowing that it doesn't run. When I turn the car on, the glow plug light comes on and goes off as it should. It spins over as it should but I'm thinking that its not getting fuel. The back bumper has been hit, so I'm wondering if that set of the inertia switch/emergency fuel shut off and I was wondering where that's located.

Yeah, I realize most people don't buy non-running cars but if I get it running, I'll have a pretty decent 'beater' car for a little of nothing.

TMAllison

Fisrt, crank it 10 secs and then look to see if there are any air bubbles in the clear plastic fuel lines, on top of the IP (delivery valves), or beneath the black shutoff valve (SOV) on the side of the IP. If so, fix those first. Might need to spray it clean to see whee its comming from. Fryerpower.com sells an oring kit for the 606.962 which will work for yourr 606.912 leaving you with a few extra's. ASK for help beofre attempting to do DV's the first time. There are some critical steps to that job.

Second, with the hood up and drivers window down, turn key to position 2. You should hear a click of the SOV on the side of the IP opening as the key hits pos #2. No click, no start. Vavle is controled by the K40 relay in the computer box. About 90% of the time it is responsible; 10% of the time it is a bad SOV oring or the SOV itself.

You can pretty much forget about fuel pumps and the like as the problem. The "lift pump", aft of the SOV on the side of the IP is a suction pump pulling fuel up form the tank. If it is bad, which is VERY rare, it will be leaking engine oil rather than fuel.

severecaraddict

Thanks! I'm getting ready to really "get into it" and find the problem. I was the high bidder in a sealed bid auction and picked the car up for $2,600. It has a clean title, low miles for the year, and aside from the front and rear bumper covers being scruffed/scratched, the paint is as good as my 2003 BMW Z4 w/26k that has been garage kept.

TMAllison

Air is a common prob on the 606 family. If it has sat a long time it could be bad oings. Check it out. A little history would help immensly.

You can PM me if you have other questions; wont be back around here until Sun though.

severecaraddict

I greatly appreciate the help. I'm trying to gather a little history on the car but that is hard with it being a repo. From what I've gathered by the oil change sticker in the car and the date/mileage on it; the car has been sitting since July '08.

I'm going to head to my MB dealer on Monday and see if they will pull the service history information for me. I don't anticipate a problem there as I have good relationship with the dealer. I did find some of the previous owner's information inside the car and wonder if its "kosher" to contact them? I suppose it couldn't hurt - She may be bitter given then circumstances of losing her car but at the same time, the worst thing she can do is hang up on me or yell.

under the hood is very clean. Everything appears to have been kept up on the car quite nicely. I figure if it turns out to be a heap of crap, I can still throw it on Ebay as a parts car and get my money back and then some.

TMAllison

The 606 is a pretty reliable engine top and especially bottom end. The electronic sensors and computer controls cause more problems.

Check the first 2 things out and we'll go from there.

The pre-filter oring (start of fuel path) is another common leaker.

ohlord

sitting a long time and the glow lights and goes off in the proper cycle.Try wrapping a damp rag around an air chuck and pumping some air into the fuel filler cap ,while a buddy cranks the engine over.That will drive the bubbles out and prime the system at the same time.It has saved a lot of diesels from going to the shop.

TMAllison

Applying vacuum would work much better as it emulates the lift pumps action of pulling fuel up from the tank; from expirience even moderate air pressure will also bulge the soft alum tank. Priming via the starter motor is very effective once the air/fuel leaks have been addressed.

Lancelot

btw I would be VERY reluctant about that mileage of only 99K in 12 years on a Diesel?! Make sure the odometer hasn't been replaced at some point. That's only around 8K a year...

My 11 year old 220 Diesel only had 208,000km (124K miles) when whe got it, but it had been sitting in their showroom for almost 2 years and I made sure I have it's complete history (all the paperwork and booklets and maintenance plan/schedules etc.)

severecaraddict

The miles are actual, I know that to be 100%. There was no time to gather all the history on the car and for $2,600 it wasn't necessary. I found out about it the same day I put the sealed bid in on it. I can tell by the paint, the interior, and cleanliness of under the hood that the car had been well taken care of. I'm assuming the previous owner just became a victim of the current economy.

My last several cars have been driven well under 8k/yr. I prefer lower mileage cars. Its a little different on diesels (I wouldn't want one that's been driven less than 5k a year) but I prefer lower mileage vehicles. This is just a 'beater car' to keep the wear and tear off my BMW and something that I'll drive until I find my Z4s replacement. After that, I'll either keep it around or I'll put it up for sale later this summer when gas prices soar again and make $3k or $4k off of it.

severecaraddict

I took TMAllison's advice and she cranked right up. Engine purrs like a kitten but the check engine light is on. P0380: Glow plugs. I'm gonna pick up a set this week and let that be my weekend project.


Thanks again to everyone for their input. I look forward to washing, claybarring, rewashing, polishing, double waxing, and detailing the interior this week.

TMAllison

Relax...If you cleared it and it stayed off it is prob OK. PO380 occurs whenever you attempt to start on cold GP's. If you cranked and cranked to start it you prob forgot to glow one of those times. If so, it will clear itself after 3 cold-hot-cold run cycles. Usually 1.5 days for a daily driver. If the code came right back, the GP relay is prob at fault as the code tells you the GPs are not getting power. The relay feeds the power. If individual GP's are bad you will get MB specific codes P1 365, P1 367 or P1 369; note not all OBDII scanners will report those codes. They are faults at GP's 1&2, 3&4 and 5&6 respectively.

GP's are another of those jobs you ASK for input with before attempting. GP's in 606's have a nasty habit of siezing and snapping off.

severecaraddict

I have a scanner, I should clear it and see if it stays out. The owner's manual says that if there's an error with the GPs, the GP light will stay on. I'll check on it after dinner.

I have a little bit of an advantage: My dad is a retired mechanic and he's worked on MANY diesels in the past, just not Mercedes. He helped me with getting the air out of the lines (it was present) and getting the engine primed. Its gonna be a fun little car. Its not super luxurious but its not shabby either.

I'm going to write the previous owner and see if she has any additional keys, the original radio (missing) and see if she'll be willing to talk to me about the car. I've found silver front/rear bumper covers for cheap. I'm amazed at the condition of the paint aside from the bumper covers: For a 13 year old car its excellent! I've looked at several on Ebay and they all seem to have the dingy/fogged up headlights but these aren't like that at all. She's definitely been garage kept.

I'd LOVE to find a 2005 E320 CDI to replace my Z4. They seem to be very reasonably priced now. I've done a good bit of reading up on them and the '05 seem to be the best year to get if you're going to go pre-bluetec. I'm just not sure that I drive enough to justify getting another diesel. We'll see.

TMAllison

I was editing my prior post the same time you posted.

severecaraddict

Check engine light is OUT! I used dish detergent to wash the car good, then I thoroughly went over it with a claybar, and then rewashed it. First thing in the morning I plan to polish it, wax it, and then rewax it before tackling the interior.

I was going through some numbers stored in the car phone so I decided to write them down and Google them to see what I could find. I already knew the car came from Naples, FL because of the Mercedes Benz of Naples front license plate - At some point (and I assume when it was new) it was owned by a very prominent finance attorney and former Vice President of Citibank. When Googling the the 'office' number I came up with his office Law Office in Naples and when I Google his name I found his current business in NJ along with his wife's name which was also listed in the phone.

Kinda neat, while at the same time its encouraging knowing he had the money to afford to keep it maintained properly. Not sure yet how it ended up in KY, but I'm going to find out.

Lancelot

Good luck then finding all the info about the history of your car!

Hirnbeiss

That's probably where he ran out of someone else's gas money on his way to Leavenworth.

severecaraddict

Rather than start a new thread, I thought I'd just add to this one. I let the Mercedes sit a couple weeks without being started (Just didn't need to drive it) and I got in it this afternoon, turned the key on, let the glow plug light do its thing and I noticed the red/green lights fixed to the review mirror were blinking. This happened when I first got the car and it wouldn't start. I raise the hood to see what I could see and I saw this thing pictured below move on its own. After that, the lights on the mirror quit blinking and the car fired up right up as soon as I spun it over.

What is it?

TMAllison

That is your Resonance Flaps, controls air flow.

Red/Green mirror lights - Alternating flashes means an unauthorized start attempt. Try exiting the car and locking and unlocking the car using the blade key in drivers door. Then start and observe mirror lights.


Sim flashes (blinking) means the key battery is weak; the early security system used some key battery power in the security communications, later versions did not.

severecaraddict

I only got one key with the car and I think its the service key. This is something that its just started doing and its really irritating. I got it started the other day and drove it a bit to 'blow it out' from sitting for so long. I didn't drive it particularly hard, just a spirited run of about 20 miles. I started it yesterday and it fired right up as it should but now the lights on the mirror are flashing red/green [alternating] and the car won't start. I feel bad for not driving it, so I'm planning to just sell it when I get it going because my need for a second vehicle has ended and its too nice of a car to just let it sit and go to waste.

severecaraddict

I'm leaning towards a bad battery. It has a Mercedes battery in it that was replaced in late 2006 but the car sat for almost a year before I purchased it a couple months ago. I got the car started this afternoon after putting the battery charger on it and letting sit a couple of hours and then trying. She fired right up as she should but now the tachometer 'twitches' but doesn't work, neither does the fuel gauge, temperature hand, nor the light indicating the bright lights are on. Odometer, clock, turn signal indicators, and tripometer all light up.

michakaveli

I've had the green/red lights flash, usually in relation to low battery voltage. Don't worry about it unless it becomes a re-occuring issue or you are having other difficulty(ies).

Post some Pix!

severecaraddict

I drove it this morning and it fired right up and purred like a kitten. No green lights, no starting issues; however the tachometer, gas gauge, and temperature hand are still dead. I went outside to start it about an hour ago and the red/green lights are on and it won't start. I give up.

michakaveli

TM will jump in... Sounds like K40 related issues.

severecaraddict

Sounds about right from what I just read after searching the forum for 'K40'. Any idea off the top of you head what that relay runs price-wise?