Drove my moms car today (1988 300SEL) because my work car is still in the shop.

Anyway I drove the car to work, then to my grandmothers after, then to the supermarket after that, it ran perfectly. Came out of the market and drove across the parking lot to get gas and I filled it up... then I went to start it and it only cranks and will not start! Toward the "end" of when I am turning the engine over, it will occasionally and very momentarily sputter and stall.

I am guessing fuel pump, fuel pump relay or? I have no idea. I know I have owned the car nearly 3 years (except the past 3 months she has had it) and its never gave me or her a problem until now. We had to push it away from the pumps and to a parking space in the store lot until we can try to figure out where to start or a shop to take it to, but trying to get some ideas. Oh, also the check engine light comes on momentarily when first started after you have been driving for a minute and goes off after 2 minutes, but not sure if the problem is related or not?

Thanks in advance for any help!

 

355 views and no one has any clue... wow.

Must be a rare occurance.

 

we got to where the car was first before the rollback got there and dad got under the car while I turned on the switch... he said the pump is coming on when I turn on the switch, so perhaps I can rule out the pump and/or relay?

We just got the car home a few moments ago and going to eat dinner, so I guess we will head out and check it over again. Guess we need to check for spark now or hope its the filter. The car was fine until that moment, so not sure if its the filter unless something clogged in it after I pumped the gas out of the hose.

 

thanks for all of the replies... guess we are just going to end up junking it out.

 

Did you fill it up with 93 octane- that might be the problem believe it or not.
I'm currently on a ethanol rant so knowing what I've learned about it recently, I would say change the fuel filter because ethanol is a solvent that will clog fuel filters. Siphon out that bad gas and put in 5gal 89octane gas then see if it will start for you. the reason for the lower octane is it has less ethanol in it. Dont worry, it will be fine with 89 if it has 93 in it already.
At this point what do you have to lose!
Dont junk it until you try everything. Let me know if I saved your Benz!

 

My 300SE has just done the same thing, we seem to have narrowed the search to either the solenoid on the fuel distributor or a vacuum issue, we are getting closer will let you know what we find

 

It ended up being dirty contact points in the dizzy and a vacuum hose had popped off....hope you fix yours

 

Thanks for that info... I am not sure if that was 93 or not. Hmmm. Thats interesting though.

I havent visited here in awhile, but I do have an update!

Well, the car is repaired! It ended up being the ignition coil was going bad. A MB mechanic told my dad to check the coil. He put one off of my old station wagon on it just to see if it would start and it did and ran perfectly.... then he went and bought a brand new one for that car($109!) and the car had ran all day.... no problems. The other day some mechanic came to inspect and it idled fine for 20 minutes, but then when given acceleration, it would miss and stall. Not anymore. Strange, I never dreamed it was the coil. We have driven it for days with no issues. Runs like new once again.

Speaking of that gas you mentioned... apparently someone had been helping themselves to that full tank of gas... I had filled it up the day it broke down as I had mentioned... then today when dad was working on it, the fuel gauge was down on "R" and the low fuel warning light was illuminated! We live in a rural neighborhood, mostly older folk, but apparently some hooligans or some grandkids of these people needed gas. Dad drove it to the filling station and it held about 20 gallons. Can you imagine?

Oh well, still need to get those plugs replaced since apparently the ones on there are not the correct ones (resister plugs are in there now).

Thanks for all of the replies!


Glad you got it. I dont even know what the "dizzy" is, so I am glad it wasnt that. LOL! Turns out that ours was the ignition coil was going bad.

 

you repeatedly say that the car was running fine until it just failed to start without warning.

Well, that CEL is a *warning* light. I wonder if the car was throwing any useful codes that were being ignored?

 

I have a 91 300 SE, its been parked for 2 days because of a problem with my transmission not working, I tried starting the car today, but it does not start, the engine turns over several times but it just does not start, could there be a problem with the cold start valve or as someone mentioned the ignition coil.

I was also wondering if anyone ever experienced a situation where the transmission just went bad and does not work and the car does not move. Just a few days ago after reversing the car, then I changed to Drive, there was a loud clicking sound and the car did not move. I just rebuilt the transmission 3 years ago

 

ethanol fuel mix is damaging the mercedes-amg enginess especially those prior of 2003 and older and also cars from 2001-2007. The EPA is now trying to increase ethanol upto 15% or over from cars 2007 and newer. This amount will surely show signs of engine damage.
ethanol is hydrophilic and thereby corrosive to the engine and entire the fuel rail system! one should very rarely ever have to replace a fuel injection system and internal engine parts with low milage.
A hydrophilic membrane will not be fouled or stopped oil, grease or other hydrophobic substances. The membrane is highly attractive to water so the water molecules will push away other molecules in order to gain access to the membrane. Once formed, hydrogen bonds are quite stable and reluctant to break apart.(for the chemist buffs)
everyone needs to muster and contact their necessary representatives and manufacturer's, technician's, etc and put a stop to this ethanol mixture. Or at least many stations that are absolutely free of ethonal!
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/AP-sources-EPA-expected-to-OK-apf-1210895536.html?x=0&sec=topStories&pos=1&asset=&cc ode=
http://www.masterresource.org/2010/08/ethanol-counterattack/
http://www.reporternews.com/news/2010/sep/29/ethanol-in-autos-being-questioned/
http://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/tesoro-sues-california-over-ethanol-mandate-1527/
http://www.stateline.org/live/ViewPage.action?siteNodeId=136&languageId=1&conten tId=35692
http://blog.thetruthaboutethanol.org/?p=35

this is what happens when your fuels lines are over time eaten up by ethanol regardless if it is for boats or small engines or etc......
http://www2.tbo.com/content/2009/apr...ne/news-metro/
the key is point is that regardless on what engine vehicle its the resting phase of the engine that causes the damage!
"The problem is that most boats sit for long periods of time without use. When ethanol-blended fuels sit in a gas tank for a long time, the ethanol begins to separate from the gasoline.
When engines consume pure ethanol, a highly corrosive solvent, the results can be disastrous. In addition to unraveling fuel lines, it can loosen sludge, varnish and dirt inside the gas tank, causing fuel lines and carburetors to clog."
"ethanol eats away at the fuel line, causing it to fail, like a collapsing tunnel"
"if water is in the gas tank or engine, the ethanol will separate form the gasoline and bond with the water, that means pumping a mixture of ethanol and water into the engine, if this happens there could be stalling or more jittery engine repsonses....the key is none use of vehicle...the less you use the engine, the more that the ethanol will separate from the gasoline(petrol).

Some people are so dead, they don't vote, they write letters to respective district city or counties officials; they just expect others to fix the fixes. every concerned voice must be heard. but then again most people probably don't have true sports car? this is not about clean energy.
its about corrupted politicians and officials hurting the economy and regular middle class person's. Germany makes some of the most cleanest car--without ethanol! if people don't speak up...soon this country will be deader than dead! All the successful people might just flea due to over-regulation after over regulations.

if nobody takes on these issues what use are these amg engines with out pure petrol!

 

i to had starting problems. first MB said replace your fuel injectors then starter then on on on..

its the ethanol mixture that sits ove time that degrades the fuel system then because of the sitting or storage, like my AMG car; is deprived of pure petrol. This is because ethanol over time separates the petrol due to that ethanol is hydrophilic and then this enters the engine of the car causing corrosive issues or deterioration of other engine parts, especially fue rail system.

 

everyone should list all pump stations that are ethanol free so others are aware of it.

 

NGK Canada published a TSB in 2006 in which they state that due to ethanol being introduced in gas, drivers have been reporting these symptoms:

1. Reduced gas mileage
2. CEL light, code showing lean condition

They recommend the following to remedy both issues:

A. One step colder
B. Narrower gap by 0.010", not to go below 0.035"

For my vehicle, I've done the following:

- One step colder
- Narrower gap by 0.004" (factory spec for my M119.982 is 0.032")

So far, after two tanks of gas (several hundred miles), my mileage seems to be better, the insulator is still too white for my liking (indicating still a lean condition), and the ground electrode reading shows color change at the turn of the elbow (but closer to the ring, which indicates it's still slightly hot).

Btw, the spark plug gap is a debatable topic. This is my take:

Reduction of the gap is necessary in E10 gas for the reason that ethanol--while it is detonation-resistant--is more susceptible to pre-ignition at higher compressions. My M119 having 11:1 compression ratio and achieving greater than 100 KPa, the possibility of pre-ignition with ethanol is greater. (Maybe this is why Mercedes says their knock sensors can't handle lower octane gas?) The possibility becomes even greater knowing that gas stations sometimes goof up and pour the wrong octane gas in their underground tanks.

However, my M119 uses non-resistor plugs, and the coil connector provides 2K Ohms. Narrower gap effectively decreases resistance. This may cause potential electronic interference with the ignition system. When reducing the gap, using resistor plugs (which will have 5K Ohms) might be a good idea.

I'll report more on my experiment as time goes. After evaluating this set, I'll try going another step colder with a resistor plug.


NGK technical bulletin: No. NGKSP-0506-3 (from may 2006)

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