driving down the street, 40 mph oil good, temp at 80c tank half full suddenly there was no power. the engine just shut off. i tried it 15 min ago and it is still sitting immopbile at st peters parking lot.

any ideas?

"st peters parking lot."
Go inside and pray for enlightenment ?

How long since you changed the three fuel filters in your car ?

Look in your oil cap and see if the cam turns when you crank the engine over.

It is probably just a fuel problem. Clogged a filter or screen or your lift pump quit.

By far the most likely issue is fuel.

By far, the most likely fuel issue is a leaky primer pump. Possibly just a loose handle on the primer pump. Try to reprime, and if that works, plan on a primer pump replacement.

If only I could have access to all the cars that have been dumped because of that primer pump design............

Ken300D

P.S. I did get one, the 300SD - that's a great running car now.

__________________
--------------------------
1982 300D at 351K miles
1984 300SD at 217K miles
1987 300D at 370K miles

okay. the car was just picked up last saturday. new filters and fluids. i re fueled at the same place(paid 6 cents more). went back and primed but no change. while i was cranking the oil needle wouldn't climb. the dipstick was dry except for the tip. i put in 3 qts. and was now over filled.

i don't know. how likely could it be the fuel pump just packed it in?

Remember when checking the oil dip stick that when you first pull it out it may show low or no oil... Mine is that way...and others have commented on this same condition.

I'd be concerned about not building oil pressure. Crack an injector and crank the engine to see if the IP is working. You may have sheared a woodruf key that runs the oil pump and the IP.

Peter

__________________
Auto Zentral Ltd.

seems someone(not me) recently clamped off a fuel line and there was no vaccuum in the tank. the repair place guys, import specialists in racine wi) tell me that simpley drilling the fuel cap 1/8 will provide needed vaccuum.

they will take care of the dash lights(seems that is common) and break loose the tires from the bond they have acheived with the hubs.

now he also told me that to havbe the parking brake working i need a new set of cables. anyone replaced that?

valves.....don't know when they were adjusted but should that be done? maybe after a compression test?

In 30 years as an MB mechanic, I have never heard of drilling a hole in the fuel cap, because a line is clamped off. What ever happened with the oil pressure? Why do you need cables for the E brake? I see you live in the rust belt. Are the cables rusted to where they won't move or do they appear to be stretched? The cables don't stretch.

Peter

__________________
Auto Zentral Ltd.

the oil--i was told when cranking that the oil will not show pressure until the engine is running.

the fuel line--i don't remember everything they said but to unf*** the lines would be over a hundred bucks and then they need to figure out why it was done. i am defferring to their judgement on the drilling of the cap. i really need cheap fixes right now.

the e-brake--pedal goes to the floor and clicks a few times before getting there. i had the car on the jack, i don't own stands or ramps and adjusted the star wheel to tighten the drum brake. the pedal still needed more adjustment. working under a car on a jack does not thrill me so i will leave it until i can acquire stands or ramps.

When the ambient temp is not too cold, you can crank the engine for a bit with a good battery and build oil pressure at the gauge, but that really isn't a concern now. I'm assuming you have the 123 chassis book. there should be a section under 42 on how to adjust the E brake. You were correct to adjust the stars at the wheels to tight and then back off a bit. Then checck the pedal for 4 or 5 clicks. If it goes too far or is too hard to push, adjust the turn buckle under the car where the cables meet after you get some jack stands. This is MB procedure and if it doesn't work, you may have to remove a disc and check condition of the shoes.

Peter

__________________
Auto Zentral Ltd.

Drilling the cap is a 1960's and 1970's gasser trick for vapor lock.
Sounds like they have no clue what they are doing.

__________________
ASE Master Mechanic
asemastermechanic@juno.com

Prototype R&D/testing:
Thermal & Aerodynamic System Engineering (TASE) Senior vehicle instrumentation technician.
Noise Vibration and Harshness (NVH).
Dynamometer.
Heat exchanger durability.
HV-A/C Climate Control.
Vehicle build.
Fleet Durability
Technical Quality Auditor.
Automotive Technical Writer

1985 300SD
1983 300D
1984 190D
2003 Volvo V70
2002 Honda Civic

https://www.boldegoist.com/

I may be missing something here, but I don't see where you checked to see if the camshaft is turning (per Twitchkitty's suggestion). If it isn't, none of the rest of the fuel troubleshooting is going to do you any good. The engine will quit running suddenly if the timing chain breaks; and that is what Twitchkitty is suggesting you check.

With regard to cheap fixes - they can often lead to more expensive repairs down the road. It seems to me that you have some issues that need to be dealt with on this car before it becomes a reliable runner.

Cheers,
Wes

whunter's right. They don't need to drill the cap, they need to see what's wrong with the vent on the fuel tank. If someone clamped off the vent, it should be unclamped. maybe someone partially clamped off the return line too, in a misguided attempt to aid fuel delivery. Find out if the filters are clogged and if the tank has crud blocking the strainer or supply line. These guys may be well intentioned but not very knowledgeable

__________________
'82 300SD - 361K mi - "Blue"

"Good judgement comes from experience. Experience comes from bad judgement."

listen, look, .........and duck.

My experience with clogged filters, particularly the primary, is that the car starts losing power and slowing down but will continue to run at low speed until the filter is completely clogged and not enough fuel is coming through. The primary filter is translucent and you can shine a flashlight through it to check for a clog.

A broken timing chain will surely cause the engine to just quit.

srharvey
'82 SL 140M
'83 240D Manual 240M
'93 300TE 4Matic 260M