Several Problems, please help.
 

Ok, when i bought the car it would shake miserably when warm. I began by replacing one motor mount, and both shock mounts on each side. That didnt help. So I finally got around to replacing the rack dampner pin. That seemed to get rid of the shaking for a while. When it got cold here i noticed that my heater wouldn't warm up. I fiigured out that the thermostat was stuck open causing the engine to run cold all of the time. I changed the thermostat out and now have shaking again. Today, for the first time, after I finally got it started (misses badly during morning start didnt use to about 2 months ago) the idle would surge like I had the rack dampner pin adjusted too far in. Well, I left to go to work and noticed that when the engine warmed up I had no more surging and now had shaking. What do you think my problem is? I wonder if it is related to the hard start problem? The car also nails really badly when cold and has does it moderately when warm between 1100-1800rpm. Today it actually got my attention. It sounded like a knock when i first started it up.

Another problem is that my blinkers are acting funny. They will come on and stay on (not blinking) 9 out of 10 times. Other times they will blink pretty fast. All bulbs are good.

And finally, I have water collecting in the left side low spot of the trunk. LOTS of water. The drivers side rear floorboard is also wet but not as wet as the trunk. Any ideas?

You are keeping the make , model , and year a secret ?
It is best to ask the questions in different threads with a good title on the thread... stating your model and year of course...
All of this should be after attempting the find the answers using the search....

I had the same problem with my trunk for a while. I couldnt figure it out because the seals on my trunk were relativeley new and seemed to be woorking fine. I came to find that it was the sum of two problems. first, all around the edge of where your trunk closes there is a gutter of sorts that allows water to flow off the back of your car without settling. If the "gutter" is full of debris and leaves it overflows into your trunk; the same concept is used on the sunroof. I also had the added problem of an improperly sealed back windshield which would not leak into the interior of the car but into the trunk itself. Check these two things and lemme know what you find.

81 300SD. You say I should search, I say you should check my profile. I have searched by the way.

Jman, what exactly should I check for around or on the sunroonf? Trunk is fine.

Thanks for a real reply.
Aaron

You could stick your car info into your signature... which would show up on your post.. but lots of people here have multiple Mercedes.. so checking the profile each time is not logical....
You have no idea how many times that " real " answer has been posted in the archives.

Actually, leather's right. Identifying your model and year will help someone diagnose your problem MUCH easier. I'm sure some who may have offered opinions would just ignore the post if this info is not readliy evident. No biggie, but a valid point all around.

At any rate, I wish you luck with your repairs! Most have indeed been covered in the forums. Sometimes searching is a little tricky, but you will find lots of archived info on the rear window seal leaking, and things like that.

Good luck!

Chris

You are rude. You want help? Ask properly. Otherwise I'm sure nobody cares about your problems.

aaron, when you open the sunroof, there are two holes. one on each side behind the roof. these lead to the back of the car and drain near the trunk. straighten out a coat hanger and poke down into them to remove any debris that might have gotten in and not exited over the years.

What 83-240d said is right. There are drain holes through the rear of the sunroof but if those are clogged they will mostly likley create water draining into the back seat. As far as the floor on the drivers side im pretty sure this is caused by a clogged drain that comes from the ac. Ive never experienced the problem myself but have heard of it and it is supposedley easy to fix although im not sure exactly where its located. Im sure someone will post a follow up to clear that issue up.

On a side note, everyone just needs to chill. no one needs to post to tell someone how rude they are. Its all good guys, we are all just here to help and be helped. Just keep it cool.

One thing nice about this software is that if you make a silly mistake right out of the chute... and particularly if people jump on you for it... you can cause everything to go away by deleting the first post... then you could repost ( hopefully having learned something ) and no one ever knows the difference....

If you're here for advice you might want to be more accomodating. Just update your signature and fahgedahbowdit.

not to change the subject ;) but.. where do those rear drains from the sunroof actually lead to? ie. where does the water exit the car?

reason i ask is that i have icicles forming under the rocker panels at or about underneath the front of the rear doors...
i'm wondering if that's from the sunroof drain.
:o

I guess this is known as Texas swagger?? (insert Bush joke here)

84300dt...thats exactly where the drains lead to. I remember when my 300 sd began having all kinds of leaks in both the trunk and interior I almost went crazy trying to figure it out. Luckily my old mechanic down miami (who is an absolute saint when it comes to reliability, honesty, and being able to offer sincere advice) showed me that i could pour water down the little sunroof track and if everything was working right it would leak out through the bottom of the rear rocker panels. It actually has a drain for the front end too. He told me another common problem that could lead to leaks in the same area is rust developing in those drainage lines or on the actual sunroof shaft itself. Funny about the icicles though, thank god i dont live anywhere that cold.

ok, then it looks like my drains are working due to the 'icicle evidence'. at least some good can come out of this awful weather! ;)
thanks for the advice.

Most likely it is due to poor glow plugs. you may have one of more glow plugs whuich are below par or dead (definitely below par;)) Hard cold starting - check glow plug operation first. Lack of glow will result in uneven idle once started, but which will smooth out when run a few minutes.

water in left side wheel well. Sounds to me like it could be the antenna grommet.

Danny

Thanks guys. I figured I had one or more bad glow plugs. Some mechanic that is a friend of our family said that as long as my light cycles properly that all 5 plugs should be good. I figured he was wrong.

As far as the leak, i dont think its the antenna grommet, all of that looks good. Also there is no water in the trunk carpet along the side of the quarter panel, it's just collecting in the bottom.

Thanks for the help.

Close yourself inside the trunk with a flashlite, and have a friend hose down the car very well. Shouldn't take too long to see where the water is coming from.

Hmmm
 

Another problem is that my blinkers are acting funny. They will come on and stay on (not blinking) 9 out of 10 times. Other times they will blink pretty fast. All bulbs are good.

Two possible answers:

#1. Hazard light switch.
Hazard light switch cleaning
http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/diesel-discussion/102377-hazard-light-switch-cleaning.html

#2. Flasher relay.
Vehicle 1981 Mercedes Benz 300SD
Part: Turn Signal Relay Hazard warning

I did get in the trunk with a flash light at the car wash. The gasket leaks a little right in the middle on the rear windshield side. I stayed in there for a while and its not a enough to fill up the left side so it has to be coming from somewhere else. It leaked a few drops in a few minutes.

Thanks for the hazard blinker suggestions. Is this something common? It really has me puzzled. I will see what I come up with.

Thanks,
Aaron