Hi guys , I have an 81' 300 SD that I got a few months ago. There are a pair of wires that were cut and clipped under one of the clamps for the air cleaner( apparently to keep them out of the way) . When I trace them back they go into what appears to be a sensor device in the side of the transmission bell housing just above where the oil pressure sensor is . Does anyone know what this is and where this pair of wires is supposed to be attached. The local mechanic that does a lot of work on these older mercedes says he doesn't know , he 's never noticed it before. Any help appreciated.

catuch
84' 300D turbo
81' 300SD

Is it on the driver's side of the bell housing? Not familiar with the SD, but on the late W123 bodied diesel cars (like your '84 300D), there is a crankshaft position sensor that bolts into the bell housing and looks at the flywheel. It is used for the tachometer on those models, and emissions control for California models.

ORLY? I have a tach pickup on my balancer like all other 617.952? And I dont have a auto transmission? And when I did pull my transmission I don't remember any such sensor.

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1995 E420 Schwarz
1995 E300 Weiss
#1987 300D Sturmmachine
#1991 300D Nearly Perfect
#1994 E320 Cabriolet
#1995 E320 Touring
#1985 300D Sedan
OBK #42

Yes it is on the driver's side of the bell housing just above halfway point. Interesting in that my tach is not functional as well. As noted the car does have a vacuum line running from the tach module on the fender down to the crankshaft pulley on the front of the engine the same as the 300D. It might explain why the tach is not working if it needs something else from the bell housing . Now to figure out where the wires connect to. I have looked through the workshop manual but did not see anything that looked like the device.

I just finished reading the DIY article on changing the CPS, and yes this does indeed look like the beast.

Now the question is what does this thing do. Mine is not connected to anything at the other end. Any idea where this wires into the harness?

The car seems to run ok, but I wonder if the efficiency is off . The only real problem with the car is the tranny seems to shift funny( not shift up through the gears unless you let up on the accelerator) and flare (slipping?) during normal acceleration through the gears.