I have read many articles on here but all are for 123 and 126's so I am getting confused as to which information is correct for my car (1987 Mercedes 300TD Wagon). I have a rough shift through all gears really and it thump's into them at almost any throttle location.

I am going to examine the vacuum lines this weekend, does anyone have the vacuum line diagram they can share with me?

[Diagram - Page 6 & 7 for 603.69 engine from 87 W124 Turbo Wagon]
- Right click link and Save As...

I read in this thread this:

" Bad flex disk at tranny -- makes a thump when it shifts, vibrates some. Easy fix."

... but they are talking about a 300TE not a TD, different transmissions?

What other things can I look/test this weekend when I really sit down and diagnose this issue?

Thanks for reading, you guys have been more than helpful with everything I have asked on this forum!

__________________
'87 300TD Estate (Panzer Wagon, Sold)
'95 E320 Estate (Sabertooth, Sold)
'94 E500 (Stark 1, For Sale)
'04 VW GTI (Rhino, Sold)
'12 VW GTI Autobahn (Shadow)

I knocked a vacuum line off early this week, replacing the glow-plug relay and must've bumped it. Test drive was a very jarring hard shift in all gears, I knew it was a vacuum problem, became more obvious when my climate control wouldn't blow on my feet.

Sounds like a vacuum leak, check all lines and fittings visually, might find it. The little green thing and blue saucer on the driver-side fender is a good place to start.

__________________

Gone to the dark side

- Jeff

I am going to dive into this on the weekend; more interestingly my climate control isn't blowing on my feet either.

__________________
'87 300TD Estate (Panzer Wagon, Sold)
'95 E320 Estate (Sabertooth, Sold)
'94 E500 (Stark 1, For Sale)
'04 VW GTI (Rhino, Sold)
'12 VW GTI Autobahn (Shadow)

I took some pictures last night of the 'blue thingy' and the fittings looks worn in a few places so I am thinking about replacing them one by one. Any suggestions on what to get?

The second picture is of something a previous mechanic did to stop a vacuum leak that he had found using some goop.

Attached Thumbnails

     

__________________
'87 300TD Estate (Panzer Wagon, Sold)
'95 E320 Estate (Sabertooth, Sold)
'94 E500 (Stark 1, For Sale)
'04 VW GTI (Rhino, Sold)
'12 VW GTI Autobahn (Shadow)

I knocked a couple vacuum lines off this week. I had to move the windshield washer reservoir to change the #5 glow plug. I had the same symptoms, hard shifts and no floor heat. I had knocked 2 lines off near the blue saucer.


Kaiz3n, was your feet heat working before the problem started? You may need new foot well pod(s). If you are chasing vacuum leaks and want to eliminate some vacuum lines, you can get the EGR blocking plate from Brian Carlton. Then you can get rid of the lines and associated junk behind the passenger headlight. I would get some new vacuum tube and replace the rubber connections if you think they are leaking. What part did the PO Goop?

__________________
1987 300TD 309, xxx 2.8.2014 10,000 mile OCI


Be careful of the toes you step on today, as they may be connected to the ass you have to kiss tomorrow. anonymous

“Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don’t matter, and those who matter won’t mind.” Dr. Seuss

I seem to remember the vents working at the floor before recently however the transmission has had a hard shift since I got the vehicle this past month.

Brian Carlton, I assume your not talking about the one who was a radio host and journalist in Australia. I will see if I can get in contact with him on the forms and look into this blocking plate you speak of.

As for the vacuum tube to replace the rubber connections, is there a vacuum repair kit with a bunch of assorted pieces? Y & T splits, things like that I figure are cheap so I am hoping to find a bunch together in some sort of repair kit.

Bio300TDTDriver - In the second picture that I uploaded in my previous post (the on in the middle) there is a vacuum line coming from the top of the picture, right in the middle. That line end dead center of the picture where you can see the goop used by the private mechanic.

Thanks for your input!

- Frank

__________________
'87 300TD Estate (Panzer Wagon, Sold)
'95 E320 Estate (Sabertooth, Sold)
'94 E500 (Stark 1, For Sale)
'04 VW GTI (Rhino, Sold)
'12 VW GTI Autobahn (Shadow)

I meant this BC.

EGR blocking plate kit

__________________
1987 300TD 309, xxx 2.8.2014 10,000 mile OCI


Be careful of the toes you step on today, as they may be connected to the ass you have to kiss tomorrow. anonymous

“Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don’t matter, and those who matter won’t mind.” Dr. Seuss

Thanks, I found him on hear earlier today and figured he was the guy you were talking about ;')

I need a link of this for 2morrow:

http://www.mercedesdismantlers.com/diesel_vacuum_system

__________________
'87 300TD Estate (Panzer Wagon, Sold)
'95 E320 Estate (Sabertooth, Sold)
'94 E500 (Stark 1, For Sale)
'04 VW GTI (Rhino, Sold)
'12 VW GTI Autobahn (Shadow)

The gooped part looks like the elbow on the vacuum modulator / Injection pump. Not a normal elbow, not sure it's available without the modulator.

__________________

Gone to the dark side

- Jeff

I believe it is not available as a separate item.

__________________
1987 300TD 309, xxx 2.8.2014 10,000 mile OCI


Be careful of the toes you step on today, as they may be connected to the ass you have to kiss tomorrow. anonymous

“Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don’t matter, and those who matter won’t mind.” Dr. Seuss

So I went out and purchased a MittyVac for testing. I then proceeded to print out the directions from http://www.mercedesdismantlers.com/diesel_vacuum_system to start my diagnostics. I tapped into the Brake Booster line that goes to another splitter with the car on as it says in the directions and I got an instant reading of 20"-23" the needle was a little shaky but it was consistent. Then I went through the rest of the directions however I ran into an issue; I was unable to find the White Bleed Valve nor the White Vacuum Switch. Upon further investigation the picture that they show for the White Vacuum Switch looks like it is a N/A carb motor judging by the plate where a circular air filter sits. I could be mistaken.

Either way am I going crazy? Haha I replaced a few rubber ends that were worn and the one from the EGR was disconnected so I replaced that one too. Nothing changed.

Transmission still instantly shifts w/ a thud especially into 3rd gear; but noticeably in 1st to 2nd etc. Is there any other DIY testing page I can do MittyVac testing w/?

Thanks for looking,

__________________
'87 300TD Estate (Panzer Wagon, Sold)
'95 E320 Estate (Sabertooth, Sold)
'94 E500 (Stark 1, For Sale)
'04 VW GTI (Rhino, Sold)
'12 VW GTI Autobahn (Shadow)

Let's try this again; throwin' this thread back up on top to see if I can get some bites. I have been doing some more reading up on the subject as I would like to find the obvious vacuum leaks in my system so the transmission shifts smoother (piece of mind) and my floor vents start working.

I purchased a MittyVac this weekend and equipped with that and this article I went out to see what I could find; I have to admit I did not get far with MittyVac testing as the article showed pictures/described things (White Bleed Valve, and White Vacuum Switch) that my friend and I were unable to find.

However in the picture below the red/black stroked circle shows where I attached the MittyVac for testing and the results were as follows:

With the car on...
Pump jumped to 20" and although was a shaky, it really stuck at 20"-23".

It did not drop or dip at all, it just went from starting at 20" to 23" after a minute and stayed consistently at those two levels.

In that same picture the red arrows are worn vacuum tubing that I felt needing replacement, so they were replaced.

1) The article mentioned before says I should have had 10"-20" is 20"-23" too much?

2) Does anyone have a link to an article where I can follow some more testing?

3) Where should I go from here?

I am new to the MB scene and I appreciate the knowledge found here on these forums; there have been many of you who are been most helpful. I can order new tail lights/headlights and put those in with no problems but coming from a VW background (although they have vacuum lines too) this is a set up in technicality. I would love to learn how to diagnose these systems and find this/other vacuum leaks and start doing more things on my own!

Creating DIY's with pictures would also be something I would like to do, I am a web developer maybe I should just make a Mercedes DIY web page where all can contribute. =)

Anyway thanks for reading, get back to me whenever you can.

- Frank

Attached Thumbnails

 

__________________
'87 300TD Estate (Panzer Wagon, Sold)
'95 E320 Estate (Sabertooth, Sold)
'94 E500 (Stark 1, For Sale)
'04 VW GTI (Rhino, Sold)
'12 VW GTI Autobahn (Shadow)

Find the vacuum pump.

On the pump there are two outlets. The small outlet will lead to a five way connector. Two of the vacuum lines go to the right side of the vehicle and two go to the left side (driver's side). Cut the two lines that go to the right side of the engine compartment and plug the remaining hose stubs on the connector side. You can leave the lines open that run over to the right side.

Drive the vehicle and see if the shifts improve.

Brian,

I did as you said and I can not tell if I am experiencing a placebo or there are some cleaner shifts. So far it seems as to 1st-to-2nd shifts are smoother and then 2nd-to-3rd seemed smoother however I slowly brought the RPM's up because I remember it kicked hard into 3rd from 2nd doing so and sure enough it jerked itself into 3rd somewhere around 20-25MPH.

What does blocking those two lines do?

I was planning on driving it to work 2morrow that way so that I could get a better test.

__________________
'87 300TD Estate (Panzer Wagon, Sold)
'95 E320 Estate (Sabertooth, Sold)
'94 E500 (Stark 1, For Sale)
'04 VW GTI (Rhino, Sold)
'12 VW GTI Autobahn (Shadow)

Take it to work and see how it runs when fully warmed. If it's much better, you can just leave it as it is. They tend to be a bit too firm when cold. There is a shift softener when cold that helps this issue if it's functioning properly.