Advice needed please - Page 2 - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

compress ignite · #16 07-23-2008, 01:54 AM

Man,That's rough!

After the Horses have left the Barn.

Better late than never.

Cervan · #17 07-23-2008, 02:28 AM

Be carefull, if they dumped sugar in the tank it would ruin your engine in a short order as the sugar carmalizes and creates a huge mass of crap at the tip of the injector and inside the combustion chamber.

If they simply loaded your tank with rocks and crap i would drop the tank screen wash it out with water and fill it to the brim with diesel.

If you need to get to wherever your destination is in a hurry, you can bypass all this by going to a gas station that has an air compressor and take your fuel line off (the main line that feeds the Ip not the return) take the cap off of your tank and blow the living crap out of it with the air. you should then beable to get more fuel, but im unsure of how long it would last until you would have to do it again.

kerry · #18 07-23-2008, 07:03 PM

Don't keep us hanging. Let us know how things turned out. I hope you're on the road heading for another motel tonight.

miljohnj5 · #19 07-23-2008, 07:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kerry

Don't keep us hanging. Let us know how things turned out. I hope you're on the road heading for another motel tonight.

I found a guy who doesn't know diesels but he's been a real help. We drained the tank and the problem isn't in the tank. The fuel makes it into the primary filter fine. After that the injectors just aren't working. This took a better half of the day and they guy/owner helping me only charged $60- very kind. The car slowly died last night and today it ran at a slow pace then started climbing above 40mph and then wouldn't start and the fuel doen't leave the injector pump and isn't injected into the hard fuel lines. I'm guessing a new injector pump- major dollars plus labor. My insurance only tows 45 miles and I CANNOT find an indie within 45 miles of St James MO. Guys please, as a fellow in need, if anyone knows of a mechanic within 45miles of St James MO please let me know. The hotel where I suspect the kids messed up my car hasn't called back. I sent an e-mail to the manager, then called him. He hasn't been there nor responded to my message. Things are still sideways. After that huge repair bill before I left where they did things they never asked me about I've almost had it, especially if this injector pump is the problem, the engine could still be toast too. My insurance won't cover it all. Geez, I need a break.

Avarec · #20 07-23-2008, 07:41 PM

were still by your side dont give up

kerry · #21 07-23-2008, 07:47 PM

Was there any evidence of any substance in the tank? If there was nothing in the filters, then it's hard to understand what would have damaged the IP. Does anyone know what sugar does when dissolved in diesel fuel? Could it pass thru the filters and damage the IP?
Did the mechanic try running it on an alternative fuel supply as I described?
What primer pump does it have? The old white screw tight kind or the newer spring loaded one? Did you or the mechanic use the primer pump during the testing process? Could it be letting air into the system? Could air be getting in some other way after working on the system?

miljohnj5 · #22 07-23-2008, 07:48 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Avarec

were still by your side dont give up

Thanks- one of the repairs I asked for before I left was to have the timing chain replaced. Can a bad crimping job affect the injector timing? What about the vacuum system problem because of the unlocked fuel door- couldn't the same source also affect the injection timing/shifting since the transmission shift points can be vacuum controlled???

miljohnj5 · #23 07-23-2008, 07:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kerry

Was there any evidence of any substance in the tank? If there was nothing in the filters, then it's hard to understand what would have damaged the IP. Does anyone know what sugar does when dissolved in diesel fuel? Could it pass thru the filters and damage the IP?
Did the mechanic try running it on an alternative fuel supply as I described?
What primer pump does it have? The old white screw tight kind or the newer spring loaded one? Did you or the mechanic use the primer pump during the testing process? Could it be letting air into the system? Could air be getting in some other way after working on the system?

When we drained it, it ran fast all the way down without blockage. It has the newer spring loaded pump and we used it. He also thought of air intrusion but nothing happened after we replaced the cigar hose because of a slight leak. We haven't tried running it from a smaller source. He was working to get up speed by familiarizing himself with the engine today. PLus, I gave him some indie numbers to call that I got from the forum here. Most have been real helpful but basically they have to look at it.

kerry · #24 07-23-2008, 07:57 PM

Vacuum problems will not effect injector timing.
Timing problems can result when replacing a chain. But the fact that the car ran well from NY to MO that this seems unlikely.

miljohnj5 · #25 07-23-2008, 08:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kerry

Vacuum problems will not effect injector timing.
Timing problems can result when replacing a chain. But the fact that the car ran well from NY to MO that this seems unlikely.

Is there a chance they dumped in gas or something? The guy helping me said he's heard of oil trucks filling up gas in the diesel tanks at smaller places. Would it mess up the injectors though? A little help is welcomed. The hotel I'm staying at now is questionable. A cop came to the door this morning and was discussing details about blood samples being taken from a hotel room here and took the front desk managers name who seemed to act like she was personally involved because the cop spoke of a court date about it with her, geez- Bates.

kerry · #26 07-23-2008, 08:24 PM

In my mind, the most likely thing they were doing was trying to get fuel out of the tank rather than putting anything in. Given the increase in fuel prices, this has become a problem. So, if you found no evidence of foreign substance in the tank you might consider the possibiity that your problem is not associated with the fuel door being open or at least that it is not caused by a foreign substance.
How much fuel did the mechanic find when he drained the tank? If the tank was drained, you may have sucked some air into the system and it could be the source of your problems.

miljohnj5 · #27 07-23-2008, 08:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kerry

In my mind, the most likely thing they were doing was trying to get fuel out of the tank rather than putting anything in. Given the increase in fuel prices, this has become a problem. So, if you found no evidence of foreign substance in the tank you might consider the possibiity that your problem is not associated with the fuel door being open or at least that it is not caused by a foreign substance.
How much fuel did the mechanic find when he drained the tank? If the tank was drained, you may have sucked some air into the system and it could be the source of your problems.

The fuel cap was off when I discovered the problem so it was put back in place before I left yesterday morning. I don't understand though how the injection pump isn't working if its just air in the lines. The hard lines aren't pumping any fuel now. They were earlier in the day and now nothing. I'd guess if junk were dumped in the tank its made its way to the injection pump and killed it but I have no real training experience either. I had about half a tank before and after the incident and we drained about that much out.

kerry · #28 07-23-2008, 08:36 PM

The IP won't pump fuel if it has air in it. It's the most common cause of lack of fuel in the injector hard lines. This doesn't mean the problem could not have been caused by a foreign substance in the fuel but I think you need to confirm that before exploring that hypothesis any further.
Did as much fuel as you expected drain out of the tank?

miljohnj5 · #29 07-23-2008, 08:43 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kerry

The IP won't pump fuel if it has air in it. It's the most common cause of lack of fuel in the injector hard lines. This doesn't mean the problem could not have been caused by a foreign substance in the fuel but I think you need to confirm that before exploring that hypothesis any further.
Did as much fuel as you expected drain out of the tank?

Yes- about as much. I had 3/4 tank and about 10 gallons came out with a little left in the tank which we later drained and replaced with good diesel. At which point it started to run better then got worse than before. Sorry about the sporadic details- how can we bleed the fuel lines to get rid of the air pockets?

oldiesel · #30 07-23-2008, 09:18 PM

Sugar in the fuel is an urban myth.Unless one puts in enough to stop up the supply line.It is not soluble in gas or diesel fuel,would be no different than putting sand or any other non-soluble granular substance in the fuel. Would never get past any fuel filter. My $.02 Don