1985 300TD wagon...cranks but doesn't start
 

The glow plug light doesn't come on but the starter cranks. Any advice?
Maybe this is one I'd better leave to professionals rather that trying to fix it myself. I'm pretty much of a driveway oil change minor repair type, don't have much electrical diagnostic capabilities. What's the typical tab on this kind of repair?

thanks!

Jon

You've got a GP problem. If you've got a multimeter its easy to figure out.

Go to dieselgiant.com and follow the tutorial for the W123.

yep, you have one or more burnt out glow plugs.

[dad mode on]Before you were a "driveway oil change minor repair type", you were a ride a bike type, play with blocks type. Don't sell yourself short. Have faith in your own abilities and confidence in your actions. Read up on how it's done, find all the angles, learn all the steps, Gather up tools and proceed with new found knowledge and confidence. It feels good to do it yourself.[Dad mode off]

:)

Ditto...it might be a bad relay or a few glowplugs are out. The glow system is pretty simple and it would be worth it if you can troubleshoot it yourself, since its kind of a regular thing that you'll have to deal with. Here's the tutorial:
http://dieselgiant.com/glowplugrepair.htm
Its not hard, all you need is a multimeter to test everything. If you can change oil, you can do this. And changing them is equivalent to changing spark plugs (in difficulty).

thanks fellas. let me dig out the multimeter, check the tutorial and check back later.

It also could be a bad glow plug strip fuse.

check number one glow plug first. That's the one the the timer relay senses to time the length of the glow cycle. Also, check the strip fuse on top of the relay itself. Should be on the inside of the drivers side fenderwell up behind the headlamp.

This is what you came here for!

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