HELP! My 240D is dead. No start, no lights ..
 

I just went out to start my '79 240D and the following occurred:
-turned key to glow position, and glow light came on as well as radio.
-turned key to start and nothing happened, not even one crank.
-no lights, no power to anything.

-I drove the car 70 miles earlier today with no problems. Made a 1/2 hour stop on the way home, and the car started right up which makes me rule out the alternator.
-The clock was working until I turned the key.
-All fuses look good.
-If it was the ignition switch, wouldn't I still have headlights and clock working?

Thanks for any input,

Check your battery cables and connections.

-Jason

This sounds a lot like a loose battery cable. I've had that happen a few times on different cars.

Loose battery cable or poor connection between cable and post.

cables were the first thing I checked. They were tight. I went out and loosened the negative, wiggled it and now I have power back.
It's always been something simple with this car.Love it.

Now is the time to remove and clean the battery terminals and cable clamps of oxidation. Treat the posts with something to prevent or reduce future oxidation. Otherwise the current senario ('pun intended) will probably occur again. Also at present you may not be getting quite the full current possibly available when starting.

x2

I had the same thing in Chevy Diesel truck, I went under hoping to find a disconnect and... I've found it. Cable going to the starter simply came apart from age/rust/vibrations. Check Yours for the same problem, I hope it will be as easy fix as mine was.

If the battery end is good, check where the cables go on the other end. As I recall on my W126 the ground goes right to the body.

-Jason

Otto,

Sounds like It may be time to replace the battery Cables with new ones... 'cause the corrosion may be on the wire strand bundle inside the cable insulation especially after 15-20 years. When you "wiggled" the wires, it probably disturbed the wires enough to get some juice to the starter...

Motor on

Like Freeride said...check connections going to the starter. The exact same thing happened to me and it turned out to be a wire going to the starter had vibrated out.

Thanks guys,

I've looked online for a positive battery cable with starter and alternator connections and can't find one. I guess I'll end up at the dealer. Has anyone purchased this cable for their 123? How much was it?

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