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#1
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1983 240d low power
Hello everyone, a little over a year ago now I manual swapped my 240d after the automatic blew out and love it. However, when I do 0-60's I'm still doing 30+ seconds on my times like I have an automatic. I hear people with 240d 4 speeds can do 0-60's in low 20's with a strong engine I'm assuming. I have great low end power in first gear, but by the time I'm in third with my foot to the floor the car winds up between 40-60mph like it lost its power.
Here's what I've done so far: Throttle mechanism goes to the stop on the IP Changed both primary and secondary fuel filters Valve adjustment Lift pump was rebuilt a few years ago with new hand primer Overflow valve spring is set to 30mm Air filter is pretty clean also My assumptions for low power: Dirty tank strainer Needs a diesel purge Poor fuel injector spray pattern IP adjustments are off (I doubt it but I'm just hypothesizing) I recently pulled the fuel sender to clean it and found lots of gunk after 30+ years of algae buildup in the bottom of the sender. I'm wondering If I should pull the fuel tank strainer since its the only filter that has not been cleaned in the fuel system. I have never done a diesel purge on the car either, so thats on the table too. The car also misfires sometimes at idle and I wonder if that has anything to do with the tanker strainer being clogged.? One final question I have is can you clean the fuel tank with it in the car? like pull the strainer and use a garden hose to clean all the gunk out into a 5 gallon bucket or will the water puddle in the tank and it will never come out? |
#2
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Everything you haven’t done is pretty significant.
By all means, pull the strainer. Re: cleaning the tank, the question will answer itself once you’ve examined the strainer. When did you last clean your injectors? What’s your IP timing? How much chain stretch? What’s your compression like?
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1981 240D 4sp manual. Ivory White. |
#3
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@Shern The car has never had the injectors pulled or tested before. Me and my father have not done a compression test to my knowledge. The timing chain was replaced in 2014 by an ASE Master mechanic so I know that the timing chain is good. I have run biobore and startron to clean the fuel system but I know that is not going to deep clean the IP or the injectors like a diesel purge. We have also never done anything to the IP timing since we have owned the car
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#4
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Regarding cleaning the tank, I'd certainly avoid trying to clean it while its installed in the vehicle. It isn't too big of a job to remove one, just a messy job as you almost are guaranteed to bathe in diesel. I've flushed out a few tanks with a hose (when the tank is removed from the car) but they are typically prone to rusting so you want to make sure to dry it out before reinstalling. I've taped a hair dryer to the stem that the diesel nozzle goes inside of and left it for hours to ensure its dry in there. I also know some 240ds came with plastic tanks but pretty rare. Maybe you have one of those, who knows.
I don't think its possible to flush the tank when in the car for the record, you'd never be able to get the water out. As for the culprit of your issue I'm not sure but the tank is never a bad place to start.
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#5
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Well, those things are all pretty vital.
If you’ve a tired engine with retarded IP timing and peeing injector nozzles, nothing else is going to make much of a dent. Diesel purge isn’t a bad idea but it’s not going to shave any time off that 60 run. I’ve got my 240 down to around :18. All of the things I’ve mentioned are in order: good, even compression, rebuilt injectors, IP timing at 26 degrees. I’m also running aluminum wheels and euro bumpers which contribute a significant weight reduction.
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1981 240D 4sp manual. Ivory White. |
#6
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Take the car for a drive. Coast to a stop. Check your wheel temperatures.
If you have no history on the injectors. Removing them and having them checked is not a bad ideal. They may or may not need a rebuild. I would check the injection pump timing just in case it is retarded. |
#7
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I have all 4 four factory aluminum wheels the 240d came with and also have done significant brake work in the past year so no brakes are dragging. What is the procedure for checking IP timing? If I find out I have a strong and healthy diesel engine then I can go forward with power improvements, if not then I'll have to live with it.
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#8
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Quote:
Best to look it up in the archives. It is called drip timing. You really would just be checking it. Only adjusting the injection pump if it was out of time. Last edited by barry12345; 10-02-2020 at 11:26 PM. |
#9
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Slow 240D
Subscribed as I want to learn your eventual problem .
I never trust anyone else to do anything properly, I paid a guy to time my 300CD's IP and it too was sluggish , Rich helped me test it and Lo ! the IP was way retarded, bumping it up made the car run very well indeed . X 10 on pulling the injectors and having them pop tested, especially since it has an irregular miss @ idle . Consider having greazer build you a set of injectors, money well spent in fuel economy and smooth engine operation . Remove and clean the in tank sender, all you need is a toothbrush and some good strong soap like "AWSOME!" from the .99 CENTS store or the blue degreaser @ Sams Club, BE SURE TO LET IT DRY FULLY BEFORE RE INSTALLING ! . A tiny bit of moisture will damage the injectors . If the in tank strainer is nasty, take some time to find a 300D tank, junkyards usually have them, they're bigger yet bolt right in , you can clean it out at your leisure and install it, go 500 + miles between fill ups.... .
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-Nate 1982 240D 408,XXX miles Ignorance is the mother of suspicion and fear is the father I did then what I knew how to do ~ now that I know better I do better |
#10
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Yeah I'm probably going to pull the tank strainer this afternoon since I have free time and just spray the hell out of it with brake clean and put it back in. I already cleaned my sending unit by hand with compressed air, steel wool, and sandpaper on the shaft since it was rusty. Works great but can be off sometimes, but hey what can you expect from a 30+ year old part and it was also my first time cleaning it lol.
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#11
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Fuel System Cleaning
I hope it works out well .
I use soap and water and a soft bristle brush . Keep an eye on the clear plastic fuel intake screen under the hood ~ it'll let you know the *instant* you begin to have fuel issues . The tank strainer nut is huge, like 46MM but if you undo the hose from the chassis line and slip a box 17MM wrench up it you'll usually find the entire strainer, sub hose and all comes right out . If the sub hose has any cracks in it simply cut the sheet metal crimp away and it slides with off exposing a standard hose nipple, no need to buy a $pecial sub hose, standard 7MM Diesel rated hose and one clamp will set you right again .
__________________
-Nate 1982 240D 408,XXX miles Ignorance is the mother of suspicion and fear is the father I did then what I knew how to do ~ now that I know better I do better |
#12
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Yeah I can't pull the strainer today since I do not have the 46mm socket to loosen the strainer nut. When I broke the 19mm subline that screws into the strainer nut it did not come out as one complete assembly and its impossible to get that strainer nut out with channel locks. So I'm putting it back together for now since I need to use the car tomorrow and Friday to go to school, when I can buy a 46mm socket I'll do the whole process over again and send pics of how dirty the strainer might or might not be. However, I did get a little bit more power out of my engine after changing my fixed fan to a fan clutch of a 300sd. It moves a ton more air and sounds great when you rev it up so I'm happy about that, but I'll post an update soon hopefully.
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#13
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Progress !
Sounds good .
FWIW, you can remove that huge nut with a large pair of water pump pliers but your knuckles will suffer . ? Is there anything in the clear plastic fuel intake screen ? .
__________________
-Nate 1982 240D 408,XXX miles Ignorance is the mother of suspicion and fear is the father I did then what I knew how to do ~ now that I know better I do better |
#14
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Yeah no I changed the fuel filters recently and the prefilter had some black stuff in the bottom since its been a few years since both filters have been changed. I ran some startron through the tank shortly after and when I was under the car I looked at the strainer bolt and the whole thing looked brand new like it had been changed recently. My father later that night told me he changed the strainer a few years back and runs startron through there every year, also the fuel that came out was perfectly clean so I think the strainer is perfectly clean and I'll go after some other things on the vehicle. I also changed my fixed fan to a fan clutch off from a 300sd recently and that helped performance a little bit too.
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#15
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Just a little update for anyone who read this thread, it has been a few months and I did a diesel purge and changed the fuel filters again afterward because the mason jar of diesel purge was pitch black with lots of sediment at the bottom. It hadn't been done in 7 years lol, I couldn't really tell if this did any improvement to performance since I haven't driven the car that much after the purge, but it's still a very good idea to do a diesel purge as preventative maintenance and to hopefully restore some horsepower in an old Mercedes diesel.
However, something that really improved power was adding a quart of two-stroke oil to a full tank of fuel, I timed a 0-60 run and dropped 10 seconds, with a second passenger in the car who weighs close to 200lbs. I highly recommend as a little pick me up for an old Mercedes diesel to add some 2 stroke oil in the fuel tank for extra power if you can afford it. I really want to go after my injectors next since they are original to the car and are probably very worn out, and most likely causing a power problem. I also plan to go through the cylinder head one day and inspect the pistons and cylinder sleeves, but baby steps first! I also think I will inspect my glowplugs and ream out any carbon since my car will lope and shake alot at idle when it is cold started (its winter right now and its ranging between 30-50 degrees F), but after running it at high idle for a minute it smoothes out. Reaming out the carbon can improve the operation of the glowplugs, fuel economy, and performance, from what I have heard, so I am curious to see if the claims hold up. |
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