W210 won't start!!!!!!
 

My 300 glows and the starter cycles (at full battery power) for 7 seconds, then abrubtly stops. The fuel cap is tight, and nothing is leaking from anywhere. A friend suggested that the starter may need lubricating. Any help is appreciated--I fired my mechanic, remember:rolleyes:

Thanks!

You can hold the key in the start position - like a regular car - to crank it longer.

Is the preglow working? Leave the door open and watch the domelight while you preglow it. The glow plugs draw enough current that you can see the dome light dim. Without a preglow it will be cranky in anything below triple digit heat.

Been having any running problems lately? Longer cranking times, stumbling at idle, surging at cruise speed? If so you probably have air leaks in the fuel lines.

Try manually cranking it longer and giving it some, or all, the throttle. Cranking for up to about 30 seconds at a time is fine, though you need to let the starter cool down in between attempts.

If you can get it started, open the hood and examine the clear fuel lines at the fuel filter. If you see nothing - great! Air leaks show up as lots of bubbles rapidly zipping back and forth through the lines. If you got the air leak disease, it's time to find a mechanic to replace the lines, or at least the o-rings which seal them.

This particular problem stranded my E300 in West Texas for a week while the dealership tried to figure out what was wrong. After I told them, they got it fixed right up :)

- JimY

You are going to think I am a real dumba$$...
 

I didn't know you could continue to run the starter:rolleyes:

I just grinded it for about 45 sec, and she started. Smoked for about 45 sec after she started, then smoothed out. let it run for 5 min, restarted without a problem. same thing 5 min later.

You just saved me $300, sir. Thanks!!

Ok I have a stupid question, you mean the starter will engage automatically after the glow light burns with out manually turning the key to the "crank position"? Or am I missing something in the discription???????

shoe, I don't know if yours is like this, but on the 98 and 99, you don't hold the key in the start position until the engine starts. After the glow period, you turn it to start like any other car, then immediately let go. The computer takes over and finishes the starting cycle, automatically disengaging the starter at the appropriate time. Or up to seven seconds if the engine doesn't start. You can hold the key in the start position to override.

narwhal, the real question is what caused it to fail to start in the first place? You may not be out of the woods yet. Check the fuel lines around the filter for bubbles. Could be a leak there.

That sounds similar to what bleeding the fuel system on mine was like. I cranked her for about 30 seconds, she fired and ran a little rough and smoked a little for about 5 seconds, then ran normal with nothing wrong since.

But like he said, the question WHY did it happen is still very important. That should not happen out of the blue.

Rick, I am not sure if it will or not. I will have to try it and see. I will post the results.:cool: :cool:

Update
 

The car cranked fine this morning. I checked the clear fuel like near the filter for bubbles while the car was running and while it was off--no bubbles.

Rick, at what temp does your car usu. run?

80C on the dot in almost any conditions for 4 years.

However, I've had a couple instances recently where it ran up to 95 or so for no apparent reason. I'm suspecting a bad fan clutch, but haven't dug into it yet. Since the 240D is down, I drove the E300 this morning and it did not waver from 80.

Same here. steady 80 all the time--but lately up to 90 or so. i guess i need to take her in:(

I still have the extended warranty for 7K miles or so, but expecting a real fight over this one since its not technically "overheating." Please let me know what you find out.

Rick and other interested parties.....
 

....starting problem did not abate. Had a fuel delivery problem. Got a new indie with a shop floor you could eat off of.

New shut-off valve, all new seal rings and fuel lines, synthetic oil change, new shifter bushings, "dealer" scheduled maintenance service, new VSS (vehicle speed sensor) for right rear wheel, all dash bulbs replaced......$706.11. And they detailed the car.

I didn't think that was too bad. I have been working my ass off lately and would have lost ten times what the oil change cost if I would have done it myself.

Dang, you got a heck of a deal!

If you have an unexplained problem of running hot without
reason, I have seen a new issue with these turbo 606's.
I have had a few towed to me for running hot at idle, and lack
of performance. The water pump impeller (sp.) is made of plastic
and cracks where it connects to the drive shaft. Water pump can
stall out or just stop pumping. The hard part is, the pulley, belt,
and input shaft which is visible through an inspection hole will
all turn normally and be quiet. The last one was just stripped
on the shaft and was free-wheeling.
I don't know if 94-97 cars ever had these plastic pump guts.
I have never seen them on anything but turbo cars.
Usually some plastic debris ends up in the thermostadt unit, so
I always change those too.
You know us dealer guys...replace.. replace..replace.......
Dr.D