I like the idea of of th GP Relay disconnect.

This is a long thread and I might have already posted on this but where I worked my Boss sometimes used Ether. But, he never never squirted it in and ran around and tried to start. He always had someone else crank the Engine while he sprayed just enought to get the Eninge going. This way he controled how much Ether was used.

I also have seen him use the Gasoline on a Rag trick on a Big Righ Cummins. He dipped a old T shirt in Gasoline and stretched it over the Turbo Intake (all the intake ducting/tubing was removed) and held it tight. The Truck did start but we did not rev it while he had the T shirt on.
I have also seen him use WD-40, but I think the distance and the twists and turns in my 84 300D would keep the WD-40 from getting into the combustion chamber. Also, a cold day I doubt if WD-40 evaporates enough for anything to get into the combustion chamber.

Disconnecting the glowplugs is counterproductive. They do much more to help start a cold engine than ether.

How is this for further clarification?...disconnect the glow plug relay if your GP system is having issues and one or two may still be capable of glowing...again just to be extra safe and secure.

Sure fix the system but circumstances may dictate a delay in the repair

I used wd-40 on mine a couple times when I had a couple bad plugs. Small squirt into the intake of the air cleaner and it fired right up, it was about 10 degrees those 2 days, so yes it will work on your 300d in cold weather.

You guys just don't get it. The glow plugs are only half the problem. The other half is the high compression. Ether is designed for use on LOW COMPRESSION diesel engines. I'm not sure how else to 'splain it... but good luck if you are dumb enough to use it on any OM60x / OM61x Mercedes engine.

:nuke:

What in the world is a " low compression diesel engine " ? LOL

I suggest all this hand wringing is unnecessary because the number of btu's ( power ) in a couple of seconds of ether or starter fluid spray is way less than the power produced all the time by regular diesel fuel...

The one time you really really should NOT use either is if you have a heated intake on your diesel... like my ford tractor... but it says exactly that on the side of the engine.

I think JimSmith has posted the definitive explanation on this subject... somewhere in the archives...

Approx 16:1 instead of approx 22:1 ratio. Pretty common among older direct injection engines. Most indirect injection are the higher compression ratios (MB & VW through about 1999, anyway).



You're missing the point, LMG. The ether ignites at the wrong time, too early in the cycle, and tries to force the piston down when it was trying to still move upwards. Has nothing to do with BTU's or power, it's timing. Great way to crack rings.



And on any engine with glow plugs, you really really should NOT use ether... and it says exactly that on the side of the can of starting fluid.


:chinese2:

I think whunter & Brian have some good advice. The only time I have used ether is a quick spray in an old 871 GM 2 stroke in a scraper, they don't have much comp at the best of times. Anything with glow plugs doesn't need ether!

That is nice theory.

If you are out in the country at a job site and your equipment or your car will not start except with the addition of a spray of starter fluid and you have to get it going that day... what exactly do you suggest for the alternative ?

I know several people who have used gas mixed with their diesel to get started in very cold weather.. as per the MB owners manual.. I know of bulldozer operators who ran out of diesel and had to use straight gasoline to start and get back to the diesel can ... and lots of people who have used starter spray with no bad effects when they needed it...

It is often the case that a few examples of damage ( and from situations where the variables are not known before or after ) using something are repeated as horror stories that the actual percent of incidence is lost in the flags flying around... We might be talking about five engines damaged in 20 million applications of starter spray into the intake... I have no idea...

I still say that if the only way your car will start is with a two second spray into the intake of starter fluid with the engine being cranked over go ahead and use it because there are often no reasonable alternatives.

That's fine if you are using the ether on YOUR engines - if it breaks anything, you have to deal with the consequences. It's an entirely different story if you're recommending that OTHER people do this. You conveniently escape from any problems that may occur afterwards. Unless you're willing to pay the repair bill...?

Besides, I have personally tried using ether on a diesel engine with glow plugs (in desparation, on my own engine, years ago) and guess what? It didn't work. The engine just made rude noises and didn't fire anyway. A fully charged battery, working glow plugs, and block heater worked every time when ether didn't. I'm glad ether works for you, but I don't think it's wise for anyone to publicly recommend a procedure that is forbidden both by MB, as well as the label on the can of ether itself.


:Peace!:

My old (circa 1960) Case Diesel tractor has 4 manifold heaters that heat the incoming air. They are similar to a cigarette lighter coil and are screwed in the intake manifold.

The heaters are not manufactured any more and all 4 of mine were burned out. The replacement from Case parts service is a can of starting fluid with attachment so that the starting can be sprayed into the intake manifold where a heater was removed.

P E H

There's nothing as depraved as a man in the depths of an ether binge...

Thanks, Hunter.

My 6.2 chevy van has a warning near the intake - "NOTICE- DO NOT USE STARTING FLUIDS, IMMEDIATE ENGINE DAMAGE CAN RESULT"

I never use ether on a diesel engine. I use it on gasoline engines only.

I use WD-40 on very rare occasions. My local injection pump shop uses WD-40 to help start some engines after a pump rebuild, etc.

Ether is too "hot" for high compression engines, ignites too early, burns too fast.

I have 14 ,or so,diesel vehicles/trucks/tractors. MB, Chevy, Cummins, Case, Massey-Ferg.

Good maintenance = no starting aids required. Note: I do live in TN...occasional single digit temps. only.

Ditto. Watched a EMS garage crew bring in a cylinder head that had been blown off a 1996 7.3 DIT in a bam-balance because an idiot went crazy with the ether, due to a notoriously bad glow plug controller and through-valve cover gasket. As for Navistar DIT engines, compression ratios are lower for the turbo charged DI engines than they were for the IDI NA and Ford-installed Banks systems found in the 1994 1/2 trucks. This is one reason why the engine could not pull its own weight without a turbo if it was inop.