hi everyone!
so my '78 300d has been having issues accelerating and reaching maximum speeds. the plastic inline filter is not anywhere near being half full, so i have a feeling that its not getting enough fuel. i was going to start by cleaning the fuel screen on my tank....
everything i've looked up on line says to just drain the fuel tank, what would be the easiest way to do this???
and then how do i get the screen out?

thanks!
sanna

Get under it and look. You should see a big nut above the rear axle. Unscrew it and the screen comes out.

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Jim

Hi Sanna,

In my opinion you are better off siphoning the fuel out of the top of the tank before attempting to remove the screen. There are many many threads along the lines of "how do I get diesel out of my eyes / hair / clothes" on this forum. If you remove the diesel safely first you'll not have to start a thread like this of your own!

To gain access to the top of the tank you need to remove the first aid kit and then remove the fuel tank sender unit. (The bit that measures how much fuel you have left in your tank).

You'll need a 46mm socket / open ended spanner to remove the fuel sender. You're better off with a 46mm box spanner if you can find one as this is the best tool for the tank screen which is also 46mm. (I've had trouble finding them though) Funola did some jiggery pokery with some plumbing supplies in this thread

Daft W123 300D nut and bolts sizes

There's also this in the wiki that is probably of interest to you

PeachPartsWiki: 240D Fuel Tank Removal and Cleaning

And if you want to be sure you've got a fuel blockage you might like to try swapping the return and supply lines at the engine end and seeing if that helps. This will work with at least a 1/4 full tank - perhaps 1/8 full...

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1992 W201 190E 1.8 171,000 km - Daily driver
1981 W123 300D ~ 100,000 miles / 160,000 km - project car stripped to the bone
1965 Land Rover Series 2a Station Wagon CIS recovery therapy!
1961 Volvo PV544 Bare metal rat rod-ish thing

I'm here to chat about cars and to help others - I'm not here "to always be right" like an internet warrior



Don't leave that there - I'll take it to bits!

You might also want to remove the ground strap from the battery before you begin

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Mike Murrell
1991 300-SEL - Model 126
M103 - SOHC
"Fräulein"

I agree. And while you're under the tank, I would replace the rubber hoses as it's time anyway on a 1978 car.

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Don't Chrome them; polish them

thanks everyone! i'll give it a try today