190E stalls after shifting in gear - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

rfremista · #1 06-30-2003, 02:50 PM

hey everyone,

initially I had a high idle problem a few months back so I decided to take the distributor apart with all the injector lines, valves etc and showered it with carburator cleaner. Soon after reinstall idling went down from around 1000 rpm to about 750 ........ fine and dandy for a while until just recently the car started hesitating and then stalling on me. Whenever I shift the car into gear idling drops and car just dies .............. I've been looking at forums and I've found the following suggestions that I will try to look into

EHA
OVP
Fuel Pump Relay

I was wondering where I should start with the troubleshooting and I guess the most cost effective. I don't wanna be replacing parts left and right without proper diagnosis.

ejsharp · #2 07-01-2003, 12:51 AM

I'd bet on the fuel relay. My guess is cracked solder joints. Take out relay... take off cover and examine the back of the circuit board with a magnifying glass. Chances are you will see a circular crack around one or more of the solder spots where pins from the electromagnet and points that are mounted to the other side of the board, stick through to the back of the board.

If so resolder the spots or buy new relay from parts shop.

rfremista · #3 07-02-2003, 04:41 PM

hey EJSHarp,

thanks for the response ................. This fuel pump relay, is it around the area behind the battery beside the Over voltage protection relay?

ejsharp · #4 07-02-2003, 07:08 PM

Yes... thats where it is on my 300E. I have two relays there next to the over voltage guy. Both are about the size of a pack of cigarettes... one has Klima written on it which is Climate in German and the other has Kickdown written on it. Kickdown is the fuel relay. Pull the relay and slide the cover up off the base to expose the circuit board. The board will contain two or three assemblies of elecrtomagnet and points. These guys are heavier than the other stuff on the board and over time fatigue cracks from the cars motion form at the solder points. Look carefully preferably with magnifying glass and you may see circular cracks around the pins where they stick through the board. I had three spots on my board crack.

rfremista · #5 07-04-2003, 04:46 PM

hey Earl,

thanks for the info.

I would say that I resoldered most of the joints on the fuel pump relay but no luck with it. It would still stall on me.

I did not get a chance to test it with a different OVP, I might have to call a few places to see if they even have it. I will be changing the spark plugs, distributor cap and rotor, and wires tonight and see if that does anything.

You know what though, I noticed that my EHA has been disconected, I don't even know where the connector is and what color coding they are. Any ideas on what it should look like as well as how the EHA works?

I will keep u posted.

Ramil

ejsharp · #6 07-04-2003, 10:25 PM

I never worked on the EHA and am not familiar with it's function.

I just did a quick search and saw that it is fuel related so I would definately ask the forum if the EHA could cause your symptoms.

Possibly start a new thread and do a search to see what you can find out.

If its disconnected then I'd say that you have an excellent starting point for troubleshooting the problem.

rfremista · #7 07-08-2003, 12:39 PM

Well, I ended up replacing the the spark plugs, plug wires, distributor cap and rotor ............... voila the car is doing just fine. I test drove it around the block, slowing down, shifting and making sure that it doesn't stall and it seems to idle nice around 750 rpm. I hope that this was really the fix. I would still like to study the functionality of the EHA and maybe go to the scrap yard and collect as much of electronic relays as I can get because you never know. Up here in Vancouver we have I would say very equivalent emissions standards as in California. I know that the previous owner had a difficult time getting this car to pass emissions and that's why I think he sold it. I need to understand the whole fuel system of this car and get it to spec. If you have any suggestions that would be great.

Ramil

haasman · #8 07-08-2003, 01:26 PM

The 190E had similiar problems. I did the same in replacing the cap, rotor, wires and plugs.

Additionally through the suggestion of a MNZ tech, I bled the injector lines at the fuel distributor. A lot of gunk came out but the results were impressive. I have also read on this site of others doing the same and seeing a lot of crud come out. You may want to try it.

Just be careful: raw fuel and a running engine.

Haasman

michael cole · #9 07-08-2003, 01:33 PM

im having a similar intermittant stalling/rough runing problem on my 90 4matic wagon.could this be a fuel pump relay issue as well.doesnt happen all the time.infact 98% of the time the car runs great.im puzzled!

rfremista · #10 07-08-2003, 02:51 PM

thx for the quick response haasman!

I lived in the East Bay for two years and I miss it. I will definitely try the bleeding procedure and hopefully better the performance of the car. I have been reading the forum with the similar symptoms that I have and it seems to me that my car would fall under the "running rich" category. My understanding is that this can't be good when you're trying to get this car to pass emissions. Some of my other problems also include pool of oil in my air cleaner box????

cheers
-Ramil