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Is the car by any chance a manual transmission car?
I am pretty sure the car is not starting now because the starter and battery are not spinning the crank fast enough to support ignition of the Diesel fuel. And the longer you crank unsuccessfully, the slower the engine spins as the weaker the charge on the battery gets, the hotter the starter gets, and I think extended cranking may increase friction between the cylinder and the piston as the unburned injected fuel washes the oil film away. A push start will get things going again, and clean out the combustion chambers (only really a practical solution if you have a manual transmission).
I would check all the glow plugs as when it gets chilly a bad plug or two will make starting much harder than it needs to be. Bad plugs, a weak battery and possibly a weak starter will conspire to make your winter miserable.
Also, based on my own experience, I would check the motor movement when the starter is engaged. If the engine is flopping around and the driver's side mount is broken, you are expending an extraordinary amount of the available energy from the battery and starter lifting the engine up to let it drop a few times per crank revolution. I had this situation on our 1982 240D and it eventually broke the starter and loosened the exhaust manifold joint to the head. The problem is very obvious if you watch the engine while someone else engages the starter.
Well, good luck and I hope the car has a manual transmission. A couple yards at a decent clip, drop it in 3rd and let the clutch go with the starting key in the run position. Should fire up in a few feet. Jim
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Own:
1986 Euro 190E 2.3-16 (291,000 miles),
1998 E300D TurboDiesel, 231,000 miles -purchased with 45,000,
1988 300E 5-speed 252,000 miles,
1983 240D 4-speed, purchased w/136,000, now with 222,000 miles.
2009 ML320CDI Bluetec, 89,000 miles
Owned:
1971 220D (250,000 miles plus, sold to father-in-law),
1975 240D (245,000 miles - died of body rot),
1991 350SD (176,560 miles, weakest Benz I have owned),
1999 C230 Sport (45,400 miles),
1982 240D (321,000 miles, put to sleep)
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