Time to check for vacuum leaks (especially idle control valve hoses) and to replace the wires with factory ones if you used aftermarkets -- three years is about all you get from aftermarket wires. The Bosch wires and cap/rotor will set you back around $175 bucks, but will last ten or more years. Also check for "burn" or "spiderweb" marks on the wires -- if you find any, it's a sure bet you have bad wires.

You should also screw the connectors back onto the wires at the plugs if you pulled them without properly grasping ONLY the connector -- the wires just screw on and if you pull on them, they are loose.

If the wires are OK (although I doubt it if you are having cross-fire problems), you have a mixture problem. This may be a large vacuum leak, or may be a bad oxygen sensor that isn't triggering the check engine light yet.

Dirty injectors will also do this, although usually that is only an idle problem, not a running problem.

Peter

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1972 220D ?? miles
1988 300E 200,012
1987 300D Turbo killed 9/25/07, 275,000 miles
1985 Volvo 740 GLE Turobodiesel 218,000
1972 280 SE 4.5 165, 000 - It runs!