My boyfriend is stuck on the side of the road between Reno and Salt Lake City in his brand new-to-him 1979 300 SD. His engine overheated, he pulled off the road and turned the car off. Both turn signal lights stayed on in addition to the battery light. He hasn't been able to restart the car. He was quite handy with his '65 VW bug (could fix anything with a few chopsticks and some duct tape), but this is his first merc. Can anyone shed some light? Also, the dome light does not dim when he tries to start the car and there is no clicking sound from the starter. He tried to jump it and nothing happened. When touching a wrench between the starter and the heat switch, sparks flew.

Thanks for your help,
Jessica

How long did he drive it overheated? Was the temp indicator in the red?

__________________
Jim

I had some wierdness with dash instruments and others have complained too. It is not impossible the engine didn't overheat but the gauge was acting up as well as other electrical components.
From the sounds of it, the starter is not rotating andengine not turning over. I resolved my problems by removing fuses, and cleaning the ends where they clip into the holder. None were burned out, but the surfaces were slightly corroded and continuity was intrermittent.
The only good thing that could be said was the fix was cheap enough your friend can attempt this without any exotic tools.
I wish him luck! Jim Northrup, Sr.

Thanks so much. It was indeed the starter.

All the best,
Jessica