Hi guys, just got my '84 300 turbodiesel sedan today. 197k on the clock.

Everythings pretty much fine except for this problem I had on its first drive home today. First of all, it would not do a 0-60 run. Period. It would get hung up somewhere in between and just not go any farther with my foot down. The revs would just sort of hang and the car wouldn't pick up speed.

Now, if I did it leisurely, I could do 60 or 70 just fine, but if I put my foot down, the car would kick down fine but nothing would happen....it wouldn't go any faster, and when I was going up hills the car would SLOW down alarmingly, like the engine wasnt getting enough fuel or something.

I've read up on the trans flaring and such, but I'm really not sure where to start with this problem. I'm a total Mercedes noob (I only know BMW stuff) and even more noobish with diesel. I've gone through FAQ's and "READ THIS FIRST"'s but I'm really not sure. I tried giving it more fuel by backing the screw out of the ALDA. Didn't do anything.

The car will go through first fine and shift to second fine. Then it will get to the top of second and just hang there. Won't shift. At least I didn't give it long enough, and I gave it a good 5-7 seconds while it was revving dead. So it might be a combination of fuel delivery and trans issues. Anyone know what I should do? I'm pretty sure the turbo is working as it should because 1st and 2nd acceleration are completely acceptable.

Thanks!
Patrick

I am no pro here but I cleaned the banjo bolt and had a lot more power than when I started out. to find the banjo bolt go to (dieselgaint.com)

Don,t panic sounds like its starving for fuel . Did you change both filters. If you did it could be a restriction in the fuel line. I have had the same thing happen to me on my older cars. Wind up changing the fuel filters a couple of times before it clean out the tank. The tranny will do exactlly that if it straves for fuel

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Ricali

03 C240 4matic wagon
95 300E 234,000
7 prior 240;s 5 still going
81 300sd gone
65 230sl gone
49 Studebaker Champion
90BMW convert.167,000
60 Dodge D-100

Diesels have vacuum pumps too..


Make sure the switches are good on the v/c and might need to generally go over things. If you had a few broken vacuum actuators in doors or a/c they can contribute to low vacuum.

These cars are really reliable, just need to go through things one by one.

When you pull the line off the prefilter it should flow nicely. There is a tank screen which can become pluged-but I haven't seen it. Ussually a bad or clogged filter.


Michael

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Michael McGuire
83 300d
01 vw A4 TDI
66 Chevy Corsa
68 GMC V6 w/oD
86 300E

Sounds like the classic dirty/plugged filter. Do like Cavaliers6 said. I wouldn't worry about idling for an hour, though.

I replaced both filters. I filled the spin on filter with Sea Foam fuel injector cleaner before I put it back on. Then I dumped the rest of the bottle into the tank. I fired it up and idled it for about 10 minutes while I cleaned up where I was working and threw my trash away. Then I found a nice, quiet 1/4 mile straight away in an industrial area. It worked great for 0-60 runs. On the 4th or so run I put out a HUGE cloud of black smoke and it started picking up. By the 6th run the smoke had died down. Between the new filters and the Italian tune up it was running much better.

Give it a try, it should fix your problem. After that read up on the banjo bolt and how to clean it.

-Jim

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1995 S350D, Green with black leather interior.
Bought January 2008 w/ 233,xxx miles.
I did 22,000 miles during the first year of ownership.

Thank you guys very much for your input! I will try those things you mentioned. As I said I am very new to these cars. But from what I have seen, fuel system sounded like the right place to start.

That's weird that the tranny will hang like that on 2-3...I guess I'm not surprised when it does it at 60-70ish...because it's at the top of third if I nail it at that speed, and as far as the trans is concerned it's floored but the engine just can't give it the power if it's not getting fuel.

Also, what is that little white plastic round screw for, on the driver's side of the engine, under that fuel distribution block thing? It's got like a clear tube right next to it where you can see fuel coming in. The reason I ask is that it is leaking at the bottom where it's attached. Ever so slightly.

Thanks guys!
Patrick

Sounds like you are refering to the handle on the manual primer pump. It unscrews and then allows the pump to be pushed up and down to expel air out of the system after maint of filters etc. There is a new one available that does not need to be unscrewed. Use the search feature and you will find out all about the primer pumps new and old. If it is leaking it needs to be replaced, as it will allow air to be drawn into the system.

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1961 190Db retired
1968 220D/8 325,000
1983 300D 164,150

I'd give the fuel system a go first because it is inexpensive and easy. Do it in this order:
1. Get some diesel purge- I use Powerservice diesel additive, others use Howes (there are a bunch). Put a slug of it in the tank- you can put in a little more than directed just to clean the place out
2. Replace primary (in-line) fuel filter- white plastic thing before IP
3. Replace secondary (spin-on) filter
4. Run the car at idle for an hour or so, and rev the engine if you want to- get that purge going through the system
5. If this doesn't completely solve your problems (which I suspect it will) clean out your fuel tank screen

If it turns out that none of this helps, change your transmission fluid. That should do it.
Good luck.

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Andrew

1989 Volvo 745- 202K