Need 240d to run Tuesday.
 

Thanks in advance for the great threads I have seen so far.

I have put over 2000 buck in my 82 240d in less than a year of buying. I have made the choice to start taking matters into my own hands.

My question is this: How does the vacuum switch on the ignition work? I have to be to work on Tuesday and need to rig my car to run, I am a delivery driver. I know what is wrong and am going to order the part and I know how to work the electrical end.

My guess is this that I take the working vacuum switch and hook it up as normal. I believe I have diagrams for that. But you can move the piston to an in or out position. I believe that the vaccum has to be closed (depressed valve) in order to make the car run. Then all I have to do is unpress the valve when I shut off the key and it will stop??????If you have any idea what I am talking about please help, and thanks again.

Ryan

Not clear on your problem. Car should run with no vacuum to shut off valve. Vacuum is only needed to shut it down.

I basically am going to use a screwdriver to turn the switch (hooked to the wire harness) and start the car. I noticed a cam the the ignition housing that switches the vacuume valve in and out. I know the key has three positions (0,1,2) and I am wonder where the cam in the ingnition housing is in all three positions. Like I said I have to deliver food on Tuesday and need to keep my job. I also can't afford another 600 dollar bill on my car. So I have to rig it.

If I'm reading your post correctly its my understanding that you have the ignition switch disconnected from the back of the ignition lock cylinder and you are using a screw driver to turn the mechanism inside your ignition switch? If that's so, its no different then having a key in the ignition. Turn it once and the glow plugs light up. Turn it another click to engage the starter. That's it.

The vacuum lines you see should be a solid brown line and a brown line with a blue stripe (I'm going off of memory here). All they do is apply vacuum to the shutoff valve on your injection pump to stop the flow of fuel when you turn the key to the off position.

In summation, your car should start and stop just like it did before assuming everything was working beforehand.

Scott

Thanks for the advice Scott!! I am turning the switch to the wire harness w/o the ingnition housing. But in order to turn off my car there is a vaccum valve, and I don't know when to open and close the valve in order to make my car run and stop. Which I will have to be doing a lot in my deliveries. Its the vaccume valve that I need to undertand.

Are you stating that your car won't shut off when you turn the key off? Check first that both brown lines are properly plugged in at the back of your ignition switch. Make sure you didn't reverse them accidentaly. If your car still won't shut off by itself, then you've got a vacuum leak somewhere in your system or your shutoff valve is bad. You need to start looking elsewhere.

Scott

Vacuum -> stopper operates.
No vacuum -> no stopper, car will run.

To stop engine, operate stopper until engine has 0 RPM.

I have to order a new part the tumbler and the housing. So what I am going to do in order to work is go behind the tumber and housing to the ignition switch. I am going to turn the switch(hooked directly to the ignigition harness) with a screwdriver.

Then I will am not going to have any tumbler or housing. I am wondering what position the vacuume valve needs to be in to properly stop the valve?

Onre,

Are you saying that when I turn my ignition manually with the switch (located behind the ingition steering lock) All I have to do to start it is leave the valve open, and when I need to stop it close the valve on the vacuume valve switch? Thanks again to everyone.

What position is the ignition vacuum switch when running? And when stopping? I assume there are only two setting on the vaccum switch?

Basically, if the shut off valve gets vacuum, the engine will stop. No vacuum the engine keeps running. When the switch is in pos 2, the vacuum to the shut off valve is blocked, so no vacuum. When you shut the car off (pos 0), the block is removed an vacuum is allowed to reach the shut off valve, which then shuts down the engine.

RRGrassi thanks so much!!

So in theory I can leave them disconnected when running the car, and plug them together when I want it to stop?

Anybody have a guess on that?

Should work. Whenever you wish to stop the engine, just supply vacuum to the stopper... it'll stop the engine. Disconnect vacuum when engine has stopped completely.

In theory you could suck on the hose to stop the engine, don't know about practice, please don't try this at home :D (has anyone tried? do I have to?)

Ive done it before, its not that hard to supply that much vaccume with your mouth.

Thanks. Have to try it anyway.