Is the 240D dead? - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

SirNik84 · #1 10-17-2007, 12:36 AM

So my best friend, more like a brother, was having car problems and only had a motor cycle to get around on, and so I let him barrow my SD and I drove the 240 I picked up about 2 months ago. He had the SD for 3 seeks then we swapped. The 240 was running GREAT. So we left work and I drove of in the SD and him in the 240 no problems. He went to the store, and took his sister to dinner all that night the 240 ran great. Then the next morning he woke up and the car wouldn't start. So... he lives like an hour from me so I didn't just run over to it. I let him try and get it started. He pulled the glow plugs and checked all the connections, but the glow plugs were working perfectly. He charged up the battery and has kept it on a charger for 2 weeks every day trying to start it. Well. Today I went to look at it. That batt was a bit low so I put the one out of the SD in it. I checked the glow plug circuit. All working properly. Then I checked the oil. It was very low, so we filled that up. Then we tried to start it. The new battery helped and the car cranked really hard. But nothing. So I bleed the injectors... like 5 times. I’ve started several dead diesels, and I’ve never had the injectors bleed so easy. There was no air in the lines at all. So we let the glow plugs run for a LONG time. And still nothing.

So I went home.

I’m going back tomorrow.

Any helpful hints?

sedecrem · #2 10-17-2007, 12:45 AM

I would pull the glow plugs again, squirt a little Marvel Mystery oin in each cylinder. Turn the engine over a dozen or so times with the glow plugs still out and then put the glow plugs back and try starting it.

I would be concerned about the low oil. I would also ask your friend if it overheated as well. With very low oil you could have done some ring damage. After you get it running I would check the compression.

Hope this helps.

unkl300d · #3 10-17-2007, 01:24 AM

check the valve clearances

SirNik84 · #4 10-17-2007, 01:34 AM

did a valve adjustment when i got her... so i would hope the valves are still in good shape.
i asked about over heating. and he said no. i checked the water and the oil for cross contamination.. but both looked good. i had him put the marvel myster oil in it when he pulled the glow plugs... but maybe it needs it again... i'm at the end of my knowlage... normaly they start by now.

t walgamuth · #5 10-17-2007, 01:37 AM

If it has compression and will crank over it will run on wd forty. just remove the air cleaner , run the glows and spray while cranking. If it wont run this way it must have no compression.

If it has no compression it will sound differently, not lumpy, and spin extra fast when cranking it over.

Tom W

bgkast · #6 10-17-2007, 01:40 AM

Hard to believe it would loose compression over night.

toomany MBZ · #7 10-17-2007, 04:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bgkast

Hard to believe it would loose compression over night.

Agreed, check under hood for air, fuel leaks.

JimFreeh · #8 10-17-2007, 07:12 AM

I've seen this happen on several worn diesels.

Extended cranking can cause the fuel to wipe the oil off the cylinder wall, and the compression falls below what is needed to get the engine to start while cranking.

Solution is to pull start the car.

Jim

MBeige · #9 10-17-2007, 01:57 PM

I know starters can go bad without warning.

ATLD · #10 10-17-2007, 02:09 PM

It is unusual that all cylinders will not fire all of a sudden. Even with valve lash or worn rings you would think the engine would run on a few better cylinders or the engine would have missed last time it ran.

This has got to be a fuel delivery fault.

I would suspect the vacuum fuel shut off device or internal pump fault. Maybe it got stuck when the engine was shut off last. A diesel only needs two things to run, compression and fuel. I suspect fuel delivery is at fault considering the over-night development of the issue. If possible pull an injector and check spray pattern and cracking pressure. If you do this with #1, you can just rotate the injection line away from the head and leave the injector connected. If you get a good strong spray, suspect poor compression. If not, check the fuel delivery lines and shut-off device.

ATLD

johninva · #11 10-17-2007, 03:12 PM

same exact thing happend to me a month ago on my 78 300d. ran great, the next day would not start, tried all the things that have been mentioned here, finally ran a compression test and had poor to really poor compression on 4 of the 5, seems like it should have run poorly before it quit all together but it didnt. seems to me that all else aside it ought to do something with wd40 down the intake. check the compression

SirNik84 · #12 10-18-2007, 07:49 PM

well we got her to start... clogged fuel filter. in combination with cold weather and a nearly dead battery. after bleeding the injectors several times and feeding the engine out of a bottle to by pass the fuel lines, it started... we hooked it back up to the lines and we drove it to the gas station. and foolish me, i turned the car off. i was being fallowed by my roommate (Garrett) and we tried to jump start the car... but no luck. the battery was still to dead. and his car didn't have enough umph to jump start the 240. so it sits at the gas station. i took the battery back to the house for a nice slow trickle charge. and I'm taking the SD up tonight after work to jump start her. i know her compression is low... but she drives good. so I'm hoping that once the battery is working good she'll be on the road again.

unkl300d · #13 10-18-2007, 08:56 PM

Filter huh ? what a rare event ...... haha.

Cold in Sacto?? Hey glad you got it to chug.

SirNik84 · #14 10-19-2007, 12:21 AM

yeah my friend lives in Auburn. we work in Folsom. so its no to bad going up there after work. but coming home late its getting to be a pain in the..... last night when we got it started we had a camp fire going infront of the car!
i went back up there after work. and the thing started... ran for 5 seconds then stoped. i think the fuel tank and lines must be corroded to $hi#. after that the battery just slowly got weaker and weaker. i took it home and its gonna spend the night on the charger again. i'm not playing this game tomorrow. i'm bringing a juice bottel with me and i'm gonna run it off that til i can get it home and replace the fule likes and drain the tank and clean it out... to bad i just filled it with diesel

SirNik84 · #15 10-20-2007, 02:51 AM

well on the second.. or should i say forth... try... shes a runner.
i bypassed the fuel lines by running it out of a Crisco bottle under the hood. and changed the filters and it still wouldn't start... so my crazy mind started thinking... how about putting some ATF down the intake... well the bottle sliped as my friend poured it and we put a bottle of ATF down the intake. i tried to crank it, and the engine was hydrolocked. so i took out all the glow plugs and cranked it over. shot ATF all over engine bay. then put the glow plugs back into the engine. and... BAM! there is was she was running. drove it back to teh house and added a bottle of Marvel Mystery oil to the remaining Crisco. and let her run for an hour or so. untile the bottle was almost empty. turned her off, and then waited. and then she fired right back up.

VICTORY