i finished installing a new wiring harness yesterday. the 86 sdl started up immediately with a new battery, new glow plug relay, new overload protection relay, all new fuses, new voltage regulator, new a/c relay, not to mention the wiring harness.

so i drove around delighted. the engine sounded wonderful except for an tensioner on the drive belt. it was great, i turned the car off- came back- started right up- just really excited to have it running. that was yesterday.

this afternoon i go out and nothing. no glow plug light just the starter cranking but not the engine.
some info - the P/O installed a toggle to the starter. (my next corrective surgery)
the battery tests fully charged, i tried jumping from the reliable 300td just in case, but nothing.

any ideas? thanks - james

Needs clarification. If your saying you hear the starter spin but it doesn't engage the flywheel. Or are you saying the starter is turning over the engine but the engine isn't starting? OR...something else?

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1980 300TD-T (82 Turbo and Trans) 159,000 Miles "Jackie-O"
1983 300SD 272,000 Miles "Aristotle"
1987 Jeep Wagoneer Limited - keeps the MB's off the ice and out of the snow
1994 BMW 530it

only the starter reacts, no sound from the engine at all.

sounds like the drive isn't engaging.

As a temp fix... you can try..

put it in neutral roll slowly a foot or 2 and put it in park. It might cause the starter to engage.

Also.. "IF" you can clearly see the solenoid.. give the top of it a smack with something ...like a 1/2" galvanized pipe. About as hard as you would open a walnut.

Being that the battery was changed...

It is possible that the cable attachment to the starter or to a power strip affected your connection and or the goofy toggle to the starter is doing it.

What your describing so far...has zero to do with you glow plugs or relays.
I would bet on a wiring issue..but trying the above in total will take less than 10 minutes.

__________________
1980 300TD-T (82 Turbo and Trans) 159,000 Miles "Jackie-O"
1983 300SD 272,000 Miles "Aristotle"
1987 Jeep Wagoneer Limited - keeps the MB's off the ice and out of the snow
1994 BMW 530it

No glow plug light indicates no glow plugs. You'll never start a 603 without them.

But, I'm still not grasping what "starter cranking but not the engine" means??
Does the starter crank the engine or not?

Why in the world is there a separate switch for the starter???

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I'm not a doctor, but I'll have a look.

'85 300SD 245k
'87 300SDL 251k
'90 300SEL 326k

Six others from BMW, GM, and Ford.

Liberty will not descend to a people; a people must raise themselves to liberty.[/IMG]

Sounds like a hung up bendix.....the starter probably needs to be replaced if thats the case.

__________________
-diesel is not just a fuel, its a way of life-
'15 GLK250 Bluetec 118k - mine - (OC-123,800)
'17 Metris(VITO!) - 37k - wifes (OC-41k)
'09 Sprinter 3500 Winnebago View - 62k (OC - 67k)
'13 ML350 Bluetec - 95k - dad's (OC-98k)
'01 SL500 - 103k(km) - dad's (OC-110,000km)
'16 E400 4matic Sedan - 148k - Brothers (OC-155k)

I don't know how this year or model is wired up...but on the TD, the battery cable goes to the starter where the GP and another wire or two are bolted down together and in the SD there is a block where the same affair takes place. Add to it the kill switch to the starter and the wiring work done.....it smells like wiring got pulled enough to do something to weaken the connection (If the SDL is wired similarly to my TD or SD). Which would impact the Bendix and pre-glow circuit.

__________________
1980 300TD-T (82 Turbo and Trans) 159,000 Miles "Jackie-O"
1983 300SD 272,000 Miles "Aristotle"
1987 Jeep Wagoneer Limited - keeps the MB's off the ice and out of the snow
1994 BMW 530it

I have had great luck with my AutoZone starter on the 300SD. Lifetime warranty is great to have, zips the 617 over with no issues.

I'd assume the 603 would be similar.

__________________
I'm not a doctor, but I'll have a look.

'85 300SD 245k
'87 300SDL 251k
'90 300SEL 326k

Six others from BMW, GM, and Ford.

Liberty will not descend to a people; a people must raise themselves to liberty.[/IMG]

I've done it. Twice. Cold, thick oil is the enemy. Finally decided I was never in so much of a hurry that I'd rather replace a starter than get out and hit my relay.

Point being, you've got a good point

__________________


~Michael S.~
Past cars:

1986 300SDL
1987 300SDL
1982 240D
1982 300SD


Current:

1987 300SDL

Details?

Others have tried..........in warmer temperatures then presently available...........and failed miserably.

I suppose if you would crank it for 60 seconds............

Just realized the OP was in VA where it isn't even 60 degrees at the moment.

IDK how I did it... it was at the beginning of my glowplug relay problems before I discovered how easy it was to unstick. I've always kept batteries in good condition - but I cringe to think of the starter damage if one did this habitually.

Basically you just lean on the starter for 15-30 seconds without letting go. Also without burning up the starter. I'm not sure what the temp was, probably warmer than currently available (where the OP is, anyway).

Mine... for the first ten seconds, at temps around what we've got now, turns over pretty slowly as the oil is thick. Once things get moving though it seems to get its speed up -and once it's sort of half-firing, you just keep it going and eventually enough cylinders catch.

I'm tempted to try it once and make a note of the temperature... I'll stop when I feel like the starter is suffering (probably 20 seconds in would be my upper limit) and then report if it worked or not. I'd hate to kill my battery away from home for the sake of experiment.

Incidentally... if you flip the key straight to "Start" - does it shut the plugs back off or keep burning them while you crank? If it glows as you crank, that would explain my success, as it actually was glowing, just while I tried to start.

I'll give the starter one 15-20 second blast next time I crank the thing, and report the temp and whether or not it worked.

__________________


~Michael S.~
Past cars:

1986 300SDL
1987 300SDL
1982 240D
1982 300SD


Current:

1987 300SDL

I want to add one thought here, reading over my last post makes me appear kind of disrespectful towards the car: I don't normally like to abuse things, I want the car to last and see no point in needless wasting of valuable car parts and so forth. But the other end of that spectrum is that I want to know sort of what the limits are... just if nothing else so I'll be able to make a guess about whether or not I'll get into trouble or not depending on future situations. I don't normally just abuse things for the fun of it, but I feel like I ought to test things once just to see what kind of trouble one can get into.

This doesn't apply to things more important than Benz starters... but I wouldn't go plugless just for the heck of it. Guess the question I want the answer to, for my car, based on experience, is "if I was in Canada and my relay went out, at what temp could I no longer crank?" That's the point of such an experiment in my mind.

__________________


~Michael S.~
Past cars:

1986 300SDL
1987 300SDL
1982 240D
1982 300SD


Current:

1987 300SDL

The moment the key hits the start position, the glow plugs shutdown.

You success was simply a very long crank time.........needed to raise the cylinder head temperature sufficiently. But, consider yourself with a very good engine...........most 603's won't perform.

I wouldn't burn up the starter to prove this point............