Here is the story.
Can YOU help me figure it out?
put my 1980 300d in the garage 3 weeks ago for some maintenance before the winter came. I replaced all air and fuel filters. Differential fluid change. New front calipers and pads. New driver side control arm. Sunroof seal was replaced. I used the battery a few times to test the sunroof then started the car to recharge the battery. Oil filter housing bolt was stripped and shot off. Replaced that did a oil change and was ready to start. The car was garaged the whole time and was never below 50 degrees. Now the car won't start. I am running veggie oil with diesel and a full gammet of heating systems for the fuel. I have about a 70/30 mixture right now and filter my oil down to 1 micron. It feels like the car isn't getting enough amps to start, but then a few times it would start only when the key was cranking. Once I either gave it some gas or released the key it would shut off; this is in a span of about 3 seconds or less(oil pressure was also reading normal). The car ran like a champ before this and I had my glow plugs replaced in July. The battery is 5months old and I have it on a trickle charge tonight.
I am thinking maybe the veg oil is clogging the injectors a bit and I should run a straigh diesel purge?
Or should I try just to start it with wd-40 and see is that will get enough to blow it out?
or is it something else?
Please help my diagnosis this problem as I need to get her back on the road to keep saving money!

Have you done anything to confirm that the glow plugs are energized or are you simply making this assumption based upon a glow plug change five months ago?

It would take about 20 minutes to set up a 2-3 liter bottle as a fuel cell with straight diesel to see if you can start on that.

When is the last time you changed your fuel filters?

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My Primary Driver - '85 300CD - 4-speed conversion, 2.47 rear, lowered, euro headlights, rebuilding (not restoring so much)

Wife's - '08 Saab Sportcombi Aero

Riding a '03 Yamaha Warrior

Given the statement that the winterizing maintenance effort included a change of fuel filters, and you likely didn't have the fuel heaters energized when you did that, seems to me you may have a good size gulp of air in the system. Have you tried priming with the hand pump?

It is also possible that you have some stuff that needs to be heated in a part of the line that is not heated and you are not getting good flow. I would try the recommendation made earlier to hook up a straight Diesel fuel source up and see if that gets it going.

Could be glow plugs, but when one opens the fuel system up the chances for air to get in there are just too great to start looking elsewhere until you have made sure the air that got in is gone.

Good luck, keep us posted. Jim

__________________
Own:
1986 Euro 190E 2.3-16 (291,000 miles),
1998 E300D TurboDiesel, 231,000 miles -purchased with 45,000,
1988 300E 5-speed 252,000 miles,
1983 240D 4-speed, purchased w/136,000, now with 222,000 miles.
2009 ML320CDI Bluetec, 89,000 miles

Owned:
1971 220D (250,000 miles plus, sold to father-in-law),
1975 240D (245,000 miles - died of body rot),
1991 350SD (176,560 miles, weakest Benz I have owned),
1999 C230 Sport (45,400 miles),
1982 240D (321,000 miles, put to sleep)

yes, I am assuming but nothing that I have done to me would indicate a sudden failure in glow plugs, But I will test them once I can get a oms meter from my friend.

Thanks for the input,
I also failed to mention during all of that work that I had replaced the primer with the new bosch style one as well. Between now and then i have probably pumped it about 50 times, there is no way you can over pump/flood a diesel correct?

*Update*
Still have not tested glow plugs. This morning, I went to start again, same issue. Pumped a bleed the system again. Then this happened.

Fuel was spewing out of the first/last injection nozzle(one closest to the firewall) where there is no return line on one of the nipples. I believe this is the only one that is no suppose to have it. Could this mean there is a blockage somewhere?
Please help!

*Update*
Not but 10 minutes later...
She has fired Up! but, fuel is still spitting now out the of that same injector. The car is revving excellent and has blow alot of black crap out. But, when it revvs more fuel comes out of that nozzle. I have it idling for about 10minutes and is idling great, what could be causing that spitting?

Is it coming out of the injector or the return line?

__________________
My Primary Driver - '85 300CD - 4-speed conversion, 2.47 rear, lowered, euro headlights, rebuilding (not restoring so much)

Wife's - '08 Saab Sportcombi Aero

Riding a '03 Yamaha Warrior

i believe it is the injection nozzle attached to the engine block, there are 2 nipples 1 has a return line and other doesn't it. it is coming out of that one. And I just opened the cigar hose and fuel was returning back as well..... odd huh?

I believe the last return nipple (closest to the firewall) should have a short piece of hose with a cap blocking the end of it.

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1985 Euro 300TD Turbo

Yep. The rubber has probably deteriorated. You can cut the cap out of the rubber and put it in a new little piece of rubber hose.

__________________
What Would Rudolph Do?
1975 300D, 1975 240D, 1985 300SD, 1997 300D, 2005 E320 , 2006 Toyota Prius

The injectors are all the same. The one closest to the firewall has nothing to hook the rear nipple to, so you have to make a sealing device. MB used to sell little black rubber "blanks" that went over the end, or a small length of hose (about an inch) with a metal plug in it. Yours seems to be gone and this is a source of air leaking back in to the system. It is also a waste of fuel and will make a mess of the driveway or street under your car. Either make your own plugging device (cut a length of hose from one of the other lines if you don't have any, and shove a small nail in there so pressure has to push the head the rest of the way out after you get it far enough to slip the end of the hose over the nipple and seat, or use a small screw, etc.) or wait until you can buy one.

Good Luck, Jim

__________________
Own:
1986 Euro 190E 2.3-16 (291,000 miles),
1998 E300D TurboDiesel, 231,000 miles -purchased with 45,000,
1988 300E 5-speed 252,000 miles,
1983 240D 4-speed, purchased w/136,000, now with 222,000 miles.
2009 ML320CDI Bluetec, 89,000 miles

Owned:
1971 220D (250,000 miles plus, sold to father-in-law),
1975 240D (245,000 miles - died of body rot),
1991 350SD (176,560 miles, weakest Benz I have owned),
1999 C230 Sport (45,400 miles),
1982 240D (321,000 miles, put to sleep)

could you explain that a little better? kinda confused on what you are saying...?

awesome thanks Jim, would would you find something like that so obscure, do they even sell those?