1984 300cd turbo 241K miles. brakes got very hard then engine began NOT shutting off. my local mechanic says the vacuum seal in the engine is bad - may need a new engine. is this correct? have decided with great sadness in my heart to sell this beloved, rockin' car . have put the craigslist post here on another thread. I need to know how to honestly answer the questions I am getting. please help.

no you do not need a new motor. Check the output of the vacuum pump it should be a bout 20-25" at idle.

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1985 300TD Turbo Euro-wagon
1979 280CE 225,200 miles
1985 300D Turbo 264,000 miles
1976 240D 190,000 miles
1979 300TD 220,000

GONE but not forgotten
1976 300D 195,300 miles
1983 300D Turbo 175,000 miles

http://i42.photobucket.com/albums/e3...e485-1-2-1.jpg

Those were exactly the symptoms I had when my vacuum pump needed to be replaced.

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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1982 300D, anthracite grey, 260k miles, Greasecar
1999 E300D, black, 160k miles, Greasecar
2010 Honda Insight Hybrid
http://www.chuckwyatt.com
http://www.wordimpressive.com

Never return to that "mechanic". He either knows nothing at all or is trying to steal your money.

You could sell your car to me for $1500 . Kidding aside though, you definitley don't need a new engine. It sounds like it's just the vacuum pump which if you are inclined you can rebuild for about $50. Check the link below for the part. Before anything though, get yourself a mityvac and check the output on the pump (as 79mercy mentioned) to determine if thats really the cause .

http://www.**********.com/search/product.aspx?sid=bs0o1u45tzyony45s2prsc45&makeid=800016@Mercedes&modelid=1193576@300CDT&year=1984&cid=18@Electrical%20%26%20Vacuum&gid=5025@Vacuum%20Pump%20Repair%20Kit

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1983 300SD White with Grey interior

That has to be a front runner in the Most Bizarre Diagnosis Contest.

You don't need a new engine; you need a new mechanic!!!

May not even be a pump. It could be a broken hose or the check valve.

Definitely, don't return to that mechanic. In fact, it may be something as simple a cracked rubber flex fitting. To replace a majority of the flexible rubber portions of your vacuum system is ~$10-$15.

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Sam

84 300SD 350K+ miles ( Blue Belle )

this guy is a clown, you dont have a blown engine.

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1986 300SDL, 211K,Dealership serviced its whole life
1991 190E 2.6(120k)
1983 300D(300k)
1977 300D(211k)

It probably is due to a hose being disconnected some where. As others suggested put a guage on the vac. line near the vac pump and test it making sure to test ahead of all other points where lines come off the main vac hose.
You could also just start tracing the vac line to see if there are any open connections.

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1983 300SD
200000miles

Hi

DieselGiant.com has a nice DIY vacuum system troubleshooting pictorial on its maintainence section. Vacuum problems are usually an easy fix.

Joseph

If it is the pump, shut off the engine right away before bits get pulled into the chain rails and you have a very expensive catastrophic event. Replace the pump and do not restart the car until you do.

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Michael LaFleur

'05 E320 CDI - 86,000 miles
'86 300SDL - 360,000 miles
'85 300SD - 150,000 miles (sold)
'89 190D - 120,000 miles (sold)
'85 300SD - 317,000 miles (sold)
'98 ML320 - 270,000 miles (sold)
'75 300D - 170,000 miles (sold)
'83 Harley Davidson FLTC (Broken again) :-(
'61 Plymouth Valiant - 60k mikes
2004 Papillon (Oliver)
2005 Tzitzu (Griffon)
2009 Welsh Corgi (Buba)

It could be the pump, but it's probably just a vacuum leak somewhere in the system.

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Whoever said there's nothing more expensive than a cheap Mercedes never had a cheap Jaguar.

83 300D Turbo with manual conversion, early W126 vented front rotors and H4 headlights 401,xxx miles
08 Suzuki GSX-R600 M4 Slip-on 26,xxx miles
88 Jaguar XJS V12 94,xxx miles. Work in progress.
99 Mazda Miata 183,xxx miles.