96 e300 fires up and dies

[charlie a.]

My 96 e300 wouldn't start in an unusally cold (30's) weather here in Orlando. It starts and idles roughly for about 30 seconds and then dies. I tried starting it several times with the same results. The glow plugs are good (replaced all of them a few months ago). It seems to be a fuel delivery problem as it wouldn't start up all the way through, but I wouldn't know where to start diagnosing the problem. Any suggestions from our members?

[pimpernell]

Originally Posted by charlie a.

My 96 e300 wouldn't start in an unusally cold (30's) weather here in Orlando. It starts and idles roughly for about 30 seconds and then dies. I tried starting it several times with the same results. The glow plugs are good (replaced all of them a few months ago). It seems to be a fuel delivery problem as it wouldn't start up all the way through, but I wouldn't know where to start diagnosing the problem. Any suggestions from our members?

Don't know what the temperature was when this problem occurred, but you may have a problem with the fuel gelling. I live in New Jersey, and the same problem happened to me last year during a cold snap with the temperatures down around 10 degrees. I usually add the proper mixture of anti-gel to the fuel when I fill up. Well, just prior to this cold snap, I filled up, but did not have enough anti gel to put in the proper ratio to fuel. My car started up fine, but once on the road, would not accelerate past 50mph, and was running rough. The problem cleared up after a couple of miles. I suspect that the fuel in the lines had partially gelled, and once the car was started, the engine drew in fresh fuel from the tank, and that cleared up the problem. Another issue could be the fuel filters....Don't know how long its been since you changed those out. I would suggest that you wait for the temperature to warm up a little, and see if the issue goes away on its own. If not, then my second choice would be the fuel filters. Good luck

[KarTek]

Here's a diagram of the fuel system:



When the engine is off, check for a maximum drain back of 2" or so in line number 32 leading to the fuel filter. When the engine is started, this bubble should suck back into the filter.

Also observe the other lines for air leaking into the system.

[Chris W.]

I vote for gelling. I suspect that the fuel available in FL is definitely not specified with the same (low) pour point as northern fuels, and your unusually cold weather has caused it to gel.

The fact that it starts OK tells me it's not something mechanical, unless as a long shot your lift pump is going south. If the problem remains after the weather warms up, I'd suspect the lift pump.

Rgds,
Chris W.
'95 E300D, 304K

[F18]

As Evan, Chris & Pimpernel have mentioned, check for air in the clear fuel lines and replace the secondary (can) fuel filter if you have not already done so.

A dirty fuel filter can amplify the problem of fuel starvation in low temps and gelled fuel.....
The can filter also acts as a water separator so if you are starting to hit below 32deg. F, water/ice crystals are adding to the clogging of the already deminishing flow of fuel through the dirty filter. Your car should start and run even with untreated/ unwinterized fuel in Florida if the filters are clean/new.
30 degrees is not that critical of a temp that it would stop the engine after starting unless the filter is clogged/dirty and or you have air in the fuel lines.

Happy New Year