Good day,

Getting ready to change out the glow plugs; dashboard light stopped coming on, cold starting is rough....but relay fuse looks good and checking wiring with a multi-meter did not produce a smoking gun, so I'll try the glow plugs.

Any tips out there for doing this on the SDL? I've done it on the SD easily, and looking at the SDL it appears the only real hassle is removing the intake piece...does that sound right?

Thanks,

Lance-

__________________
1985 300SD, 300k.....gifted to Daughter
1987 300SDL, 320k.....gifted to Son
1978 300CD, 230k....Sold
1983 300D, 175k....Dead

Do a resistance check of the glow plugs before you go further. You should see between 0.7 and 1.1 ohms between each pin and ground at the big connector at the glow relay. If so, focus on the relay. Don't rely on a quick look at the fuse. Remove it to make sure it remains in one piece. It can develop a hairline crack and otherwise look intact. Mind that there is no fuse between the 80-amp fuse and the battery. You will be unpleasantly surprised if your screwdriver touches ground.

If you have to replace glow plugs, I find sufficient access by removing the cruise actuator. Removing the manifold makes the job as easy as possible, save pulling the IP. While the manifold is off, check the injector line clips and hangers. Proper retention is important for long injector line life. They're expensive and not stocked in the US.

Sixto
87 300D

Thanks Sixto-

I checked resistance of the plugs (ground to each pin of the connector) and saw no difference between any of them. Pulled the fuse out and had a good look at it, but the fuse was not like one I'd seen before....it has a black piece running around the middle, which precluded me from getting eyes on the entire surface. It actually looked shorter than what I was used to seeing in my SD, but anyways, it looked okay and checked okay with the meter. Might have a hairline though....

Not seeing any of the plugs with the higher resistance reading kind of left me puzzled, that's why I thought about just swapping out the plugs. Maybe I'll swap out the fuse strip first-

Thanks again!

__________________
1985 300SD, 300k.....gifted to Daughter
1987 300SDL, 320k.....gifted to Son
1978 300CD, 230k....Sold
1983 300D, 175k....Dead

Should those glowplugs tips be cleaned off, wire-brushed or blasted in a spark plug cleaner?

__________________
1987 300SDL