help!

My problem turned out to be the crank vent tubes. Pretty big tubes under the intake manifold.

__________________
95 SL500 Smoke Silver, Parchment 64K
07 E350 4matic Station Wagon White 34K
02 E320 4Matic Silver/grey 80K
05 F150 Silver 44K

Thanks for your reply. Were you having the same symptoms as I am? Hesitation, rough idle, poor emissions, code 17?

Thanks again!

Bigpete:
The crank vent tube assembly is two tubes with a center connector. The tubes are rubber/rubber-like and get hard as a rock over time. Also, the assembly is very hard to get to - I replaced mine when I replaced the head gasket and was still difficult. I got new ones from the dealer (I don't think there is any choice here - special order) and it took two visits because the dealer's schematic/drawing of parts that included the tube assmebly was incorrect - it didn't show two pieces and I first though my old one had previously broken and be repaired with a connector. I have the part numbers if you need them.
Cary

Thanks very much for the reply. A vacuum leak like that sounds like it very well could be the problem... How were you able to determine that this was the cause, especially since they are so buried behind/under everything?

Did you have the same code come up in your car, and did you have similar symptoms to mine?

How many hours would you estimate for a job like that?

I have decided to put my faith in another indy mechanic... I'm bascially going to tell him that all I want him to do is check for vacuum leaks... that I don't want him to try and diagnose the problem outside of the potential for such leaks. I think mechanics in the past have been lazy on this, I want him to definitively tell me that he is will to bet his life that I don't have a vacuum leak. If we get to that point, maybe I'll let him try to figure out the problem using his own creative thinking... but at $90 - $95/hr, mechanics in the past sure have spent a lot of time "thinking" for me and not enough time solving problems...

lol can you tell I'm bitter?!?

If I were you I would put some effort into finding another 90-92 300CE with which to swap EZLs (ignition control module) for a few minutes. I say this because they are expensive new and hard to come by used. The symptoms of a bad one can vary to some degree but it is clearly a known problem on your car. Try a search - seems to me there's several good threads on the subject. There are several companies who test and/or rebuild them, e.g.:

http://www.4mercedes.com/ezl.htm

wow... I truly hope that's not what's wrong with my car... cuz if that's the case, I'm sending it out to the pasture. There comes a point where the bleeding must stop!

Well at least now I have a subject that I can spend another few hours on this site researching!

There's actually a wrecking yard in the area that has a lot of old w124's, so I might give them a call. Chances are they will be picked over.

Thanks again for your help, dean.