well, i had a thread here: http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/showthread.php?t=297629 but i replaced the fuel pump and things did not get better, so i wanted to throw it all together in this thread. now i feel like this is all related so one thread makes it easier. let's start from the beginning:

here are the issues:

after getting her out of storage 4 weeks ago, she's been stumbling and sagging when i idle in gear. idling in park she sounds great, put her in D or R and she stumbles when you sit there and really stumbles/sags when you hit the gas. runs like a top at regular/highway speeds. had a bit of a power loss but i thought that was just me. 4 days ago, i'm driving in city traffic, not exactly start and stop but definitely slow then crawl and she just died on me. dash lights come on, everything cuts out. would crank and not start, power still worked, listened to the stereo waiting for the tow. i get towed home in the rain, about a half hour, park her in my driveway, and she starts right back up again.

here's what i've done:

before this issue got bad, i pulled out the B.S. cali vacuum system. cut it down to the basics. if you look at the vacuum diagram, i cut out everything except for #2, #9, and #39 and all the lines that run to them. also plumbed in my old style Unwired Tools servo upgrade that runs off the vacuum. everything else was torn out and/or capped off. car ran exactly the same with this job done, A/C worked great, so i figured, no harm done.

after my car broke down, i replaced the fuel pump and filter, along with the fuel line that runs between them and all the necessary washers. noticed definite increase in power and response BUT the stumbling in gear is still happening, possibly even worse. i also noticed when i was under there a couple old, weeping fuel lines under the car. can that throw the system pressure off?

i talked to my indy about this. he suggested, as i lose oil pressure when it sags/stumbles, that i'm not using the right oil. i've got 10w40 in there and i'm in upstate NY. he suggested 20w50 and said perhaps the fuel pump relay is cutting out based on low oil pressure. is there anything to this? should i just replace the fuel pump relay? anyone know where to get one and where it goes? this is a non-euro 280 so it doesn't have the large black relay, can't seem to find a regular relay for sale (or a diagram as to where it goes). i did my best to get under the car and listen for the fuel pump buzz while my wife put her in gear, idled, put her in park, etc. the buzzing seemed to be continuous.

my other friend and former mechanic suggested i've done something terrible to the vacuum system and now i'm paying for it. any truth to that? i swear it's all good, i used brand new tubes and connectors. it is possible i have a leak somewhere in the interior, but i'm almost positive there couldn't be one under the hood.

i'm scheduled to see my indy next week to replace all the injectors. could it just be my spray pattern? i can't believe it would be that simple. any ideas?

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1985 300D - 1984 Euro 280E AMG Clone (SOLD) - 1978 280CE (SOLD) - 1983 300D (SOLD) - 1981 300D (SOLD)