asauk
New Member
- Joined
- Feb 5, 2012
- Messages
- 23
- Car
- Car
Hi, this is another call for help.
I have an on going issue, and have been following this forum closely to see if anyone has the same problem as I have.
Last year I bought a C250TD Elegance 1997 cheap, with the understanding that it has a fuel issue. After a quick skim of the forum here I decided to chance it. What a nightmare it has turned out to be.
My problem is this.....
After approximately 40 minutes to an hour of driving, the car begins to lose power and then dies. Sometimes I get advanced warning and can pull over safely, lift the bonnet, and examine the fuel lines before it dies completely. What i see is there is air in the fuel system, as I can see it in the feed line from the banjo bolt on the injector pump, to the prefilter. When it does stop completely you can see fuel run back down this pipe into the injector pump.
My solution is to turn the car off and leave it for about 10 minutes. It will then fire up again after a bit of cranking no problems, and will run for a further 40 minutes without the problem making a reappearance, and then cut out again.
This can be a bind as Sod's law it happens at the most inconvenient times, like just entering the Blackwall tunnel, in the tunnel itself, or in single lane road works, on a roundabout, just to name a few places.
So as you can imagine its always a exciting, challenging and nerve racking experience setting off, as you never know where you may stop...but fortune favours the brave.
Because I love my hair and health I have on many occasions taken to showing the car love, and at other times, been borderline arrest able towards it. We, as you can imagine have a complicated relationship at the moment.
When I first purchased it, and because I wanted to solve its problems I joined the forum and read all I could, and self diagnosed air in the fuel lines due to old O rings. So duly went to Mercedes, paid the man, arrived home with new plastic fuel lines, fuel filter, air filter and replaced the lot, job done!
Oh no, was I ever wrong, as the cars character trait persisted.
So, more reading, and off to Mercedes again for more O rings. This time I was the proud owner of six copper washers and O rings for the delivery valves, a new prefilter and O ring, copper washer and O ring for the bango bolt that is attached to the injector pump.
With the intake manifold removed and the special splined tool to remove the delivery valves I set about the engine. All items replaced with no dramas. Happy with myself and the pampering I had just shown the car I assumed that our relationship would soon be back on track, and our past problems a distant memory.
As you may now be realising, and after reading this far, things grew tense again, and I found myself becoming Basil Faulty. So this week I have decided to give it one last try and get to the bottom of our woes.
I'm going to have both sender units out for close scrutiny, replace the rubber hoses and clips in both the engine bay and any that are accessible from the fuel tank. Run diesel purge through the injectors, put diesel in and drive.
Now I know some of you may be thinking, what's the point, just get rid of it. I can't do that!!!
Work is not what it used to be, as some of you who work for yourself will know, and have children to feed and clothe. Plus the car suits my needs perfectly, and I like it......sometimes!
I really don't mind tinkering with the car as its always a good feeling to complete a repair or take on a new job you may never have done before, not to mention the money that can be saved.
What I'm trying to say is, with the car being starved of fuel, has anyone out there got a better idea than me as to what the problem could be?
Another observation, that I know has been mentioned before on the forum, is the "whoosh" from the fuel cap as you remove it to fill up. I'm wondering if the "whoosh" is a vacuum being created by the sender units being faulty and not siphoning properly, therefore causing the injection pump to labour as it draws the fuel to the engine bay?
The car has never had an issue of starting. I have left it for a week and it will start with no issues. I have parked it facing uphill and down with no problems. I have examined the fuel pipes before starting the car in the morning and there is fuel in them.
Could someone with professional experiance of the C250TD please help, I will be eternally grateful...and you may stop the hair loss.
Chandler.
I have an on going issue, and have been following this forum closely to see if anyone has the same problem as I have.
Last year I bought a C250TD Elegance 1997 cheap, with the understanding that it has a fuel issue. After a quick skim of the forum here I decided to chance it. What a nightmare it has turned out to be.
My problem is this.....
After approximately 40 minutes to an hour of driving, the car begins to lose power and then dies. Sometimes I get advanced warning and can pull over safely, lift the bonnet, and examine the fuel lines before it dies completely. What i see is there is air in the fuel system, as I can see it in the feed line from the banjo bolt on the injector pump, to the prefilter. When it does stop completely you can see fuel run back down this pipe into the injector pump.
My solution is to turn the car off and leave it for about 10 minutes. It will then fire up again after a bit of cranking no problems, and will run for a further 40 minutes without the problem making a reappearance, and then cut out again.
This can be a bind as Sod's law it happens at the most inconvenient times, like just entering the Blackwall tunnel, in the tunnel itself, or in single lane road works, on a roundabout, just to name a few places.
So as you can imagine its always a exciting, challenging and nerve racking experience setting off, as you never know where you may stop...but fortune favours the brave.
Because I love my hair and health I have on many occasions taken to showing the car love, and at other times, been borderline arrest able towards it. We, as you can imagine have a complicated relationship at the moment.
When I first purchased it, and because I wanted to solve its problems I joined the forum and read all I could, and self diagnosed air in the fuel lines due to old O rings. So duly went to Mercedes, paid the man, arrived home with new plastic fuel lines, fuel filter, air filter and replaced the lot, job done!
Oh no, was I ever wrong, as the cars character trait persisted.
So, more reading, and off to Mercedes again for more O rings. This time I was the proud owner of six copper washers and O rings for the delivery valves, a new prefilter and O ring, copper washer and O ring for the bango bolt that is attached to the injector pump.
With the intake manifold removed and the special splined tool to remove the delivery valves I set about the engine. All items replaced with no dramas. Happy with myself and the pampering I had just shown the car I assumed that our relationship would soon be back on track, and our past problems a distant memory.
As you may now be realising, and after reading this far, things grew tense again, and I found myself becoming Basil Faulty. So this week I have decided to give it one last try and get to the bottom of our woes.
I'm going to have both sender units out for close scrutiny, replace the rubber hoses and clips in both the engine bay and any that are accessible from the fuel tank. Run diesel purge through the injectors, put diesel in and drive.
Now I know some of you may be thinking, what's the point, just get rid of it. I can't do that!!!
Work is not what it used to be, as some of you who work for yourself will know, and have children to feed and clothe. Plus the car suits my needs perfectly, and I like it......sometimes!
I really don't mind tinkering with the car as its always a good feeling to complete a repair or take on a new job you may never have done before, not to mention the money that can be saved.
What I'm trying to say is, with the car being starved of fuel, has anyone out there got a better idea than me as to what the problem could be?
Another observation, that I know has been mentioned before on the forum, is the "whoosh" from the fuel cap as you remove it to fill up. I'm wondering if the "whoosh" is a vacuum being created by the sender units being faulty and not siphoning properly, therefore causing the injection pump to labour as it draws the fuel to the engine bay?
The car has never had an issue of starting. I have left it for a week and it will start with no issues. I have parked it facing uphill and down with no problems. I have examined the fuel pipes before starting the car in the morning and there is fuel in them.
Could someone with professional experiance of the C250TD please help, I will be eternally grateful...and you may stop the hair loss.
Chandler.
