CDi stuck in limp mode...

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miggit

Active Member
Joined
Mar 25, 2016
Messages
102
Location
Milton Keynes UK
Car
2000 ML270CDI Manual
Help!!!!!!!!!!!

As the title says I have a sick ML270CDI and I've run out of ideas.. First it went in to limp mode, but would reset with an engine off, and would stay for a few minutes before going in to limp mode again...

So I deleted the swirl flaps, which were worn, and it still went in to limp.. so I plugged the swirl flap motor back in and it worked for a few minutes before going back to limp mode.

I then tried an iCarsoft and said that the position sensors on banks 1 and 2 were slow... which pointed to timing chain... but it only has 1 sensor... so not trusting what it was saying I hit the web, big mistake, I ended up fitting a new swirl flap motor... still no good..

I then shelled out to get it on an MB Star, got codes P0100-016 and P1189-008, because I had fitted a new swirl flap motor I was told that it must be the MAF sensor, so I've just fitted one of those, and guess what..LIMP MODE:wallbash::wallbash:

I then contacted the garage that read the codes and charged me £50 and asked if they had cleared the codes down when they read the faults, and they said they didn't know :eek: and that it would cost to find out :doh: but i could give it to them to fix :crazy: So as you can imagine I'm really up for that idea... do they think I fell out the stupid tree hitting every branch on the way?

So I need someone who has Star and wont fleece me in the Milton Keynes area. I will travel, but I'm stuck in limp mode, so it ain't much fun and I'd like to keep the distance down.
 
One thing you can check through inspection is the EGR valve. Remove it and check it moves freely. I would also clean it and the inlet manifold around it.

EGR can be a fairly common cause of limp mode on a diesel.
 
All cleaned when the swirl flap delete was done, cars covered 10 miles since, the EGR delete is next on the list, but I don't want to add to the problems.. plus I would have thought that if the EGR was suspect it would have thrown a fault code?
 
Seen it throw a code and sometimes not.

The symptom of being off for a few minutes then coming on fits with an EGR issue as it would come on only after it will have tried to switch the EGR which doesn't happen immediately.
 
Well that's a tricky one...

Do I just do the EGR delete and hope? or do i continue to try and get the Star codes all happy?

I have the wiring bypass wired up and ready to fit... but following the great success I've had with the swirl flap delete I'm a little hesitant to go for it...

Oh and the fault codes that the iCarsoft was showing, haven't changed and it wont delete them either :wallbash: So what ever they translate in to I haven't got to the cause.... yet......
 
No, I've not looked at the turbo, but wouldn't that throw up a fault code if it was overboosting?
 
I then contacted the garage that read the codes and charged me £50 and asked if they had cleared the codes down when they read the faults, and they said they didn't know :eek: and that it would cost to find out

I don't know which is worse - the fact they didn't know if they had cleared them or that it would cost to find out
 
I wasn't very impressed by that either.. that's why I'm sooooooo keen to go back, not :D
 
I have just realised that I never post a conclusion to this fault, Opps!

Well having had the cars faults read on an MB Star by a local garage and replaced the MAF sensor twice, non gen first then gen, and a new swirl flap motor... and still no joy. I was a a total loss as to what to do. In desperation I reached out to Alex Crow and limped the car over to him.... after a bit more MB Star work still no joy, and then they looked at the air filter.... it was so blocked that it had imploded! New filter and all was good. Totally my fault, I should have checked it, but when I brought the car it had just had a 'full service', which I have now found out means it was wiped with an oily rag!

I should have looked at the simple things first! Lesson learnt!

In my defence the ML ECU doesn't have a blocked filter code, so it just throws out a few cam a sensor issues... and the car never produced any black smoke, which is normally an indication of a blocked filter!
 
Well at least you're fairly certain that you should have no problems for a few thousand miles as you have done most things with the motor that might have arisen. So as long as the gearbox has been serviced, fluid etc changed at the right mileage then you should be able to relax and enjoy yourself
 
Well I've still got to do the EGR delete... and as I have a Manual gearbox the oil isn't quite so critical as it would be in an automatic!
 
Never realised that they made a manual version! One less thing to worry about!
 

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