E350Cdi Starting issues

[Michael1591]

Hey Everyone.

I became the owner of a lovely white E350cdi coupe, about 4 months ago. Full Merc history and only one previous owner. Unfortunately the car has an issue and between the Nissan dealership i purchased it from, Mercedes Preston and a independent specialist in Wigan nobody can diagnose the fault.

The issue:

First start in the morning, the car takes a prolonged amount of cranks to start (Sometimes the engine cuts after 10 seconds). Once started the car initially runs with a misfire below 2000rpm but once after a few seconds the car then runs fine. Later in the day the car will start normally, this issue is just based in the mornings or long periods of standing still.

The Glow Plugs have been changed and I've just fitted a new glow plug relay upgrading from a Beru GSE114 to a GSE116. Since fitting the new GPR this morning the car does start slightly better but the misfire is still there and it still takes quite a while to turn over.

Injector cleaner has been used and no difference has been made

Nothing is coming up in Star systems.

If the ignition is turned on and left for while to warm the glow plugs before starting it does seem to help but the issues are still there.

Does anyone have any experience of this issue or have i just bought a lemon? Big crate of beer for anyone who can help me with this nightmare.

 

[mersum1es]

Did you make fuel related test by star? Fuel quantity valve, high pressure test.... then again measure injector fuel leak to tank line (all at cold conditions of course because problem is there).

 

[andy27168]

Hi,
I have a very similar issue with my E350CDI from cold, though misfire clears immediately.
I will watch this thread closely to see what others suggest.
I haven't as yet done anything to solve it though from other threads I believed it could be the glow plug relay.
It goes in for a service in the next week or so, was going to wait till after then.

 

[steve333]

Before spending any money I would get the car checked on star by a reputable Mercedes specialist.

 

[Michael1591]

Thanks for the replys everyone.

I've noticed the new glow plug relay has made more of a difference this morning with a quicker start but there is still some misfire upon initial couple of seconds.

I'm unsure how the tests have been proformed so far as the garage purchased from had the communications with Mercedes Preston and the independent specialists. I do however know its been plugged into a star system with both places.

They've also ran the car for a few hours then used a camera in the cylinders to check for something.

Its a frustrating issue as I'm reluctant for the garage to have it any longer as they've had 13 weeks in total but I'm limited to what I can do further than the glow plug relay change myself.

From everything I'm reading it does now seem fuel related in some way. Its only happening while the car has been sat for several hours and it once happened quite severe after fueling up after the tank was quite drained.

 

[steve333]

Thanks for the replys everyone.

I've noticed the new glow plug relay has made more of a difference this morning with a quicker start but there is still some misfire upon initial couple of seconds.

I'm unsure how the tests have been proformed so far as the garage purchased from had the communications with Mercedes Preston and the independent specialists. I do however know its been plugged into a star system with both places.

They've also ran the car for a few hours then used a camera in the cylinders to check for something.

Its a frustrating issue as I'm reluctant for the garage to have it any longer as they've had 13 weeks in total but I'm limited to what I can do further than the glow plug relay change myself.

From everything I'm reading it does now seem fuel related in some way. Its only happening while the car has been sat for several hours and it once happened quite severe after fueling up after the tank was quite drained.

I wonder if the car has been mis fuelled?

 

[skippyjasper]

Misfires at cold startup certainly point to glow plugs.

The long cranking points to fuel. When was fuel filter last changed? Generally they are a 20,000 mile maintenance item.

Have the air filters been checked? This is another area that can impact operations.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[wongl]

Misfires at cold startup certainly point to glow plugs.

The long cranking points to fuel. When was fuel filter last changed?

Agreed, the long cranking points to a fuelling issue - I had this in my previous W210 E320cdi; the shortest plastic fuel line in the engine was weeping diesel overnight causing air bubbles to get into the fuel line requiring an extended cranking to purge the air bubbles. However I did not experience any misfiring, so perhaps your car is suffering from a possible timing chain issue?

How old is your car and what is the mileage on it?

 

[merc07]

I had a bad lumpy idle on startup on my C350, very intermittent and no codes, felt like it was on half it's cylinders.
While doing the oil cooler seal they found the intake flapper mech very badly worn.
Don't know if this could cause very uneven running at idle ??