R 129 300-24 won't run.

[Robco]

I'm new to this and I hope somebody is able to help.
I'm now the proud owner of a "well used" SL. - bit of a toy - my wife mentioned second childhood!
It's been running well for several months but now has stopped. - It was running very well before.
Timing light on to plug leads show a spark when turning on starter motor. Opened the 2 fuel lines at the fuel delivery distributor and they have fuel under pressure.
I'm not sure whether the immobiliser alarm works as the remote locking doesn't work - winter projects.
I think it may be an immobiliser issue or possibly a relay.
Are there any common causes of not starting?
If the immobiliser is the problem, is it possible to disable or remove the immobiliser altogether?

 

[zipdip]

Hi a possible way of finding out if it is the immobilizer is to call the AA if you are a member they can check if it has gone wrong and they can disable it,or at least they could about 4 years ago.

 

[Will]

The ignition control modules on these are quite common for failure (and hard/expensive to find secondhand now!)

Forum member @ray_hennig has quite a lot of knowledge on the 300-24 engines, hopefully he can offer some insight

 

[ray_hennig]

The ignition control modules on these are quite common for failure (and hard/expensive to find secondhand now!)

Forum member @ray_hennig has quite a lot of knowledge on the 300-24 engines, hopefully he can offer some insight

Hello,

If you have a spark, your ignition controller is probably ok. In my experience, they either work or not (no spark).

In your shoes, I'd make sure that your HT system is 100% before doing anything expensive - although top quality leads, cap and rotor are not cheap.

The immobiliser on my 124 is under the passenger foot well area. It was pretty easy to disable. But later cars had a more elaborate system that's more involved to disable.

Also, get/build a code reader and run through all the diagnostic checks. There's loads on that on the web.

Good hunting.

RayH

 

[Robco]

Hello again,
Well, as suggested, I built a code reader - took a while as I had to get parts online. My model is 129.061 300-24v year1991.
Switched on ignition with a fully charged battery and it started.
I connected up the code reader with the ignition switched on but engine not running and got the following codes. Even after reading the diagnostics they don't fully make sense to me.
Pin 3 – 13 = Fuel injection system Air intake temp- illogical
Pin 7 – 3,4,5,6,7,8 = Roll bar - I suspect corroded connections - winter job
Pin 8 – 20,29 = Distributor ignition - DTC memory fault - no number 29?
Pin 10 – 20,29 = Roadster soft top - Hard top installed
Pin 11 - no flashes = Anti theft alarm - does this mean that the alarm/ immobiliser is already disconnected?
Pin 12 - 7,9,10 = Infra red remote central locking - suspect corroded faulty connections or sensors - winter job
Pin 13 – 1 = Auto transmission control - no faults - for now!
Pin 14 – 4,6,12 = ESCM but can’t work out codes - Does this relate to my car.

Although my main concern was it not starting or running, I now have the dilemma that it might stop again without warning, and therefore must try and resolve the issue for the future.
Is anybody able to point me in the right direction?
Regards
Rob

 

[Indyz12]

i would want to pull the dizzy cap and inspect the rotor and each point for burn marks and condensation.

 

[ray_hennig]

Pin 3 – 13 = Fuel injection system Air intake temp- illogical

>> I had that. I recall that replacing the temperature sensor on the air filter solved that.

Pin 7 – 3,4,5,6,7,8 = Roll bar - I suspect corroded connections - winter job
Pin 8 – 20,29 = Distributor ignition - DTC memory fault - no number 29?

20 suggests the ignition control module itself is returning an error. Never seen that. But I have suffered some dead modules - misery.
29 - agreed, no such code, apparently.

Pin 10 – 20,29 = Roadster soft top - Hard top installed
Pin 11 - no flashes = Anti theft alarm - does this mean that the alarm/ immobiliser is already disconnected?
Pin 12 - 7,9,10 = Infra red remote central locking - suspect corroded faulty connections or sensors - winter job
Pin 13 – 1 = Auto transmission control - no faults - for now!
Pin 14 – 4,6,12 = ESCM but can’t work out codes - Does this relate to my car.

Does you car have Cruise control and/or ASR?

My car is a 300CE-24. Same engine but no drophead hence no comments. No infra-red either.

Have you tried clearing the codes?

Do they clear?

Do they stay cleared when you drive again?

To read/clear faults: "Press and hold the button for about 4 seconds to read code. The LED will flash a number of times to indicate the fault. Hold the button for about 8 seconds to clear the fault. Read the faults again. Clear each fault individually. 1 flash = no faults.

Good hunting.

RayH