This may sound trivial, but I'm getting nervous! The car has always started
within 1 second, hot or cold. I would guess on the first revolution after
engaging the starter. Lately, it cranks for a couple of seconds before
starting. It runs fine once it has started. It's got 180K miles on the
odometer. Plugs haven't been changed for years! Fuel pump relay was new
about 8 months ago.

Any ideas? Fuel filter? Plugs? I'm paranoid?

Thanks in advance.

John S.

John Simpson wrote:
> This may sound trivial, but I'm getting nervous! The car has always started
> within 1 second, hot or cold. I would guess on the first revolution after
> engaging the starter. Lately, it cranks for a couple of seconds before
> starting. It runs fine once it has started. It's got 180K miles on the
> odometer. Plugs haven't been changed for years! Fuel pump relay was new
> about 8 months ago.
>
> Any ideas? Fuel filter? Plugs? I'm paranoid?
>
> Thanks in advance.
>
> John S.

Plugs

In article <mRmJg.6389$SZ3.3982@dukeread04>,
John Simpson <jasimp@earthlink.net> wrote:
>This may sound trivial, but I'm getting nervous! The car has always started
>within 1 second, hot or cold. I would guess on the first revolution after
>engaging the starter. Lately, it cranks for a couple of seconds before
>starting. It runs fine once it has started. It's got 180K miles on the
>odometer. Plugs haven't been changed for years! Fuel pump relay was new
>about 8 months ago.
>
>Any ideas? Fuel filter? Plugs? I'm paranoid?

Change the plugs. Wouldn't hurt to do all the filters too. Expect
a slight milage increase if you do.


--
Need Mercedes parts? http://parts.mbz.org
Richard Sexton | Mercedes stuff: http://mbz.org
1970 280SE, 72 280SE | Home pages: http://rs79.vrx.net
633CSi 250SE/C 300SD | http://aquaria.net http://killi.net

In article <mRmJg.6389$SZ3.3982@dukeread04>,
John Simpson <jasimp@earthlink.net> wrote:
>This may sound trivial, but I'm getting nervous! The car has always started
>within 1 second, hot or cold. I would guess on the first revolution after
>engaging the starter. Lately, it cranks for a couple of seconds before
>starting. It runs fine once it has started. It's got 180K miles on the
>odometer. Plugs haven't been changed for years! Fuel pump relay was new
>about 8 months ago.
>
>Any ideas? Fuel filter? Plugs? I'm paranoid?
>
Hi John, my 89 300e started doing the same thing earlier this summer,
it has not gotten worse. I've changed plugs etc etc to no avail... whereas
it used to start with a turn or two, it now takes 4 or 5 sec cranking and
once it starts everything is fine. Moreover, and this may be fortuitous, this
is the first summer that the car apparently has suffered vapour lock - ie
it took over 5 min or thereabouts of cranking befor starting/sputtering and
then continuing fine. the only thing I've not checked so far is the fuel
filter

best wishes, guenter

You are right about vapor lock when engine is hot. In your case it is most
likely to be the fuel accumulator that is leaking... easily checked by
pulling out the rubber hose and if fuel keeps dripping out, it is bad.

I suspect the same problem with the 420SEL... usually occurs when engine is
hot... very hard start after 10 minutes (tThis however depends on how bad
the accumulator is leaking)... In cold start, takes a bit longer to start.

John Simpson schrieb:
> This may sound trivial, but I'm getting nervous! The car has always started
> within 1 second, hot or cold. I would guess on the first revolution after
> engaging the starter. Lately, it cranks for a couple of seconds before
> starting. It runs fine once it has started. It's got 180K miles on the
> odometer. Plugs haven't been changed for years! Fuel pump relay was new
> about 8 months ago.
>
> Any ideas? Fuel filter? Plugs? I'm paranoid?

Smell at exhaust while cranking, look at the sparks after removing one
plug and check compression. In this order.

--

Roland Franzius

"Richard Sexton" <richard@news.vrx.net> wrote in message
news:ed4v95$ibj$1@news.datemas.de...
> In article <mRmJg.6389$SZ3.3982@dukeread04>,
> John Simpson <jasimp@earthlink.net> wrote:
>>This may sound trivial, but I'm getting nervous! The car has always
>>started
>>within 1 second, hot or cold. I would guess on the first revolution after
>>engaging the starter. Lately, it cranks for a couple of seconds before
>>starting. It runs fine once it has started. It's got 180K miles on the
>>odometer. Plugs haven't been changed for years! Fuel pump relay was new
>>about 8 months ago.
>>
>>Any ideas? Fuel filter? Plugs? I'm paranoid?
>
> Change the plugs. Wouldn't hurt to do all the filters too. Expect
> a slight milage increase if you do.
>
>
> --
> Need Mercedes parts? http://parts.mbz.org
> Richard Sexton | Mercedes stuff: http://mbz.org
> 1970 280SE, 72 280SE | Home pages: http://rs79.vrx.net

Thanks for the reply.

The air filter is new. How many fuel filters are there? Where are they
located?

John



> 633CSi 250SE/C 300SD | http://aquaria.net http://killi.net

"Guenter Scholz" <scholz@sciborg.uwaterloo.ca> wrote in message
news:ed56il$dr1$1@rumours.uwaterloo.ca...
> In article <mRmJg.6389$SZ3.3982@dukeread04>,
> John Simpson <jasimp@earthlink.net> wrote:
>>This may sound trivial, but I'm getting nervous! The car has always
>>started
>>within 1 second, hot or cold. I would guess on the first revolution after
>>engaging the starter. Lately, it cranks for a couple of seconds before
>>starting. It runs fine once it has started. It's got 180K miles on the
>>odometer. Plugs haven't been changed for years! Fuel pump relay was new
>>about 8 months ago.
>>
>>Any ideas? Fuel filter? Plugs? I'm paranoid?
>>
> Hi John, my 89 300e started doing the same thing earlier this summer,
> it has not gotten worse. I've changed plugs etc etc to no avail...
> whereas
> it used to start with a turn or two, it now takes 4 or 5 sec cranking and
> once it starts everything is fine. Moreover, and this may be fortuitous,
> this
> is the first summer that the car apparently has suffered vapour lock - ie
> it took over 5 min or thereabouts of cranking befor starting/sputtering
> and
> then continuing fine. the only thing I've not checked so far is the fuel
> filter
>
> best wishes, guenter
>
>

Thanks for the reply.

I would suspect vapor lock, but it's the same cranking hot or cold.

John

"Roland Franzius" <roland.franzius@uos.de> wrote in message
news:ed5vrl$htv$1@newsserver.rrzn.uni-hannover.de...
> John Simpson schrieb:
>> This may sound trivial, but I'm getting nervous! The car has always
>> started within 1 second, hot or cold. I would guess on the first
>> revolution after engaging the starter. Lately, it cranks for a couple of
>> seconds before starting. It runs fine once it has started. It's got 180K
>> miles on the odometer. Plugs haven't been changed for years! Fuel pump
>> relay was new about 8 months ago.
>>
>> Any ideas? Fuel filter? Plugs? I'm paranoid?
>
> Smell at exhaust while cranking, look at the sparks after removing one
> plug and check compression. In this order.
>
> --
>
> Roland Franzius

Wouldn't a compression problem cause rough idling?

John