Progress, hurray! I'd guess your air actually leaked OUT which got you a complete charge of fuel for a sec which let it run.
If it were me I'd proactively replace all the rubber fuel lines. I HATE chasing fuel leaks... The only lines I've never replaced are the clear plastic ones around the filter... -Curt Date: Sat, 20 Aug 2011 07:39:42 -0700 From: Alex Chamberlain <apchamberl...@gmail.com> To: Mercedes Discussion List <mercedes@okiebenz.com> Subject: Re: [MBZ] 603 filter change, cranking forever Message-ID: <CABHyH=ZxBU7hLLy-g6Z=mdmvmpoe+yxtufzrwdj4fogmivc...@mail.gmail.com> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1 Some progress! After 48 hours on the Battery Tender the battery (a new Group 49 from NAPA, you may recall) was finally fully charged. I was able to crank for nearly a minute before the starter audibly slowed down. No cooking-electronics smell this time. I stopped cranking to reglow every twenty seconds or so, as Peter suggested. When I first turned the key after the first glow cycle, the car seemed to start and run perfectly for a moment---just long enough for me to think "Hey, it's fixed!"---then went back to the pattern it was showing before, of mostly just cranking and occasionally firing on one or two cylinders. Significance? There was no appreciable smoke from the exhaust and only a little smell of mixed raw diesel and Diesel Purge. I guess all this means I can rule out electrical problems, and concentrate on fuel delivery. Peter said a few messages back: You can also check for air leaks by removing the return line from the steel line and putting it in a can partially filled with fuel and have someone crank the engine -- if you get lots of bubbles, you have an air leak on the suction side. I'll round up a helper and do that once the battery is charged up again. Comments? Particularly on the weird "start and then fail" behavior? Alex _______________________________________ http://www.okiebenz.com For new and used parts go to www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://mail.okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com