freaky incident yesterday -- is it safe to drive this car ?
guys..
I need your advice , on whether it is still safe to drive this car. THis is a w124 300E 1990 with 160K on the meter.
i was on a 300 mile trip .( AT the beginning, I fill up the oil level a half quart or this time i had slightly overfilled it.)
Anyway I saw on my dash the battery red light would come on and disappear every couple of minutes when i was starting. 6 months ago we had replaced the battery completely and then and alternator. 6 months ago, it would go completely dead . This time, the light would wimper up a little and then disappear a few minutes later.
Well, the entire way there and half way back the car was great..but
250 miles into the trip, the car just started choking and then I pulled into a toll booth building. Luckily , the cars were going very slowly as It was a toll booth, but HAD TO BEEEN the highway , my life could have been in danger.
THE car shut off and I tried to start it again . The first pass, iginition would light up and the second would light up the dash board but when I tried the third press it would just do nothing.
So I wait and wait for 3 hours until AAA comes by. He jump starts me and the car starts up ! surprising. THe AAA guy says to me "well if it happend once, it can happen again" ....SO then I am freaked out so I leave the car at the towing facility and catch a ride home .
Today, I come to the towing facility , start up the car and I drive the remainer of 50 miles home.
Now My question is, MONDAY MORNING I HAVE TO drive another 300 for WORK reasons, ANY IDEA what caused it and it is a 1 time deal or could it happend again ? Should I Avoid taking this car on my
TRIP again ?
THIS Incident really freaked me out and I m stayin away from older cars if I can help it!
Just a FYI: your still eligible for Mercedes roadside assistance. They'll provide you with a bit of gas and a jump start if need be. If your close to a dealer that can be the quickest way to get up and running.
Just a FYI: your still eligible for Mercedes roadside assistance. They'll provide you with a bit of gas and a jump start if need be. If your close to a dealer that can be the quickest way to get up and running.
+287987129863987123321
Since you said the AAA guy gave you a jump start and it worked, it sounds like something is eating away at your alternator.
I don't know if your car is one of the victims of the dreaded wiring harness...may only be on M104 engines...but if it is, have you had that checked out?
Check out anything that assists the car in ignition, like ignition coils, battery, alternator and anything else thats related powerwise.
could be short etc. and all those other suggestions...
but I had a similiar problem when I first purchased my 92 300E.
and to me, it sounds like the serpentine belt, or the tensioner is either loose or broken and the belt is slipping enough to NOT recharge the battery, and what occurs is the vehicle runs off the battery, until the battery runs down then quits.
A jump will get it going again until the next time. It is consistent, but not predictable because you don't know when the belt is slipping unless you hear a squeal.
So I would look at the front of the engine, check the tension of the belt. Also see if you notice any black rubber shavings anywhere, an indication that the belt is slipping.
If it isn't that, move to the alternator, then look for shorts.
You'll be fine, just carry a spare battery in your trunk with some cables to jump yourself in a pinch, that's what I did for a week until I could get parts to fix the problem.
OVP
had same symptoms, charge light came on, but not bright.
took it in thinking alternator, replaced battery. alternator charging good. new battery wasnt as good as the old odyssey
died a few weeks later.
took it back in. ovp. no more troubles.
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'O=00=O' BMW 2002. long live the legend.
Vehicle: '93 300E, '83 240D, '78 240D, Toy pickup, BMW R1100S, Yamaha TW200
Location: Dayton
Posts: 73
Quote:
Originally Posted by neanderthal
OVP
had same symptoms, charge light came on, but not bright.
took it in thinking alternator, replaced battery. alternator charging good. new battery wasnt as good as the old odyssey
died a few weeks later.
took it back in. ovp. no more troubles.
I had a different issue with a Volvo and it turned out the ground wire on the alternator was loose. Once I tightened it up and charged the battery, it was back on the road with no more issues.
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