Dark Smoke on a 1989 300E

[giocamoto]

Newbie here. Sorry to begin with. I inherited a 1989 300e. Here are my concerns

- dark exhaust smoke (leaned it out to prevent it..... But now car DOES NOT IDLE)

- fuel gauge danced and stopped working all of a sudden when I filled it up

- mechanic said it's a fuel distributor problem ( darn..this is expensive )

- erratic shifting....

- oil leak at the front right side (near the alternator)

- installed new plugs, new fuel filters

- problem got worst when I replaced fuel accumulator.... It ran richer....

- I call it the squid..... It literally spurts out black smoke and carbon soot when I rev it in the garage


What should I do? Help! I can't sell the car for sentimental reasons.... And it's part of the "inheritance" package with a clause that I should keep the car. I am screwed.... Or am I?

I'm at a total loss on what to do.

I plan to get a remanufactured FD,

[Savannahbenz]

I see you did plugs, did you use copper NON resistor? dont use platinum, multiple electrode or any other high tech gimmick plugs, they will make the car run worse and can damage the ignition system. What is the condition of distributor cap, rotor and wires? if old/suspect change them. You inherited the car, did it sit without running for a long time? if so you likely have fuel contamination changing filter was a good move. Dancing/inop fuel guage is likely a dirty sending unit in the gas tank, add some Techron fuel system cleaner and give it some time to clean the sender. if cleaning does not help, replace the sending unit, not a big job. You said you leaned out the mixture, what is your duty cycle reading? over lean mixture will cause idle issues.
Welcome to the forum, lots of freely shared knowledge here.

[Savannahbenz]

Forgot to mention, look for vacuum leaks, these cars have a lot of vacuum systems, will definately cause running and shifting problems. if you already haven't already done so, check transmission fluid level and condition.

[giocamoto]

Thank you gentlemen. Well, I actually did a few DIY tests.

First, set it as lean as possible until it barely idles then I started pulling the plug wires cylinder per cylinder, one at a time. Well, I think the one closest to the firewall has a damaged tension wire.... Will check caps, rotors and vacuum as stated.

It seems people here replace the FD as the last result..... Sounds logical to me.


All I can say is....

[giocamoto]

Originally Posted by Savannahbenz

I see you did plugs, did you use copper NON resistor? dont use platinum, multiple electrode or any other high tech gimmick plugs, they will make the car run worse and can damage the ignition system. What is the condition of distributor cap, rotor and wires? if old/suspect change them. You inherited the car, did it sit without running for a long time? if so you likely have fuel contamination changing filter was a good move. Dancing/inop fuel guage is likely a dirty sending unit in the gas tank, add some Techron fuel system cleaner and give it some time to clean the sender. if cleaning does not help, replace the sending unit, not a big job. You said you leaned out the mixture, what is your duty cycle reading? over lean mixture will cause idle issues.
Welcome to the forum, lots of freely shared knowledge here.

Will have to get a tester for the DC reading. I can have it done here at the shop since labor is pretty cheap. Car sat for a very long time.... Used for trips by previous owner from the house to the church or just the village grocery. 1 mile total trip in all. Owner had a lot of cars.... Car's mileage is 58400 miles. The interior is still great, all the switches are intact.... All's good except for the engine but I'm slowly figuring out the whole thing.

Cars are not really my thing. I love motorcycles and that's my passion. I'll Oostende pics of my garage soon....