[J.PAUL]

Good call wooky_chew_bacca, darn autocorrected your name to wooly.
Thanks
JPaul

 

[ianrandom]

Good work. You think deliberately done?

 

[[email protected]]

That sure is one beautiful car. Looking forward to more pics!

 

[J.PAUL]

I got the tank back from Multi Radiator Services from Moncton Canada, and it looks like brand new. It required 3 high powered heat washes to get rid of all the junk inside the tank before they installed the new internal liner. The owner said he’s never done more than 2 on a tank to get clean, so it was really dirty. The tank was 2500 new (from the stealership) and 295 to get this process completed, so it was a no brainer. Even the gas cap now looks better than new! I got new hoses and fuel strainer, now the easy part, remembering how it all goes back together!!! I’ll keep everyone posted and stay tuned for pictures of the inside.

 

[MBL87560SEC]

Excellent write-up & photos, JP!

I don't think we've had images of wonky fuel filter & pump innards before..

That fuel filter is positively R U D E inside!

Well done!

MBL

 

[luckymike]

Looks gorgeous. Too bad it has to hide in the trunk!

 

[J.PAUL]

Your right luckymike, here is a picture of it installed, too bad there is a carpet covering over it too. it’ll be a couple days before I get the time to get all the hoses etc reinstalled. Has anyone ever added additional rust check over the tank while they have the compartment open? I was told the tank will last 30 years with the lining that’s in it now, so I’m figuring I’ll never have this area open again,,, wait I forgot about Murphy’s law! Thanks for the complement MBL87569SEC! Stay tuned!

 

[luckymike]

Gorgeous. How about a Plexiglas panel instead of the metal? Just kidding.

 

[J.PAUL]

Today I got all the plumbing reinstalled, I ran into a couple hiccups. First being 32 year old wires going to the fuel pump. I noticed the fuel pump wires cracked in multiple places so I replaced the wire and added extra security with some heat shrink.

I also had a heck of a time getting those small nuts holding the fuel pumps back in place. What I did was rolled up some cardboard and set the nut on top of the cardboard inside the socket bringing the nut flush with the end of the socket. I hope this might help someone else from pulling their own front teeth out with a pair of vise-grips like I wanted to do today! Also the last photo is my home-made fuel pump relay override wire with a in line fuse, that I used to test voltage at the fuel pumps by crossing ports 7 and 8. Next is to double check everything and add fuel and hope for the best! See photos and stay tuned!

 

[Teutone]

Very nice. Most of the fuel pump / filter / regulator and hard lines have soft metal brass fittings) easy to round off, and expensive to replace. A set of decent flare nut line wrenches help avoid that.
A long time ago, I had a 'mechanic' replace pump and filter. The moron apparently used any open end wrenches that would kind of fit (from his SAE set I found out later), and even a vise grip on one fitting. They were all rounded off. One created a small permanent leak from over tightening. I wound up replacing once more, pumps, filter, hard lines, metal = rubber lines with all fittings, ouch.

I am not sure whether the service manual can be accessed by non US residents?
Mercedes Benz USA = MBUSA hosts https://www.startekinfo.com/StarTek/outside/12253/?requestedDocId=12253 (requires adobe flash i think)

 

[Randtor]

This is a very nice write up on the repairs and well documented with pictures. Congrats on doing this and putting it up! Very educational and helpful. It certainly has made me think ( have some fuel issues too, and I am wondering if this is a direction I might need to explore). Thanks again, I look forward to seeing more!

 

[J.PAUL]

So I got the fuel pumps all together and hooked up, added fuel to the car, and proudly went over to start the car. It started first try, sputtered for a couple seconds, then came to life! I was doing a quick check around the car as it sat there idling, when I could smell gas, I went to the fuel pump area and it was leaking gas on the floor. I ran to shut the car off, got the kill switches turned off, threw a few choice words into the air, then removed the culprit. The line that went from fuel pump to fuel pump has sprung a rather heavy leak around the flanged coupling. I removed it and decided to do the ole farm boy trick. I used a Dremel to cut the brass flange off. Then I replaced the hose with 14mm ID fuel hose, now all I need to do is reattach it and see how it works. It was the first time I actually sat in the car thinking I could take it for a drive, maybe tomorrow! I’m not sure if anyone else has ever removed one of these brass flanges, so I took a few pictures to share with the group. I always double clamp them, and should likely get some fuel injection clamps on there, but it should ok to see if it’ll work. Thanks for the compliments and Stay tuned!

 

[J.PAUL]

Already folks, I’ve got the car running for the first time. It idles perfect without a miss. I went to take it for a drive and it appears to have little power. When you put the gas pedal to the floor it “pops” and stalls out until you let off the throttle. I’ve searched for vacume leaks, to no avail. Only thing I found was a weird hole in the breather cover, I’ve attached photos. It has a black rubber that don’t seal very well to the opening below. I’m in need of suggestions. I got it to run, now I need to get it moving! It has no power at all under acceleration. I’m at a loss of thoughts it could be. Suggestions are very welcomed! Also why can’t you upload videos? I have a video of the car starting and running. It idles perfect.

 

[magicbigdaddy]

That hole is there for adjusting the duty cycle on the CIS. Do a lot of reading before you even think about adjusting it. I would pull the air filter and make sure all your throttle linkages are well lubricated. Every one of them. If one is hung up it can create the symptoms you have mentioned.

 

[Tom Kaiser]

There is a black plastic cap that fits into that hole. I do not remember the part number but I ordered one from MBOEMPPARTS.com

 

[dadrab]

Check to make sure your exhaust isn't plugged up. Very high possibility that running the cruddy fuel could have clogged up your cat or that the pre-cat has come apart and clogged the cat. It happened to me... Car idled beautifully and ran like hell. Had the cat cut out and exhaust straight piped.

If you live in an area with emissions testing, tell the shop you want "test pipes" welded in.

 

[J.PAUL]

I found an old bottle of mineral oil in the engine compartment, is that what you use to lube up the throttle linkages? The throttle linkages seem well kept and like new. I’m hoping to spend some time finishing up troubleshooting and working on the car next week, I’m also planning on removing the cats to see if they are plugged, I’m open to any other suggestions! Hopefully I’ll get this beautiful car purring, stay tuned!

 

[corellian corvette]

Since this is a Gen2 car, and you know there was a lot of gunk in the lines, it may be worth disconnecting the lines to the fuel distributor (and back again at the fuel pumps) and blow them out with compressed air. I also wouldn't be surprised if you have gunk in your injectors which is what's causing the lack of power.

Your next step, without touching anything, is to order a Fuel Pressure kit from Amazon and do some research on the forum. It's very, very easy to test fuel-pressure and leak down on the Gen 2 fuel distributors - there is a port right up on top that's easily accessible to tap a tester into, and you can make sure you have enough fuel pressure and that your accumulator isn't leaking down.

This is a good one (Amazon.com: Lisle 55700 Master Fuel Injection Test Set: Automotive) alternatively Harbor Freight also has one that has the correct fittings.

Given where you've found the source of trouble, and no power on acceleration, testing fuel pressure is your next step for sure.

 

[J.PAUL]

I tested the fuel pressure, all was good there, not sure if I did it correctly, but the PSI went up in increments of 40 PSI, until the gauge maxed out at 140 PSI!! , turning the key off and back on allowed the pumps to kick back in. I just hooked the gauge into the end of the line, not allowing the motor to run.
I then decided to cut open the cats as per (dadrab) and the car fired to life like it was 1987! I have a cool before and after video, but I can’t figure out how to upload videos. It was literally night and day difference!

I also installed a new fuel filter (after getting the tank redone) and added Lucas and sea foam.

Many thanks to everyone that helped me out, it’s much appreciated!

 

[ianrandom]

Awesome 👍