190E 2.0L auto stalling/starting problems

[oilovlam]

I know, it's one of those problems with a hundred possible root causes. But perhaps someone has the answer.

The car is '93 +100K (miles). It has been stalling intermittantly for at least 12 months. The MB dealer says it checks out OK. In fact when they have the car they cannot replicate the fault (typical!).

Symptoms:
1). Seems to stall when braking to a stop & possibly turning into junctions - intermittant fault
2). Seems to have trouble starting after a damp spell. Engine turns over but only makes a few weak attempts to fire when the ignition is released.

I have cracked open the fuel relay. It looked perfect. I resolderded the joints anyway. There also seems to be pressure in the fuel tank but that could be normal.

Either I have two faults - stalling & damp starting - or they are linked. When I spray water on the distributor (probably a daft idea) the engine stalls and I have the starting problem until it dries out.

The leads are old (original?) but the distributor cap + rotor arm were renewed 18 months ago. Does anybody have a good idea what I can do that will help target the fault. The MB dealer only seem good at printing invoices.

Any advice much appreciated.
Sean

 

[pascal]

They may not be connected.

For the stalling at junctions. I had this problem with a 300CE. Very intermittant. Put some Redex in a tank of fuel, it cut out once whilst running on that tank, and never did it since.

Also, it would not be a bad idea to check the contacts on the fuse on top of the OVP relay. MB fuses seem to deteriote with age, so I would clean/replace all contacts/fuses in the main fusebox also. Fuses have been known to look okay, and then afterwards the owner to discover a hairline crack in one of them.