C250d Air In Fuel Lines !!

[colind]

Hi all,

this is my first post and i must say i have had a good look through old posts on this problem and they have been very informative.

Am i right in thinking that the problem i have is a common one and would easily be spotted by an MB dealer, our car has been in and out of local dealer for weeks now and they have only just come to the conclusion that the poor cold starting is due to air in the lines. They quoted me around £300 to replace the clear fuel lines under the bonnet i declined their offer and have decided to have a bash myself as the cost of the actual parts is not that great.
I would just like to ask if there is a particular place to start replacing these pipes and seals to track down the problem or would i be better just ordering all the pipes and doing it all in one go, any comments greatly appreciated, first time i have worked on a diesel, more used to my hands being covered in petrol.

I will keep u informed of my progress and use the old posts on this site as reference.


colin

 

[Daeths]

Hi all,

this is my first post and i must say i have had a good look through old posts on this problem and they have been very informative.

Am i right in thinking that the problem i have is a common one and would easily be spotted by an MB dealer, our car has been in and out of local dealer for weeks now and they have only just come to the conclusion that the poor cold starting is due to air in the lines. They quoted me around £300 to replace the clear fuel lines under the bonnet i declined their offer and have decided to have a bash myself as the cost of the actual parts is not that great.
I would just like to ask if there is a particular place to start replacing these pipes and seals to track down the problem or would i be better just ordering all the pipes and doing it all in one go, any comments greatly appreciated, first time i have worked on a diesel, more used to my hands being covered in petrol.

I will keep u informed of my progress and use the old posts on this site as reference.


colin

on my T210 cdi done two pipes my self (i'm a mechanical numpty) not difficult just fiddly. On mine I also have o rings, i'm sure you'll have the same, these harden and let in air too

Adam

 

[Devonian]

Colin

I am just about to do this job on my son's car (after reading the various posts here). On his I can clearly see the air in the plastic lines. On Friday we went to MB parts dept and just aked for the plastic pipes, the spares guy just noded and called up the diagram and part numbers (four pipes in all) To me this is an obvious sign that they have sold loads of them when the parts guys know exactly what your after - so yes it must be a comon problem.

The total cost was £41 for all pipes. I'll be fitting them sometime this week so will report back after the job is done.

Andy

 

[Bolide]

It's not the pipes that fail. The O rings flatten over time and are no longer round in section. When they're disturbed they leak

Replacing the O rings is cheap & easy

Nick Froome
www.w124.co.uk

 

[Parrot of Doom]

If the lines are the same design as on the OM606 engine (and they look identical on the link below), then £300 is really taking the ****. Just go into the parts desk and order a complete new set of lines, and a new O-ring for the fuel pre-filter. That should cost you no more than £50 for the lot.

Before you start make sure your battery is fully charged since you'll be doing a lot of cranking to get rid of all the air you'll introduce. Have a charger on standby if you can.

http://www.detali.ru/cat/oem_mb2.as...GM=717.460&CT=M&cat=19S&SID=07&SGR=120&SGN=04

The lines are held at one end by a horseshoe clip that pushes in to release. At the other end, at the fuel filter, its normally a big metal plate that holds them in place. The plate is very simple to remove, just one bolt.

On mine I found that removing the windscreen washer bottle gave me a lot more space to work. Yours may be slightly different.

The lines may be stiff to remove, I just used a flat blade screwdriver to slowly lever the stiff ones out. To replace, you just push the lines into the holes and ensure the horseshoe clips are in the out position (do not remove them completely, you'll feel a click in the right position). Do one line at a time, they're all shaped and formed so you can't mix them up, but it will make life easier.

You'll find that a small mirror will be a big help to help you see into the tight spaces.

You should also buy a replacement O-ring for the fuel pre-filter, they're not supplied with a new filter.

Once you're done, clean all the diesel off and wipe everything down to make it easier to check for leaks after a few miles. It will take several minutes of cranking to get the air out. Don't overheat the starter motor, crank for 10 seconds max and then leave it for 10 seconds before cranking again. If the battery starts running out, disconnect it and charge it back up for a few hours.

 

[Bolide]

Echo what Parrot says

You may as well replace the fuel filter & pre-filter while you're at it. Don't forget to fill them with diesel before fitting to reduce the amount of cranking needed to pump fuel through

Have the accelerator flat on the floor while you're turning it over. When it starts to catch I normally give it two cycles of the glowplugs before trying again

Nick Froome
www.w124.co.uk

 

[Suki]

Please note that some bubbles in the low pressure is is common.
Are you sure you have a leak?
THe reason I ask is that mine come from elsewhere (the actuator).
Regards
Suki

 

[colind]

Air In Fuel Lines Problem Solved

Hi all,

thanks for all the advice on my fuel problems, i have replaced all the clear plastic pipes and seals at a cost of around £50. Not to difficult at all i dont know how local mb dealer has the cheek to quote £300 for a reasonably easy DIY job.

Car has started first time from cold for last 3 days this was impossible before, no significant air bubbles can be seen in the lines now so hopefully all will be well,

thanks
colin

 

[Bolide]

This is probably the best piece of preventative maintenance you can do on Mercedes diesels of that vintage. It's not even expensive

Nick Froome
www.w124.co.uk

 

[poseidon]

Hi,

I always see some air in the fuel lines on my 11 year old c220D. When engine is off there is a large section of air in the clear pipe connecting the filter. It has been like this for over two years and I never had problems. I never got time to sort this as prevention, but since it has never caused problems I start to think that it might not be necessary.

Pose.