engine wobble at tickover - W124 230 TE 1988

[sysengb]

Hi Everyone,Greetings from the Scottish Highlands.

This is driving me nuts.
I bought this car a couple of months ago. There is a pronounced shake going through the car - very noticable at idle.I can actually see my leg shake when sitting in the car at lights etc.
Happens on warm or cold engine.I thought the badly worn HT components were to blame but after changing the rotor,cap,leads and plugs the problem is still as bad as ever.It's spoiling my enjoyment of an otherwise great car.Does anyone know the favourite culprits for this one?I even tried redex injector cleaner but no difference.Are these petrol additives a joke or do they do some good?
Any help gratefully appreciated

 

[barbeast]

engine wobble at tickover

I have a similar problem with the vibrations, do the vibrations drop as the revs increase?

Welll i reckon that it could be the engine mounts, how many miles as your car done?

Ive been told that for a petrol model they can last 150k, but diesel slightly less,

If anyone has any other great ideas feel free to jump in

 

[Arnie]

engine wobble at tickover

I'm pretty sure it would be the engine mounts, if the vibration is that bad. You can also check the gearbox mounts, when you are in reverse gear.

 

[sysengb]

engine wobble at tickover

The car has done 170k so maybe it is the mounts,but should the engine be wobbling that much anyway?
As the revs are increased the shake becomes less noticable,but I think it's just that the frequency of the
shake has increased making it less diturbing.Has anyone successfully cured a problem like this by fitting new mounts?

 

[Andy]

engine wobble at tickover

Hi All,

The engine mountings will cure vibrations through the car especially when pulling away. And when first started in the morning. If the engine is ticking over poorly. By the sounds of it you havn't had the engine tuned properly. But I would if the engine has covered a lot of miles. Have the cylinder leakage carried out. Sounds like it may be loosing compression. But you should get the engine tuned. Make sure they pay attention to the Hydrocarbon readings. If they are very high it could be injector \fuel problem, or the mixture is not being burn correctly ie loosing compression. If you done the basics then it needs next to go on a engine analyser with emmision tests. Try and find someone who knows what they are doing.

Regards

Andy @ www.mercedesservicing.com

 

[Vronsky]

engine wobble at tickover

Try adjusting the (Bosch) sparkplug gaps to 1 mm. Will give stronger spark and stronger combustion and better idle.
Tried it myself: works fine.

Cheers!

 

[sysengb]

engine wobble at tickover

Thanks for the comments everyone.
Had the engine checked today by bosch tuning guy. He tells me that the idle mixture is far too weak and puts it
up. This does improve the wobble a bit but it's still there.  He recommends fuel injectors should be changed now as they may be defective.Any thoughts guys?I wonder if  this a DIY job and if the mixture would have to be adjusted after fitting the new injectors.I'll try the plug gap adjustment to 1.0 mm tomorrow to see if that helps. I have NGK plugs fitted, not Bosch.Is this bad news?

 

[Andy]

engine wobble at tickover

Hi

You are asking for trouble with NGK'S. Swop them for a start. I am not sure the injectors are going to cure your problem. Did he say if the hydrocarbon readings were high. Before replacing injectors. Have a cylinder leakage test performed. If the cylinders are worn out then nothing you do will cure it. The company didn't locate to a specific cylinder causing the problem, did he? At 170k I would seriously check the engine. If you know somebody with a simialar vehicle swop the injectors. This at least should change the symptons if that is the cause.


Hope this helps!

Regards

Andy @ www.mercedesservicing.com

 

[Vronsky]

engine wobble at tickover

Buy yourself an extra set of new Bosch plugs and gap those to 1 mm. These plugs a cheap. In case you get problems, replace the old ones, or gap them back to factory spec (0.8mm). Electrical system should have no problem in delivering the bigger spark. If it does, it needs checking.
As said before, my engine (M102.963) runs much smoother now.

Cheers!