Looking for a vintage / young classic Mercedes specialist in the NYC area for my 1989 Mercedes-Benz 300E. Had pretty dismal service experiences at a MB dealer, so I’m looking for a place that specializes in diagnosing issues in older cars. Any recommendations appreciated!
Google is your friend - I saw plenty of places that way - call around to Mercedes car clubs - call local restoration shops - this should not be that hard .
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Just curious, but what issues exist and why do you say the Benz dealer experience has been dismal?
These cars have CIS fuel injection which in itself can be dismal. Even the oil level dipstick not being fully seated can cause a problem.
If this is a CIS issue, then any shop that specializes in old VWs, BMWs, or Volvos should be able to get through it as many of that era also used CIS.
Car has a long crank on a cold start, but always starts eventually and is in otherwise great condition. It took three consecutive visits to for them to actually diagnose something wrong with the startup (faulty fuel pump relay, allegedly), but they couldn’t order the part because MB no longer makes it and they can’t install third party (non-OEM) parts. Ended up ordering a third party fuel pump relay on eBay and installing it myself, but the issue persists.
Separately I asked them to fix a slow leak in one of the tires, which they said they fixed (it still leaks) and in the meantime all of my original metal valve stem caps went missing, replaced with generic plastic ones. They eventually sent some new ones (non-generic, still plastic), and then went totally unresponsive when I asked them to send me my originals back. Small peanuts, but I felt like I paid for premium dealer service to be worse off than I started.
I also did initially go to one of the top “foreign car” mechanics in the NYC area, found on google. They didn’t have a good answer for the long crank either (they adjusted the fuel mixture), so wanted to see if anyone on here knows of a good MB expert in the NY metro area.
Thanks for your replies!
your vehicle has 2 fuel pumps.
300E Fuel Pump Replacement How To 1989 Mercedes-Benz - YouTube
By the way the item near the fuel filter in the video is called fuel accumulator and not a pressure regulator. On this particular model the pressure regulator is mounted near the mixture control unit. The function of the fuel accumulator is to maintain the pressure in the fuel system for a certain period of time after the engine has been switched off and when the engine is running it serves to deaden the noise of the electric fuel pump. from what I have read.
it seems like the fuel is draining back into your tank causing it to take time to get back to the engine to start. maybe the accumulator has something to do with this. its just a guess though.
Thank you @weekend-warrior, this is good to know. Will mention to the next mechanic I go to.
Also in case my last post came in a little hot at the MB dealer’s expense (at least on the long crank issue), I’m sure they provide great service for newer cars where the diagnostics are via computer and all the parts are still in stock. Just a bad match for me.
Have you checked out Kraft German Auto in Brooklyn? They are MB only, seem to have good reviews. I know nothing about them aside from Yelp and Google reviews.
I think I actually will check out Kraft. I came across the forum below and they seem to be a good option. Thanks everyone for your input!
If this car uses the K-Jetronic Bosch CIS fuel injection system, besides the fuel pump relay, the part the relay plugs into (the fuse box) should also be considered suspect. Heat can eventually damage the internal buss-bars. However, generally the symptom for a faulty fuse box isn’t long cranks, then it starts. No matter how long it cranks, ot just won’t start at all. For long cranks on K-Jetronic, the cold start injector could be the problem. A grit-clogged fuel distributor should be considered too.
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If you are certain the fuel pressure is bleeding off then the problem might be with the check valve in the fuel pump. It’s a ball, spring, and seat. At one time at least, those check valves were available separately and are a screw-in fix. Whether they can still be had sans the fuel pump I do not know.
When it comes to CIS issues it is highly recommended that the car be left at the shop and allowed to sit all night before any testing is done. Testing fuel pressures involves the use of a special fuel pressure tester and there are multiple pressure readings to factor in.