Acceleration problem with W124 E Class Estate.

[toby tucker]

I own a 1994 e220 w124 Estate with a 4 speed auto gearbox which I've had since new. It's not worth a lot now but still in immaculate condition after 143k miles. I don't use it much any more , but don't mind spending a bit on it to keep it going ...but not at main stealership prices

A problem has arisen when driving and it wont accelerate hard anymore and it dies /struggles going uphill. Can anyone on here suggest what the issue might be please ?

Thx

Edited by toby tucker on Saturday 22 March 08:51

[hornetrider]

Owned since new! Sorry can't help with your question but bravo, sir!

[harry kular]

You, sir, are a man of impeccable taste.

I test drove an E220 coupe a while back and it seemed to have similar symptoms to that. Didn't buy it so don't know the answer for sure, but throttle cable linkage maybe? On this one the pedal needed a good shove to go anywhere.

[sim16v]

Possibly dirt/damp in the distributor cap.

Take it off and check inside, and give it a good clean.

Or, when was the last time it was serviced?

If they missed the fuel filter, it could be due a new one.

[ClassicMercs]

May be a daft suggestion but - has someone knocked the gearbox E/S switch accidentally ?

Last time I had my car out I was playing and just put it into E - out of interest - never done it in years of ownership. Set off on holiday yesterday and was somewhat concerned about ability to make progress. Saw it was in E - back to S and its as good as new.
Good job its was in S today - Hardknott and Wrynose ! That star did look like a gun target at the end of the bonnet when all you could see was sky ahead. A G wagen was almost more appropriate with some of the potholes.

[toby tucker]

thanks for the suggestions.

The g/box remains in sports(s) mode so that not the culprit. I checked the last service invoice and there's no indication that the fuel filter was changed at that time - in fact I cant see if the filter has ever been changed. So I will pursue that next weekend as filter replacement seems cheap enough - is it located under that plastic cover next to the diff ?

Edited by toby tucker on Thursday 27th March 12:20

[toby tucker]

I removed the plastic cover to gain access to the fuel filter and all the captive bolts (bar one) that retain the plastic cover sheared off. The area around the captive bolts is quite badly rusted yet on the other (passenger) side with no cover is almost perfect. It look like I will need to get rust area cut out and new metal with captive bolts welded in. I took the opportunity to examine the rear sub frame mounts and fortunately they look ok

[killingjoker]

Have you tried these?

Clean the Mass Airflow Sensor.
Clean the secondary air/oil pipes.
Reset the TPS.

Hope that helps.