When to change glow plugs?

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When to change glow plugs? - 12/27/2007 10:36:18 PM    AMGMercedes Posts: 1556 Joined: 1/31/2006 From: Maryland Status: offline My 190D is having a tough time starting. Originally I thought it was caused by air in the fuel line from the leaky diesel thermostat, so that was changed. Car has a new battery and glow plug relay. When the car finally does come on, the glow plug indicator lamp is slightly lit. And when I hit the brake pedal the light goes out. Does that indicate it needs new glow plugs? _____________________________ 1984 Mercedes 190D-SOLD! 1999 Honda Civic DX- Current DD 1986 Mercedes 190E-16v-On the way Post #: 1

RE: When to change glow plugs? - 12/28/2007 7:21:31 AM    ForcedInduction Posts: 893 Joined: 5/20/2006 From: Federal Heights, Colorado Status: offline Get an Ohm meter (a cheap-o $5 multimeter should have that feature), remove the wire going to each glowplug and test each plugs resistance between the engine (ground) and the plug's terminal (positive). They should be less than 1 Ohm. If a plug has more than 1, have 0 (short) or infinite (open) then it needs to be replaced. _____________________________ 1980 240D 3.0VNT 222K Miles. OM617.95, GT2256V VNT turbo, 4-speed manual, 3.46 diff, 15mm rear swaybar, ALDA removed, no EGR and Amsoil by-pass oil filter. Currently 107HP and 195lb/ft of torque at the wheels. www.youtube.com/Turbo617 (in reply to AMGMercedes) Post #: 2

RE: When to change glow plugs? - 1/1/2008 2:36:45 PM    AMGMercedes Posts: 1556 Joined: 1/31/2006 From: Maryland Status: offline Ok, instead of buying an ohm meter, I just replaced the plugs. I still would have had to remove the intake manifold to test them. Upon first start, the car started immediately after the install, which was in fairly cold weather! But a day later as I was leaving a friend's house after their New Year's party, the car's engine wouldn't even turn over. Using some starting fluid I got it home, let it sit over night, and the same thing happened again. I noticed that the glow plug light doesn't come on when the key is in position 2 also. < Message edited by AMGMercedes -- 1/2/2008 9:52:04 AM > _____________________________ 1984 Mercedes 190D-SOLD! 1999 Honda Civic DX- Current DD 1986 Mercedes 190E-16v-On the way (in reply to AMGMercedes) Post #: 3

RE: When to change glow plugs? - 1/4/2008 10:49:23 PM    AMGMercedes Posts: 1556 Joined: 1/31/2006 From: Maryland Status: offline Thanks for the help. Glow plugs did the trick, but the reason why the GP indicator lamp wasn't coming on was because the GP relay fuse is fried to hell and no electricity was circulating So this hard starting BS ends tommorow as soon as I buy that mofo  _____________________________ 1984 Mercedes 190D-SOLD! 1999 Honda Civic DX- Current DD 1986 Mercedes 190E-16v-On the way (in reply to AMGMercedes) Post #: 4

RE: When to change glow plugs? - 1/9/2008 7:18:39 PM    hey_allen   Posts: 3 Joined: 10/31/2006 Status: offline On one of the other boards that I follow, many diesel owners suggest keeping a couple spare "strip fuses" for the glow plug controller, just as a precaution. As said there, it's annoying to have to wait on a tow for the cost of a $0.30 fuse being blown! As far as testing the glow plugs goes, you can test them from the controller end of the wiring, within about 1/10th of an ohm difference. _____________________________ -Josh '82 300SD ~298k mi '82 500SEC work in progress (in reply to AMGMercedes) Post #: 5

RE: When to change glow plugs? - 1/10/2008 7:41:15 AM    AMGMercedes Posts: 1556 Joined: 1/31/2006 From: Maryland Status: offline I tested each glow plug removed and all the new ones work after blowing the fuse again. So today I've got to test each wire individually and the relay to track down a short. _____________________________ 1984 Mercedes 190D-SOLD! 1999 Honda Civic DX- Current DD 1986 Mercedes 190E-16v-On the way (in reply to hey_allen) Post #: 6

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