Knowing in advance that this group is no place to ask for diagnoses
beyond the simple things, I nonetheless ask for advice. This is because
no independent garage nor the Mercedes dealer has been able to diagnose
a long-running problem.

The car:

1990 300CE 24 valve, 202,000 miles. Starts fine, runs strong, good
compression. Owned for 11 years.

The problem:

The car starts fine in the morning and runs great. However, after
sitting for anywhere between 15 minutes and 3 hours, upon starting, the
car will immediately die. Cranking again starts the car right up, and
all is fine.

I first thought it might be fuel starvation, but it's been suggested it
might be just the opposite... fuel flooding. One or two mechanics say
the original fuel distributor may be leaking fuel slowly into the air
horn when it sits, and when warm, the car then dies due to this
flooding-like situation.

It sounds plausible to me, except for another symptom which is this:
While driving, and only occasionally, when I get off the gas as when
coming to a stop or going around a curve or corner, the car will simply
die very quickly, as though suddenly starved for fuel. Again, turning
the key starts it right away, and all is well.

If the warm-start problem is caused by a tired fuel distributor, then I
don't know how it would cause the second problem.

What I've done so far:

€ replaced the original fuel pumps (which were tired) with new OEM ones
€ replaced fuel accumulator and fuel filter

Neither had any effect, except the pumps are quieter and it's good to
know they're new.

Any suggestions would be appreciated, including mentioning which other
bolt-on components could cause such a problem

Thanks!

C. Adams

(replies to the group, please)