I have a 1977 240 D that I recently put a factory rebuilt engine in. It runs great....except for one very major thing and no one has been able to figure out what in the world it could be. The car is driven for awhile and then turned off....well, it is going to stay off until the next day. I have had a number of mechanics to looks at it and no one can figure this out. WHAT COULD IT BE? It has adequate fluids..it is not over heating.....is the some sort of sensor somewhere that might THINK it is overheating? If you have any ideas or suggestions I would be MOST appreciative....I am sending my deaf daughter off to school in this car and I must assure that it is dependable...if this problem can be rectified the car will be tip top!

 

what was the first 6 VIN number?

 

I had a 1986 Porsche that did the same thing. The dealer traced it down to a very expensive temperature sensor, hidden behind the motor. The sensor would overheat and the car's engine stopped, sometimes I could restart it within a hour of letting it cool, once I waited 3 days for it to start.

This particular sensor measured the temp of the engine block. I added this information as air cooled Porsche's had 4 or 5 temp sensors which measured temps for different parts of the engine, back in those days. Also the sensors all seemed to cost over $300 and the bad one cost over $1000 to replace as the dealer had to drop the engine to get at it.