I have a 1994 SL500 with 62,000 miles. The car starts right up, will drive for about a minute or two and then suddenly shuts off. It will start right back up and drive a minute or so and die again. I cannot keep it running regardless of how hard I press the accellerato pedal. No check engine light. Does anyone have a suggestion on what may be causing this prblem?

 

is it regular like clockwork when it dies? or does it sometimes drive for a lot longer periods before it dies? it's fairly common for those overload protection relays to suddenly shut you down, but that can be more intermittent and harder to restart at times. does it shut down when it's cold or after it gets hot or does it matter? rough roads make a difference? does it idle ok and dies only when trying to accelerate? does it just quit?

 

The stalling is pretty consitent. I can't really drive it because it will only run for a minute or so before cutting off. It starts back up immediately. It dies at idle and and when accellerating. I don't think it is heat related because it cuts off after only about a minute or two after starting. Rough roads don't seem to play a role as the engine quits even if the car is still.

 

I think I'd try the overload relay first. It's a cheap try to eliminate that as the problem. You can get an aftermarket for about $18 and the oem for about $54 from Auto Parts at AutohausAZ - OEM Auto Parts - Discount Replacement Parts, Resources and Car Care Tips. if you spend $50 there will be free shipping. If you get the aftermarket you might want to get some filters to get free shipping. So you might get the fuel pump relay as another cheap try if the overload doesn't work. it's only $9. are the ignition parts ok? like distributor cap, rotor, plugs. You can do a basic check on your wiring. remove the engine wiring covers and run the engine in the dark, you will easily see your wiring shorting if the wiring is bad. are all the vacuum lines good?

 

Excellent suggestion! Model Year '94 had a wiring harness problem in that the insulation would disintegrate over time exposing bare wires or losing continuity.

 

Thanks for the suggestions folks. The wiring harness and plug wires are new. I replaced the crankshaft position sensor. Still cuts off suddenly after a minute or so and then starts right back up. Tried spraying starter fluid into the throttle body to prevent the stall but it did not help. I will try the relays and hope for the best.

Could the EZL be causing this problem?

 

normally the ezl would give you problems restarting after it died. They are very dependable too. most relays are pretty good too, except for the overload.

 

similar problem to what I have been reading in other posts. Car starts up fine and once driving intermittently stalls out. Mechanic diagnosed as a faulty Electro Hydraulic Actuator ("EHA") valve when he saw it was leaking on the top of the engine. New EOM part was $550 Canadian plus needed new vaccuum hoses as old ones had disintegrated ($78) and 2 hours labor to replace and adjust fuel distributor. Works nicely and does not stall out now !

 

I once had a mercedes (1984) and it acted that way because the fuel filter was filled up with trash. It would always run well until the sediment piled up and shut off the fuel in the filter.