Thanks for the reply
I am confident I have good vacuum. The 'economy' vacuum gauge reads
good, and the vacuum retard system operates to the full extent at
idle.
When you talk of the 'crankshaft ring gasket', I am not sure what you
mean. Do you mean the gasket under the oil filler cap, or are you
concerned about blow by from the piston rings?
As for the crank case ventilation system, you are correct in that I
have not yet checked that. I used to own a W123 280E, and that had a
blocked (oil debris) crank case vent. That would cause oil to be blown
out of the dipstick tube till I fixed it.
One thing I can tell you is that the idle bypass screw (idle speed
screw) had to be unscrewed so much that there was a loud hissing noise
from the air passing through it to make the engine idle properly. I
have had to open the throttle butterfly flap slightly (adjust the
throttle butterfly stop screw) to allow me to close (screw in) the
idle bypass screw to reduce the noise from the idle speed screw area.
This is porbably not what I should have done, but I can easily return
it back to original.
Thinking about the evidence I have, and your points, I think that I
should make a full investigation of the crank case vent pipes and idle
control pipework.
Cheers... Rob.