Stalling in Reverse

[Adrian]

Dear Gurus,

Is there a reason why my car cuts out when I am reversing into a parking lot?  I drive a manual 230SL and only when car is in reverse, the engine will die.  I am forced to keep the Revs very high and balance with the clutch to avoid hitting the wall behind me. 

The engine does not cut out when I am in 1st gear and moving off slowly.

I am wondering what is the likely cause of the car stalling as this only happens when car is in reverse.

Many thanks in advance.

[BobH]

Hello Adrian, i'm no expert, but i wonder if your rear brakes are grabbing, it may not be so noticeable driving forward, but could stall in reverse, if you don't keep the revs up

Perhaps jack up the car and see if the wheels turn freely in both directions

[ja17]

That doesn't make much sense. Does it stall with the clutch depressed in reverse or when you release the clutch after it is in reverse?

[Adrian]

When the car is put into gear with clutch fully depressed and as I slowly release the clutch, the car will stall.  I am forced to keep revs high but the rev drops down quite fast as I temper the accelerator.  Once thing I noticed is that if I stop and let the car "rest" after a stall, the engine behaves better.

[ja17]

Sounds like it could be a engine linkage problem. Possibly the engine goes lean as the linkage moves. In that case the linkage to the venture would open before the linkage to the injection pump moves, causing a momentary lean condition. Check for wear and excessive movement on all the linkage ends and linkage bushings. Have someone watch the engine linkage as you just start to depress the accelerator pedal. (The engine does not need to be running). The intake linkage and the IP linkage should both begin movement at the same time.