kb24forlife24

Hello MBWorld,
I have looked through countless threads and have used the search function of the forums about the suspension of our cars and have had some of my own questions to ask. I am looking to upgrade the suspension of my CLK500. I live in Southern California where the roads are alright but there can be some imperfections here and there. What I have in mind for now are H&R lowering springs (the one that lowers 1.4" F and 1.3" R). I have the stock 17" wheels as well, but I have dual exhaust, with the passenger side pipe hanging a little lower than the driver side. I also have a squeaking noise coming from the front when turning on a hill or going over bumps. Is it better to go all out and get the sway bars, shocks and springs or get shocks/struts to replace my squeaky ones and springs for now?All help is appreciated, thank you!

omega48er

that squeaking this is the sway bar bushing,The W209 is notorious for that.
if its in the budget I would go for the pss9. Another option is the h&R coilovers (I will most likely be getting those)

also depends how many miles you have on your current shocks, I know a lot of people with other cars that blow stock shocks when they only install drop springs.

If your car has high miles might as well do springs and shocks.

jserio

https://mbworld.org/forums/clk-class...n-special.html

jkiddd33

My h&r coils go on this week finally. I will let you know how they are.

kb24forlife24

Please let me know, thanks.

kb24forlife24

I have 91,500 miles on my car and about the squeaking noise do I just change the bushings? Thanks for the info btw

_Bondo_

Curious to know about the H&R coils...

MJ50

save up and go with coilovers...

omega48er

The thing with coilovers us you will need wheel spacers or custom offset wheels. I'm really starting to lend towards the shocks and springs side because I don't think I would ever adjust the coilover setting and there is less to break.

I been stuck in this situation for a long time lol.

kb24forlife24

Off topic but I just found a pretty big crack in my bumper and I don't know how driving lowered would help it. How would I fix a pretty big crack in the bumper?

omega48er

I would fix it by getting a clk 63 front

kb24forlife24

Isn't that lower than the stock CLK500 bumper? I'm pretty sure it's costly too!

omega48er

I forgot you have a clk500, it will require more to get installed. I would look at what duraflex has to offer. I really love the prior design body kit

kb24forlife24

I would probably just fix the bumper but I just don't know how much it would cost; I'm not really into getting an aftermarket bumper

omega48er

Any body shop should be able to do it on the cheap. Just go to a few shops

Gary C

Is the crack under the bumper? If yes it is an easy fix. If you can work with fiberglass, just glass it from the inside. If its where I think it is you will not even notice it. Gotta watch those parking curbs. As for lowering I went with the h&r springs with Bilstein sport shocks in the rear and Koni adjustable struts in the front. Long story short, the Koni rears were backordered and I put the Bilsteins on because I didn't want want to wait 4 months for the Koni's. Looks and rides great!

dynomite05

Definitely save and go with the coilovers. I went through 2 or 4 different sets of springs and 2 sets of shocks before settling on the PSS9s.

jkiddd33

So Ive had the H&R street Performance coils for close to 1k miles now and I love them.

Daily Driving: It feels Smoother than stock.
Spirited Driving: Its Perfect for the occasional canyon driving.
Car is much more planted, less body roll, dips and bumps rebound much quicker. Im in Love.

Took her to the canyons this past weekend and not once did I feel like "Oh ****" I dont have control. Handled great through the twist and turns.

It is hard to describe the drastic change these coils have done to the driving experience.
Overall these coils are perfect for anyone who dailys and canyons their car. I think if you ask anyone who has coil overs they will tell you the same. Best investment in my opinion.

I had 100k on my car when I changed out the suspension.
My shocks were totally fine as well. The difference is night in day in every aspect.
The coil overs are well worth the money.

My Wheel Set up is: (No Clearance Issues)
18 x 8.5 25 ET 235 40 18
18 x 9.5 28 ET 275 35 18 (Will be adding at least 5 mill spacer in the back to push the wheel out closer to the fender)

dynomite05

Car looks great, height is perfect!

jkiddd33

Thanks

Fatz

jkiddd33, i'm not a big fan of black wheels..... but your car, even with the wheels; maybe in part because of them, looks awesome.

I just installed bilstein B8 struts and shocks. Although I am satisfied with them, I would have liked a bit firmer ride and quicker steering response. They are mated with the H&R sport springs I installed a few years ago.

Money and time (completely shot rear shocks) would not permit me to do coil overs. I wish I had planned better, because I think coilovers is the way to go.

Maybe I can find someone who wants my slightly used struts and shocks this time next year.

kb24forlife24

Will this setup (including the offset) work with the CLK500 or only CLK55?

jkiddd33

Pretty sure its the same. 99.9% sure

kb24forlife24

My car comes stock with 17"s and I think the CLK55 comes stock with 18"s so maybe that might be an issue with fitment.

omega48er

you will not have issues running a lower offset. it will push your wheels outwards towards your fenders for a flush look. coilovers for the w209 require low offset. i think around 28 front and i dont think there is any issues with the rear.

people have said that they have issues with K&W V1 coilovers with the preacher hitting the wheel. i believe geekspec here had KW v1 with h&R coilover springs (are shorter than the kw springs) so the car sits lower with out any rubbing issues.

look up sweet jones. he is running H&R coilovers w203 spec with a very low offset. i believe around 22 or something like that.