MAYIMBE

I just got a 1999 e320 that came down to Miami from Illinois, now the rt front dropped when I check the bracket that holds the top part of the spring ripped,now the spring released tension and is just there holding by a thread. this is crazy, I have being driving that car with my 3 childrens in the fast lane.
now I am in the process of grinding all the rust and that black seal to try to well a new piece

raymond g-

ouch...i hate hearing these stories with the spring perch. then i get angry at
MB for their lack of support in tackling this problem. grrrr

bad hare

I'm sure i'm going to be flamed for this & called a troll, but the truth is the truth.

The car is a POS. Get rid of it as soon as you can.

Not just for your wallets sake, but for your family's well being.

I've had nothing but issues w/ it. Spring perch. Transmission mis-shifting & throwing the car into neutral on the highway. (can you imagine loss of power w/ 3 kids in the back screaming?)
I had to have modules replaced etc. just awful.

On the other hand, my '89 300E runs like a boss.

Now time to unsubscribe to this site. much love.

01BlackE320

No flames and trolls here. If I had those problems I'd be pissed too. My experience has been basically trouble free perfect performance since I bought mine 6 years ago with 58k. I have 134k now. My daughter uses the car now and the spring perches worry me a bit. I would like to have my mechanic get a good look at them

CKonstantin

Peel back the sealer and replace if any visible rust is present, mine had what looked like minor surface rust but one failed within 3 months of buying the vehicle(it's a 96 which I bought last year).

I had both replaced.

robent

I have the same spring perch problem with my 1996. RF gave way in the driveway and on proper inspection, the LF was in imminent failure. This failure appears to be common over a number years on the same body model.
Has anyone had a positive response from Mercedes?

jessejames4

I know this post is a few months old but I though I would throw in my experience and keep it in the same thread.

I'm replacing some suspension and steering parts (rack and pinion unit, bushings, tie rods, ball joints- upper/lower) and knew I had to repair the passenger-side spring perch as I replaced the driver's side perch a couple of years ago. I use to have a body shop and still have all my tools so this is not a scary job for me but I can see how, at $1900 a side to repair, it could make a W210 owner faint, especially if there is a lot of rust involved. Note in the passenger side photos how large the repair hole is after the rust is cut out.

On the driver side, I had to replace the whole perch. Those photos are on photobucket as well. On the passenger side, the left side of the perch was not damaged, so I was able to cut a piece out and use three quarters of the new perch. This was extensively mig-welded to the old perch.

Too many photos to upload here (I don' want to overload the server with bandwidth) so the link to this repair and the driver-side is here: Feel free to use any of these photos or the links to explain to your mechanic or autobody guy how this job can be done. I personally would not recommend using the rivet method.

This problem is a huge MB design failure. When I got the parts and felt the thickness of the replacement perch I could not believe how paper thin they are. The springs put so much upward pressure on these they should be 5x as thick.

If you are considering doing this job yourself, PLEASE make sure you have the correct spring compression tool. I have photos of the correct type to use as this part of the repair is dangerous. Always wear safety glasses and gloves and keep your fingers out of the spring when compressing. When compressed, you will need to unbolt the lower ball joint, drop the lower control arm with a jack if need be, so the spring can drop out of the old perch if you are lucky enough to have one left.

AGAIN, I CANNOT STRESS THIS ENOUGH: PLEASE BE VERY CAREFUL AND TAKE YOUR TIME. THIS CAN BE A DANGEROUS JOB without the right tools.

[updated the link to photos] Scroll down to left and right side spring perch repair folders.

http://s1222.photobucket.com/user/je...?sort=9&page=1

01BlackE320

If a had a spring perch failure in my 2001, that would be curtains for my E320. I would never feel safe driving a 14 yr old car with that type of repair.

speedyunk

Sooner or later you probably will have a spring perch failure.

Its safer once those spring perches have been replaced.

01BlackE320

I examined my spring perches and there is no evidence of any corrosion. I don't think failure is imminent on these cars although I do live by the ocean so there's lots of salt around

t2464km@gmail.c

Is there a recall on the 1997 e420 for the front perch down.

Law Lew

I'm having the same issue how did your job go was it successfull pleas let me know only one side of my is damaged


The passenger side



The driver side😞

jessejames4

I'm not sure who you are asking but here is my updated link to the repair I did on my (now sold) 1998 E300. Navigate down to the two spring perch repair folders, left side and right side.


http://s1222.photobucket.com/user/je...?sort=9&page=1

coil

Did you fix your passenger side? How well did it hold up? I am having the same issue with my 2000 e430 I am assuming you are not where snow is? How well do the repairs/mount/perch hold up?

khomer2

coil,

Who are you asking? (This thread is 3 years old (on w210s that are 17+ years old)
If you have an issue with your spring perch(es), then I would suggest you follow the repair procedure for this issue.
There are plenty of past posts regarding the process and fixes for this that you can search, read and review.
GL.