vwhammer

I bought a 190.
It is a 93 with the 2.6.
From the looks of it is does not have the self leveling system.

I think someone tried to heat the springs to lower it or there is some other issue.
It seems to be lower than normal and the drivers side fender is mangled a bit from what appears to be contact between the tire and fender while turning.



Anyway I am just going to put new shock/spring set up under it and call it a day.

My only question is what do I get.
I am sure I am not the first person to ask this and I did search and read a bit before posting but I came to no good conclusion as to what would be best or where to get it from.

I know that is a pretty broad question so let me tell you what I am looking for.

My girl friend will be driving it and the roads here are terrible so it can't be too low.

I can handle a 1.5 inch drop or so.
I suppose it also should not be too stiff either.

I am just looking for a nice touring type set up or something a little sportier.

I am ok with buying the shocks and springs separately or a kit that might be available.

Anyone have any suggestions?

AMGC

2.6s never came with the self-leveling suspension only 2.3-16s.
Your cars uneven/low suspension is most likely due to blown shocks. There are a bunch of shock and spring choices. Search partsgeek.com for shocks as they usually have them for the cheapest. And you can search ebay for springs. Id also recommend joining 190rev.net

vwhammer

Yeah the shocks are totally trashed.
I took a look at all the springs and I think they are ok but the previous owner said he had to change one because while he was fixing something else he noticed one was broken.

Perhaps the bad shocks had something to do with it.

Anyway I am still going to swap all the springs and shocks for better ones.

I checked out partsgeek.
They do have the Bilsteins I was hoping to find but they do not state specifically that they are the sport model.

It says sport in the product remarks but they are considerably cheaper than anywhere else I have been able to find them.
So I can't be sure they are the actual Bilstein Sports struts.
They do not list Bilstein's part number so there is no real way to tell.
I guess I could call them.

So I think I had decided on the Bilstein sports.
Now I just need to pick a good spring that only drops the car about 1-1.5 inches.

P.S. I joined 190rev about the same time I joined here.

AMGC

The ones that say sport in the description are sports. They are also yellow. That is where I have gotten all my billy sports from (4 full sets) and the reason being all the parts on there are cheaper than anywhere else.

vwhammer

Ok cool thats what I will do then.
I assumed that they were sports. I just wanted to make sure.

Still no clue about springs though.
I may just get the H&R set that tire rack has.
The only issue is that they say that they are for the 2.3 equipped cars.
not sure if they will be ok on my 2.6L car.

20126

I have 3 x 2.6s - 2 have the factory Sportline chassis, with stiffer springs (22mm lower than standard) and shocks. On good roads the cars drive like a dream and really make the car handle. On poor roads, they gibe a much poorer quality of ride and I feel the bumps and potholes. The standard car is much more comfortable but does roll a little on sharp turns. It's always going to be a compromise.

My advice would be to stick to Mercedes standard shocks and springs, which were made by Bilstein - why waste all their expensive and exhaustive research & development? A cheaper alternative is to fit Sachs shocks & springs. Google Sachs, or Sachs-Boge and trawl through their website until you find the right springs and shocks for the W201 2.6. Good quality equipment, made in Germany.

Good luck!

20126

Maybe in the US the 2.6 wasn't offered with SLS, but I have a 2.6 with SLS, factory fitted as an option when new. I have come across quite a few with this option in the UK - fitted to the 2.0 also -a model that I don't think was sold in the US.

Good that we're all different, don't you think?

20126

The Sportline rear shock for a 190 is Sachs part number 106 878. Recommended if you can find some.

Hope this helps