ruzhkata

So I was talking with my dad while i was driving on the highway today. He noticed that the car is not as stable on the road as it is supposed to be on high speeds (80-100)mph. He used to own a red 190d 1989 and he said that when it stepped on the highway it was really stable, no matter what wind or road, it didn't move, he said it's like it's glued to the ground. However my 1999 c280 is not as stable compared to my dad's ex-car. Like even i feel it the rear of the car goes a little bit left and right like in a wavy motion, barely felt though. I have a year old bridgestone potenzas pole position (really good tires) stock rims and stock everything else. I'm thinking about lowering the w202, do you think that might solve the problem? Can you tell me if there is difference between the models and only if you owned or currently own the w201 and are owning or owned the w202 after that.
Thank you so much

ruzhkata

no one over here has made a difference between the two models?

maksi

dude,

as far as i can tell, no one here has made that comparison. i would suggest that you try visiting the 201 thread and try to make the necessary comparison in contrast to your experience with the 202.

good luck.

xvvvz

How many miles? If the rear is wandering, it could be your rear subframe bushings/mounts.

ruzhkata

on the c280 i have about 101k right now, but it's been wandering ever since i got it, which was at 89k.

MarrsCars

Is this noticed on all road surfaces? I have the exact same tires and found that they do track exceptionally well, meaning they follow the grooves and natural wear patterns in a roadway, which feels like wandering. It could be a factor that the new cars simply tracks better due to the suspension. This is also why many Toyota owners are complaining at the moment, because they claim that if they look away from the road for a few seconds the car is heading in another direction. lol That's called responsive steering.

If it is only the rear I would be curious if the rear was aligned since you've owned it? Sometimes people neglect this and only attend to the front wheels.

ruzhkata

i've done full alignment after i put on new tires, and recently checked it.

steve-

Hi,
I've had both a W201 1.8 and 2 W202's and a W124 (260) the cars felt very similar in road manners to me, over here people with 201's say it was the last great car built to Mercedes Benz standards and ever since then they were cost cutting, which i think is not the case.
Of the W202's i had an Elegance auto and an Esprit 5 speed with the sports chassis. Both were C 180`s and were as you put it planted, the old 124 with 280,000 miles on the clock was well worn but still good, no wandering issues at all.
The rear suspension has 4 links each side iirc maybe a rubber bush as worn? or like someone else posted it's a subframe mount?
Mine were all ver regularly maintained, servicing by myself and issues by a local indie.
I'm looking for another C Class now, i could buy newer but i love the value of the old W 202 they are really cheap over here.

mbsickness

At 101K I would suspect the LCA bushings are shot. Mine were completely torn at 89K.

ruzhkata

I'll be putting the car on a frame rack to see if there is any bent in the subframe or wherever it is attached to. The gut said its gonna be about $200 to check it out and fix it if its an easy fix. Am I being ripped off?

Darth Speed

I would check your Lower Control Arm Busings and your shocks. I had a 94 C220 and the shocks were bad when I got the car. It floated all over the place on acceleration. I also replaced the shocks & LCA and aligned the car and it drove great. I just installed w208 LCA bushings on my C36 and it is awesome. They cost about $20 more per side than the stock bushings.

I also had a 87 190e and with dead shocks it handled well! I think they both handle well when they are in good shape. The only problem with my 190e is that it tended to eat up the rear camber strut arms all the time.

If you can get under the car you can check all the bushings yourself. Use a big screwdriver or prybar and move around the suspected part and see how much they move. They should not move too much.