B189s

I didn't know that I guess I will bring my car back to the shop and tell them to take off the pads. Thanks Drex.

Ryanr317

I know it is advised to change your shocks when using springs like the H&R ones. Do the shocks on the early W203 (Pre MY 04.5) sports models wear just as fast as if it were the non sport suspension with aftermarket springs. Ofcourse the springs are a cheaper option, which is what i'm looking for. College is expensive!! I may save for the cup kit, but not if the stock sport shocks can withstand the aftermarket springs well.

mbarrad

I have an 03 C230SS and the gap between the tire and wheel well is huge in the front (3 fingers gap). I was sitting next to a new C230SS today and noticed that it was approx an inch lower than my setup. Could I hypothetically just change out my 2003 springs with 2004.5 or later springs and get away with it or would I need the shocks too? Anyone getting rid of their stock setup?

Mike

catwalk

for anyone that cares Vogtland was the only company that offered to make custom springs for my 4-matic, and for what i think is a good price, it was about 200 per spring. They wanted a stock front spring and a few weeks r&d time. I still have not done this yet.

SUNILP

I have vogtlands on my 124 and love them.

drexappeal

I don't know if the wear would be less or the same on the shocks prior to 2004.5, however, I would just save up to get both at the same time. You'll eventually have to replace the shocks at some point and might as well get that out of the way all at once.

WaveyKat

Blake did u ever get this hollow knocking sound fix? i do hear this same sound when going over bumps or uneven roads but not on flat surfaces.? it sounds like its coming from the front of the car i maybe wrong...

Blake P

I never got mine fixed yet. I'm guessing it's a control/thrust arm bushing that needs to be replaced or a bad sway bar endlink. I'll get it looked at during my next service.

WaveyKat

i recently change my endlinks, sways, swaybushings and thrust arm.





and



these are just picures of the stuff i had change.

Blake P

Did the noise start happening after you changed these suspension parts? Can you give me an estimate of what those parts cost? Thanks!

WaveyKat

well i got the parts from frank at santa barbara auto cuz the deal was trying to rip a brother off... the noise started happing after i change the suspension to tein but i tried not to pay it any attention then about 4 months ago i had take the car into the stealership and they told me i need new thrust arm & endlinks, i think the cost with labor was close to $1300.. i was like u guys a freaking crazy so i then called frank @ SBA and i did the install myself. but i still was hearing the nosie but the parts that was removed were busted up.

Blake P

How much were the parts from Frank?

WaveyKat

can't really remember was around $200-$300 i think

Blake P

That's not bad. I think I'll give Frank a call and see about buying all new endlinks, arms, and bushings.

WaveyKat

so today i went looking under the car to see if i can see where this Hollow knocking sound is coming from everything under the car in the front suspension look fine untill i saw that the thrust arm/control arm the balljoint thing at the end the rubber part around it looked busted o am guessing this is where the knocking sound is coming from see pictures attach.

this is not mines but just a pic to show the thrust arm/control arm ball join rubber part



now these are pictures from my camera phone of the drive side of my car thrust arm/control arm ball joint



look how the black rubber looks



Now these picture are of the passanger side u can tell the difference





now am off to go order some new arms i will let u guys know if this stop the hollow knocking sound.

the thing that causes this to go bad is New York Streets ONLY...... and if u hit some potholes

Blake P

Wow...glad you figured it out, cuz I looked all around and couldn't find anything wrong with my limited knowledge. Then again, I didn't know what to look for! Let me know what parts you end up ordering and I'll have to do the same. I figure I might as well change the arms on both sides while I'm at it.

kmchow

Since you've been doing the research, do you know who supplied the stock suspension? I heard Sachs does the regular models while Bilstein supplies the shocks for Sport models? What about the springs?

WaveyKat

This is how my car looks with 18" wheels and coilover in the rear adjusted all the way to the hieghtest setting well it still have like to thread remaining on the adjuster thingy


say if i wanted to get more hieght just a little more is it safe to used the OEM spring pad ?? if i cut the spring pad in half or just a few millimeter thick to get more hieght is this safe does anyone know??

Blake P

I don't know about that. As I understand, no spring pad is supposed to be used with coilovers, but you could call Darwin at CarLAB to see if it's safe to use one.

drexappeal

Good question. I actually don't know. I started this thread back in March of 2005 when I wasn't a moderator. And it was being debated back and forth whether or not the 2005 models had the AMG suspension (but never confirmed yes or no). Most of the aftermarket suspensions were based off the C240 luxury and 320 luxury at that time, so any aftermarket suspension was better than what was on the luxury sedans (for performance).

Then I did the R&D for the 230 SS and Justinius7 did the R&D for the 320 coupe (for TEIN).

Just been editing this thread every now and then (after becoming a moderator).

c230 o5

Bielstin pss9 cant wait to get those coilovers on my coupe what do you think guys????????????????? anything i should know b4 getting them?

oel

They are very stiff, which is why I just got H&R COs.
On my pss9's, the front didn't go that low, still had about 1-1.5 finger gap when I adjusted it all the way down.
Handling on the pss9 is night and day difference compared to the H&R.
If you don't mind having a bumpy ride, you'll be very happy with them.

C320PO

Hello everyone,

I'm trying to decide what is the best option for me.

I bought a used 2001 C320 sedan that has the stock suspension on it. I like the ride during normal operations of the car. The only thing I can't stand is the lean ins during sharp turns. Two options I'm considering. Upgrade suspension to either TEIN or H&R coilovers or adding anti-sway bars. I'm not going for looks so lowering the car is not a priority.

What would people recommend to simply take care of the chassis lean? Cost wise, the coilovers are more expensive by roughly double but it's more of a full upgrade. As far as I can tell, my struts and shocks are still good. Any opinion or recommendation would be greatly appreciated. TIA.

Blake P

TEIN Basic coilovers with H&R sways should do the trick. What's your budget?

C320PO

I'm hoping to keep it under 1K. Of course, the lower the better.
I guess the fundamental question would be, are sway bars sufficient to take of the lean in issue? Some people say yes and some say no. Given the car is 5 years old, it may be time for new suspension but I just spend a bundle on the car. My local shops are saying coilovers are definitely the way to go but they have $$ in their minds.

The combo coilover + sways would be near 2k, that more than what I want to spend for now.