When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
Please bear with me as I'm learning the names of suspension parts as I go and I find practice the best way to do it.
So my 2007 C230 Sport 120k has quite serious problems and the symptoms are these:
- Above 40, 50mph the steering wheel starts shaking bad
- 90% of the time, braking brings the clacking/clunking noises
- The same noise comes when taking turns at high speed or at curves on highways.
I circled few spots on the image below, could you please let me know where would you start looking and whether it's possible to replace whole arms as opposed to just bushings?
Which replacement should happen first for safety, assuming the car had never had any suspension work done. The image is not of my car.
.
It'll also help show/explain what each part is.
I suggest replacing the both the upper and lower arms (verses just the bushings - unless you have your own press).
However, I'll still quickly go over what each part is, and if it's likely to cause the problems your car is having.
Orange: Front Upper Control arm.
Yes, a high probability of wear, and can cause the issues that your car has.
Red (& white?): Front Lower Control arm.
Yes, a high probability of wear, and can cause the issues that your car has.
Yellow: Bushing/Bracket for the front sway bar.
No, not a wear item. Unlikely causing the issues that your car has.
Green: Sway Bar Link.
A moderate wear item. Still, unlikely causing the issues that your car has.
I recently replaced mine with the Ebay knockoffs. Quality definitely doesn't seem OEM, but it removed almost all of the steering wheel wobble (still have some knocking but I'm betting that was improper installation or tightening or something). Only time will tell how long they last but no regrets right now and much better than worn stock parts.
Imho, please keep those cars with the ebay cr*p off public roads. Also, I guess that your lives are not worth much?
Using cheap ball joints is a great way to die. If you don't care about your life, then how about the possible other lives that you may screw up by using cheap parts and causing an accident and possible death of others.
Imho, you don't screw around with safety related stuff like ball joints.
Also, you should get the car aligned after that install. If you don't, again that's a saftey hazard and you'll be wearing down your tires.
When you have to replace the POS parts again soon, that's more money and another alignment. So, no real savings - just a waste of money, time, and risk to saftey.
Imho, unless you're planning on driving the car for only a month and then junking it, imho, the cheap ebay cr*p is a very bad and foolish choice.
Hmm, $$$$$ cell phone plan per month, $$$ cable bill per month, add-in other non-essential for living $$$ monthly costs, but use cheap cr*p automotive parts. Imho, people need to look better at priorities.
Welp, we'll see what happens. It would be even more unsafe to keep driving with the condition they're in right now and if I took you for a ride, you would agree.
If you're worried about aftermarket, then just buy OEM.
From a BMW forum: I put karlyn front control arms on and rear upper control arms on my 540 - HUGE mistake - they look just like the lemforder, there made in germany but they lasted me about 10k miles and 1 year and by the end had more play than the original arms with 150K. they may be 20% of the price but they last 7% of the time lemforders will. STAY AWAY! Ive learned my lesson with budget parts. I've gone thru URO rear ball joints in less than a year and 3 URO PCVs that lasted about a month each before I demanded a refund rather than exchange. dont waste your time.
Yes they are and they are the only brand I would buy. I previously bought TRW, Moog, and Karlyn parts and all failed within about a year. Do it right the first as your future wallet will thank you.
Thanks for all your help. I don't see any problems with the current arms that I have, would you recommend that I just change the bushings? I don't have the tool but I can definitely rent it.
If you live near an automotive parts store such as AutoZone or Oreilly you can rent the bushing press tool for free. I've borrowed many specialized tools from these places in the past.
Mercedes SLR McLaren 722 S Is Extremely Rare Example Modified by McLaren
Slideshow: A one-of-one U.S.-spec Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren Roadster became even rarer after a factory-backed transformation at McLaren's headquarters.
