jajohnston1

So, I have done many hours of research and I just cant quite find out which suspension option is best for the 1996 C36 AMG. I called H&R and they said that they dont have that year listed, so they dont have a suggested option for my car. All I can find on eBay is EIBACH and (1) set of Vogtland. I did run across a B&G S2 Sport set, but am caustious about them. Do you all have any suggestions for the best stance and longivity? Thanks.

jjay911

My car was lowered here in SOCAL by a local company. Not sure the name I can get back to you. I will tell you its a bit harder ride on the front and the tires all wear much faster....

jajohnston1

Please let me know what springs they used if you find out. I figured the ride will suffer a little and the tires will wear faster. The stance is what I am looking for and am willing to give up a few things to achieve that.

mbsickness

Here is my 96 C36 on Sachs Sport tuned kit with #5 pads in front and #3 pads in the rear. My C36 was an early production with the flattened springs. I converted the spring pads and supports to the later rolled type springs which is the only way the Sachs kit comes.


Here is my 94 C280 on H&R early style springs with #1 pads in front and #3 pads in the rear.

DRBC43AMG

I don't see why your tyres should wear out faster with a lowered suspension setup. Tyres will wear faster if camber is increased which will happen on the rear. That can easily be solved with some adjustable camber arms (search around on here). Tyres can wear out also if the suspension alignment is totally out of wack. Get it checked and save $$$

aceracer666

i also need lowering for my 97 c36 amg, and i need with this tuv papers/ documation, anyone know som good springs? because here in norway if police stopp you at the road, and youre car has a unlegel lowering, you lose the numberplates and get ****d ....

DRBC43AMG

Sounds like here in Switzerland....
All modifications need to be certified (TüV) and also the certificate needs to be made by a Swiss parts supplier. It's a real Mafia!

Jay Gibbs

A couple questions on your C36...I'm looking to use lowering springs and sport shocks as well as the AMG 18" staggered wheels on my early '94 C280. Exactly what do you have to do to change to use the newer style "rounded end" (not flattened end) springs?...do you just use the newer style spring with W210 style spring pads?...is there anything else that needs to be changed? Any thoughts, suggestions or observations on the Sachs setup on your C36 vs. the H&R springs on your C280? Looks like the C280 sits a little higher in the rear than the C36...

Also- what size tires are you using on your staggered set of AMG 18" Monoblocks. Tire Rack shows 225's in front and 255's in the rear, although I'm wondering about 215-40 in front and 245-35 in the rear...I do not want any chance of tire rubbing, and do not want to roll or otherwise modify my fenders. Revs per mile with the 215 and 245's are only a negligible 0.7% more than the 195-65-15...

Thanks!

J.G.

kirkie

Get Vogtland springs

mbsickness

The Sachs kit is a bit soft for my liking but as you can imagine it is very comfortable. The H&R is firm and does boarder on harsh when riding on 18" rims but still tolerable for a daily driver. I have a set of Konis ready to go into the C36 to tighten things up a bit. On both cars I am running 225/40 up front and 255/35 in the rear. The C36 only rubs on large dips in the rear right side against a protruding casting in the fender liner. The 94 C280 rubbed in the rear left but a slight "roll" took care of that problem. The 94 also rubs in the front when turning as the fenders are not rolled like with the C36. The 215/245 setup might be safer as far as rubbing goes but might be overly stretched on the rims.

Here is some information that I posted on another forum when I did the conversion. Basically you need to buy the updated spring pads (with starting part number 210) and four spring pad supports. With these items you can use the later rolled springs

I bought a Sachs Sport kit about a year ago and today I have finally received the final special order part needed for the install. Because I am changing over from the early style flattened springs to the later double rolled type I had to also get new spring pads and supports for the pads. These parts alone added $160 to the tab. The rear supports were $54 a piece. I ended up with the #5 pads for the rear and #3 for the front....hopefully the stance will be where I want it, otherwise add some more $ for different spring pads. I also collected the DIY camber kit parts as well as the front adjustable camber bolts. Now it comes down to getting out the tools and firing up the air compressor.

My parts collection:


As mentioned at the beginning of the thread I was converting from the early flat top style spring to the double rolled type found in the later cars. In order for the conversion you will need new style spring pads which all start with part number 210. You will also need spring pad supports for both front and rear (part numbers visible in the pictures).

Front support


Front support installed in spring pad


Rear support


Rear support installed in spring pad


For the rear support the Mercedes parts diagrams shows it in the wrong end of the spring as well as the wrong orientation so don't be fooled. The front supports were $10 a piece while the rears are $49 each so be prepared for a hit to the wallet.

Always use caution with springs....you can see how much energy is stored up on the compressed spring vs the uncompressed one.

Jay Gibbs

That's GREAT info, and those are Great pics too...thanks! I remembered seeing those spring pad braces/supports when I did suspension work on my old W210...

Now to make the decision whether I go old style spring or new style...I guess the only practical difference is that the new style seems to have more choices for spring pad thickness, and so greater possibility in combinations of ride height...(or if I were to decide to go with the Sachs kit which apparently is only made for the new style springs...)

I actually already bought both the H&R (old style) springs and Bilstein Sports as well as a set of factory OEM C36 (new style) springs and OEM AMG C36 shocks many years ago and hadn't had the time to install them...I was also confused by the different spring ends and hadn't found an answer as to the interchangability until today! As for your C36 ride comfort and handling, how does the H&R setup compare to the OEM AMG spec springs and OEM AMG/Bilstein shocks? I haven't quite decided how "hard core" I'm willing to go!

I also bought a set of Eibach sway bars (which also haven't been installed yet) that are a couple mm's thicker than the stock front and rear AMG C36 bars ...they shouldn't really make a difference in ride comfort...just roll stiffness...

J.G.

mbsickness

I would say the Sachs kit is close to OEM is ride quality and tends to be a tad too soft for my tastes. The H&R/Bilstein setup while on the firm side is not at all harsh and really makes the car come alive in the turns. The AMG valved shocks are the stiffest of the bunch. At the end of the day if I had to do things all over again I would go with the H&R/Bilstein setup.

mppp

Hey Kirkie, not sure if you still have your W202 from what I saw in your profile, but what shocks do/did you have with your Vogtland springs on your '96 C36?