Need suggestions for suspension upgrade please
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 62
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06 E350 4MATIC, 00 E55, & 01 M3
Need suggestions for suspension upgrade please
We are looking to upgrade the C43 hill climb/ time trail/ auto-x car. Any advice on what suspension kits would work well (with camber plates). Car is NOT a daily driver. Looking for the best performance for the buck (5k motons not in the budget)
First hill climb in 3 weeks which we are going to run stock
Thanks for the assistance,
First hill climb in 3 weeks which we are going to run stock
Thanks for the assistance,
Senior Member
Joined: Jul 2012
Posts: 424
Likes: 13
From: Grand Rapids, MI
99 C43 AMG, 2001 CLK55 AMG
We are looking to upgrade the C43 hill climb/ time trail/ auto-x car. Any advice on what suspension kits would work well (with camber plates). Car is NOT a daily driver. Looking for the best performance for the buck (5k motons not in the budget)
First hill climb in 3 weeks which we are going to run stock
Thanks for the assistance,
First hill climb in 3 weeks which we are going to run stock
Thanks for the assistance,
what i learned from the track day is that OEM brake pads dont cut it under those braking durations/speeds, probably wanna upgrade yours soon.
have fun!
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 62
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06 E350 4MATIC, 00 E55, & 01 M3
I know nothing about hill climb but i upgraded to Bilstein sports and they were a great upgrade for autocross. i also just did a track day and they were pretty good for that but would go Koni adjustables if your really gonna do lots of time trials.
what i learned from the track day is that OEM brake pads dont cut it under those braking durations/speeds, probably wanna upgrade yours soon.
have fun!
what i learned from the track day is that OEM brake pads dont cut it under those braking durations/speeds, probably wanna upgrade yours soon.
have fun!
Btw, hill climbs are basically a timed run up a paved mountain road, usually 1-3 miles in length with tight switch backs and literally NO run off room (either hit a rock or go through a guardrail and down the mountain :-) )
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Joined: Apr 2006
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From: Bay Area, CA
98 C43, 15 Alfa 4C LE, 18 Tesla Model 3 DM Perf, 08 Duc S1000, 02 Duc 998, 98 Duc 748, 01 Miata
What is the budget? KW V2 coilovers are the ticket for the best bolt-on suspension performance. They can be had in the $1800 to $2k range new, perhaps a little less if you could find a used set. Below that would be Koni Sports with your choice of aftermarket spring. Vogtlands are popular on this board. H&R is usually a good spring but I've heard people complain about sagging over time on this forum. There is also a matched shock and spring kit from H&R for the W202 though they don't list it for the C43. I'm not sure why other than maybe it is a decent upgrade over the normal W202 suspension but not much of an upgrade to the AMG. Only a guess, not really sure.
You will probably also need to invest in camber kits front and rear. There are a few options for the rear, but I believe K-Mac is about the only game in town for the front. They are made in Australia, so you'd have to find a dealer in the US that had them in stock or plan on a few week lead time. Maybe some of the others who have bought them can chime in with their experience. Good luck!
You will probably also need to invest in camber kits front and rear. There are a few options for the rear, but I believe K-Mac is about the only game in town for the front. They are made in Australia, so you'd have to find a dealer in the US that had them in stock or plan on a few week lead time. Maybe some of the others who have bought them can chime in with their experience. Good luck!
Senior Member
Joined: Jul 2012
Posts: 424
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From: Grand Rapids, MI
99 C43 AMG, 2001 CLK55 AMG
Thanks. After reading some threads on here, it sounds like vogland ( sp?) springs are a good way to go.
Btw, hill climbs are basically a timed run up a paved mountain road, usually 1-3 miles in length with tight switch backs and literally NO run off room (either hit a rock or go through a guardrail and down the mountain :-) )
Btw, hill climbs are basically a timed run up a paved mountain road, usually 1-3 miles in length with tight switch backs and literally NO run off room (either hit a rock or go through a guardrail and down the mountain :-) )
also i am running the Euro spec springs, which are about a 1.75-2" drop from the stock USA springs. vogtland i think goes down almost another inch from USA stock. depends on how low you want to go.
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From: Chapel Hill, NC/Montreal, QC
1995 C36 AMG, 1998 C43 AMG
Also look into Speedybenz's suspension setup. He seemed to do the most serious track work with his car out of anyone on here. For a competition hill climb I'd suggest speedybenz, KW or something more custom. Konis and sport springs (Whatever brand) aren't going to bump up the handling on these cars enough to be competitive imo.
Thread Starter
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Joined: Oct 2010
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06 E350 4MATIC, 00 E55, & 01 M3
Also look into Speedybenz's suspension setup. He seemed to do the most serious track work with his car out of anyone on here. For a competition hill climb I'd suggest speedybenz, KW or something more custom. Konis and sport springs (Whatever brand) aren't going to bump up the handling on these cars enough to be competitive imo.
