linuxfoo

Hi all,
i am in need of some advice for shocks. i did a search on the c43 forums and there was only one person it seemed that replaced their stocks - kwik with some koni's. from his descriptions i am thinking about koni's but has anyone else replaced their stock shocks yet?


also i strongly suggest that anyone with an older style belt tensioner to change out with the new style, the part that i bought, the dealer said that it was the latest revision, somehting like 4th can't remember, the older versions have like a hex nipple sticking out of the center of the roller, the new style doesn't. mines seezed, snapped my belt, almost overheated my car and barely made it home for me to change out the part. it looked like a manufacture defect, the type of bearings they used on teh original is way different than the new style. if you change the tensioner buy a new belt also.

AWD_Dan

I too am pondering the same question. I see the Koni's, adjustible is always nice. However, the offerings from Bilstein show a 'B361854' as a SPORT setting shock and then a 'B361856' (aka 202-320-11-30) says STANDARD. Bilstein, IMO, is a far superior shock absorber, so I'd like a sportier setting from them. Does anyone know what Bilstein's were standard on the AMG models? I'd hate to fork down 3-4 bills on shocks and get the same response I'm getting now... (not a bad thing, I just like the twisties)

I think I am going for the Eibach sway bar kit first, as that should make cornering more effortless without sacraficing ride quality.

Sway bars are my friend

---Not to Hijack: So who out there has KONI's?? You like em? How much???

PUREMS

We carry both the KONI and Bilstein shocks, and have this to say about them.
The KONI's are a more street comfortable shock over the Bilstein Sport (yellow body). The KONI's provide a more compliant ride over rough roads, and definitely are a little nicer on the luxury cars.

The Bilstein Sport are a great track shock. They sense every bump, transition, and dampen them very well. They are a bit more harsh on the rougher roads as a result.

The B36-1856 Dan mentions is their "TC" line of shocks, which is nearly identical to what is issued from the factory by AMG. It's not an upgrade per se, only a direct replacement of what's already there.

We offer all the shocks mentioned above, including a special Externally adjustable KONI shock for the W202. Feel free to email if you have specific questions!

linuxfoo

hey thnxs for the info about the shocks, i will keep that in mind. i still can't decide which ones i want to go with still, comfort or added performance.

KWiK

Get the Koni, you won't be disappointed

J Irwan

I vouch for this too



Regardz,

Mercedes Tuner

I just installed Koni Yellow's with Top Adjustment. They just came out in September of last year for the W202.

I agree with KWiK- They are great Shocks!!

linuxfoo

thnxs for the advice everyone!

speedybenz

Get some Penske 8100 shocks

DC43

From what I gathered from the M3 forum, using Koni's aren't necessarily compromising "handling" compared to Bilstein Sports. As PUREMS pointed out, the Koni's absorb high frequency road irregularies better so they give a little plusher ride. The Bilsteins have been reported to bottom out easier if you have lowered springs.

However, I cannot verify these claims as my car has Eibach springs with stock shocks (Bilsteins I believe).

linuxfoo

hey speedy, hahah yeah i heard about your custom setup, very nice. i know for a fact that i wont be able to afford those. but awhile back i bought a set of Bilstein Sports for my wifes c280 that i never installed - got too lazy i guess, now since i know they are all the same for all c-classes, i think i will just install those on my c43 for the time being, i didnt know at the time.

edchiu8

Hey Linuxfoo. I met you at awhile back at the Fremont Benz Meet. We had 4 c43 there. Anyways, my set up is Koni shocks with the H&R springs. I am happy with them.

linuxfoo

hi ed,
yeah i remember hahaha, how have you been. awhile back i bought some bilstein sports for my wifes c280 which i never installed, and just recently i found out that the bilstein sports shocks for my wifes car will also fit the C43's. so i ******ed them and installed it over the weekend and love the way it rides now.

petMyC36

If you can find this guy Peter (never there) at Badass Tuning 626-581-1790(i think) he can rebuild AMG shocks for about $150 each, he set my AMG shock rebound to 15% stiffer then the AMG original setting. How stiff is it, you ask? Pretty dame stiff . He can control the rebound and compression . I think he can even add the AMG settings to a non-AMG Bilstein shock.

He talks like he doesn't even want to do it , but I just send a check and my shocks to him and he takes like 10,000 years to do it (2 weeks).

99SlvrC43

Hey guys, I was one of the 4 C43 at the Fremont meet. How funny we are discussing shocks. I think I need a new rear one. I had someone drive my car and I followed in theirs and noticed my rear passanger tire bouncing very fast moving up and down a short distance. This also gives the car an uneasy feeling from 60-80 mph (vibration). So I called Bilstein and ask whats the PN for the AMG absorber, he said we dont make it. I was puzzled to say at the least. He said you need to get the from MB since its an AMG part. And he didnt recommend any other Bilstein shock (i.e. B36-1857 or 1855) saying that the AMG shock and suspensions has special damping rates and some other stuff. My setup is the AMG Bilsteins with Brabus lowering springs. I had the stock pads and the car would bottom out at the rear so I replaced them with one level up. No more bottoming out. linuxfoo did u replace all four or not? Now what I'm asking is, this problem I'm having with the rear wheel, is it caused by a bad shock? what can I use for replacement? and what the price if anyone has it. Oh and do i do both rear or can i get away with doing just one?

linuxfoo

hey 99slvr,
yeah i replaced all four. the bilstein sports are shorter than the original and made for lowered springs and because the sports have shorter shafts, it will not bottom out. comparing my orginal to the new sport, there was about an 1" difference in shock length. i was orginally going to go with the koni's as everyone had suggested, however i had a new set of bilstein sports laying around so instead of spending more money, i just installed those. i can't compare koni's vs bilsteins, but i kinda like the way my car rides now.

the one rear wheel bouncing could be two things, bad shocks, or wheel not balanced, i really think its a bad shock.

99SlvrC43

OK thanks, What did you spend on purchasing the shocks and who installed? is it a DIY or you had a shop do it (cost?)

I think its the shock too. I just started up about 2 weeks ago. Let me now the part numbers yoo added.

linuxfoo

i forgot how much i paid for my shocks, remember i origianally bought thses for my wifes car awhile back. but yeah its a DIY, also you should try contacting Purems, he has posted some comments on this thread, he had some great specials on the konis and it seem like few other bought from him.

also if you have a bad shock, your tires will start to get a cup wear (uneven dips) and thats bad

MERCGUY

I bought mine from Puremotorsport and I got zero support after trying to explain that they were bottoming out in the rear of my C43 (stock). I gave up and went with the Bilsteins, WAAAY better shock and way better support.

btw, I drove for 2,000 miles with the POS Konis and ended up putting my stock Bilsteins in to see the difference.... zero bottoming. So thats when I ordered p a new set. Total Pain in the *** though swapping shocks 4-5 times...

99SlvrC43

Was yr car lowered? Also did u have the stock pads in the rear? Mine after lowering and stock pads was bottoming out. So I installed new pads one level up.

petMyC36

Strange how a set of brand new shocks would bottom out like that. Sure it wasn't just because the Koni shocks were to stiff ? How do you know you were bottoming out? Was it a sound or were you scraping the bottom? For example the rear muffler would hit a speed bump whenever you drove over one?

Thanks for the info bud.

dnickell

I've always used KONI's on my street Porsches and really liked them. I generally changed them every 50K miles--just because.

But now I've got a basic question about this 1996 E320 I bought with 100K on the clock. How do you determine when to change the shocks? I just called the dealer and his reply was, "When they start leaking." That sounds like a Detroit iron mechanic talking. :p

Thanks for any advice other than "when leaking".

Don

J Irwan

Mine is not bottoming out yet (knock on wood).

You need to make sure to use the stock bump stop (I cut down the OEM bump stop) this will prevent your shock from bottoming out.


Regardz,

Ashkan's C43

bilstein sports are very sweet... i run them now and they are not too stiff and great handleing... I also am running H&R sport and #1's

keynote22

How do you like that set up? i have the springs in the trunk ready to go on but feel they will be too soft for my tastes. Im thinking HR would be better for me. Thanks