BlownV8

Wasn't leaking/weeping a few thousand miles earlier so it must have gone from a weep to a burst very quickly. I drive around 25,000 to 30,000 miles per year so that was less than a one month time frame. I guess it is possible but very unlikely.

OCKlasse

My pressure line from the pump to the pressure relief valve has been sweating for the 15,000 miles I've owned the car. It scares the crap out of me. No leaks on the floor per se, but it was definitely a ticking time bomb.

Alex L

Hoses perish and need replacing even if they don't weep. A failed (or failing) ABC accumulator can cause a burst hose. If the line was sweating for the whole of 15k miles, why keep driving and being scared and not just replace it?

Again, OP feels adventurous so it's all good. That's not to say though that ABC is badly designed, unreliable ticking bomb. Keep an eye on it and enjoy it. I realise that this is not an "ABC vs" thread so apologies for taking it off-topic.

Welwynnick

Absolutely. Flexible hoses don't last forever, but they do give you advance warning.
If the hose is sweating, it must be replaced or repaired - then you'll be OK. No need to pay MB prices, either.

Nick

OCKlasse

You have since you keep bringing it up and I keep telling you that the factory suspension is great. I'm not taking sides.

I'll keep everyone updated. I received all of the parts necessary for the power steering pump conversion.

radride

OP, how much is this conversion going to cost you? The way it sounds, I bet it will be 2500+ to complete.

R.K.

OCKlasse

That's in the ballpark, but I will be selling all of my ABC components, so in the end it should be pretty close to a wash.

AndreNY

as great as the ABC is it is by far the most unreliable system out there. This summer I replaced all 4 shocks and valves on my CL and driving on the highway one day around 55mph I received the Red ABC Warning light, as I pulled over I heard a knock from the driver side, it was the P/S pump it took a crap without any leaks or noises. So now that I have a pretty much BRAND NEW ABC system I still fear of hoses bursting or even the parts I replaced going bad again.

kamilclk430

Man I'm ****ting my pants with my miles and the ABC system still 100% not touched I think I will be asking Marcin at Speedriven for a way out. OCKLASSE way to think outside the box, I hate these nay sayers they want to jump to saying the system is so great for the car but I bet that will change once their wonderful system craps out on the road and from then on it will be endless issues if they want to shortcut repairs one at a time.

adamls2

Bags!!!!

Alex L

Hey, what's with the language? "Hate", "nay sayers". Really? Nobody said anything nasty here, we're all enthusiasts doing some crazy things with our cars (just check my supercharged 2.5 tonne ML in my sig - how silly was that?) and I truly appreciate OCKlasse doing something radically different here. Perhaps, my tone was a bit negative and for that I apologise but by the same token many people here look after their suspension without being scared to touch it or repair. I'm looking forward to see how OP is getting on with his project but that doesn't mean I will be jumping on it once he is done. I love ABC for its lack of body roll and for me maintenance and repairs are a small price to pay. Let's keep this topic civil guys, we're all here to help each other, no need to resort to underage street talk.

kamilclk430

Hey Alex,

Nobody is pointing fingers I'm just saying that its a great project and who ever thinks it's not have the right to their own opinion. Sure we are all enthusiasts but I also had a million people saying "why? and don't do it" when I was building my SL55 AMG. I know OC is going his own route and is set on his decision because of doing this thread and moving forward. I just want to show some support and say good luck. You are not the only one on this forum that would not do this project, if I had as much knowledge about the car and a kit in works I would go OC's route.

OCKlasse

Update:

The only thing holding up the project at this point are the rear struts. Since I like to go low, I am running into problems. When I attempted to replace the ABC strut with another strut, the backside of my wheel was hitting the strut at full drop due to the camber and my rear wheel width (10.5").

Currently working to correct this. Easy way is just being able to tub some of the rear fender well to create more clearance. Hard way is fabricating new lower control arms with seats and then adding mounts onto the rear subframe.

Note this is all in my pursuit of low, and really has nothing to do with someone wanting to do a coilover-type swap that would not go lower than the factory tolerances permit.

kamilclk430

What changes the new strut angle? or is the strut just completely different? Seems like if it just replaces it in the new spot it should be the same distance from your inner side of wheel. The lower you go the more camber you get on the wheel correct? is there a way just to fix the camber a bit?

OCKlasse

The angle is the same. The factory suspension is only designed to go as low as ABC permits (with a 10.5" rear wheel, anyway).

E55Greasemonkey

SPC products has some offset camber bushings for the upper arms in back to correct negative camber (or add it if desired), for several different MB models...Will any of those work on your CL?

kamilclk430

Right the factory suspension is set up that way but you are running a non factory suspension correct? Who cares what ABC permits at this point since it wont be there any more. Since your wheel seems to be hitting the strut on the inside maybe a bit of camber adjustment will help ? or am I totally wrong about whats happening?

OCKlasse

Thanks for the thought! I need the camber to tuck the rear wheels, unfortunately.

OCKlasse

In a nutshell, the car was only designed to go as low as the factory suspension permitted it to go. I have options. I'm not worried about it

OCKlasse

Well, tubbing did not work. I am scrapping the "strut" rear and going for a separate "coil and shock" type of application. We'll see how this goes

OCKlasse

Almost done...

Guilty

nice rice box bro

anton28

What did you end up doing?

adamls2

Saw pics from IG! It looks absolutely sick.... Really would like some info about the specs!

Welwynnick

Isn't the steering lock a bit limited?

Nick