Suspension tip...shocks...
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Joined: Nov 2001
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From: Georgia
E 63S Wagon Renntech, E55 Renntech, SL65, SL 55 030, ML, bunch of old ones--they come, they go...
Suspension tip...shocks...
lots of you know I haven't been too happy with the suspension setup on my 430 for a while. Finally got around to playing with it and exchanging some parts. Short story is that I took the adjustable Konis off. Went back to the OE Sachs, and am going to replace the H&R's with the Euro AMG springs. I think the Koni's are probably fine for a coupe. I'm just not sure that the Cab chassis has enough rigidity to make the Kon's worthwhile, especially with H&R's and the bigger wheel/tire combo. Even on the softest setting, they are just not that compliant. And I still think the spring rate on the H&R's is too high for me. But remember, I'm an old geezer (4-ish) who loves to "boulevard". I think if I had started with a more compliant spring, I might could have been happy with the Konis. I'm going to put the Konis in the classifieds if any one wants them, they have about 2k miles on them and are in the Koni box. I'll have the H&R's off in about 10 days, but I believe they are specifically designed for the convertible. Just my .02, thought others might benefit from my experience.
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Joined: May 2002
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I put HR springs from a coupe on my cabrio, and the ride is perfect. The spring rate is actually lower on the coupe hr's than the stock spring of the cabrio. I know this because when i took out the old spring, it was under lots of compression, and it was only 1 coil longer. The coils are thicker on the stock springs as well. This leads me to believe that the HR springs are of a lower spring rate. My ride is still pretty soft even with my stock shocks, but I am going to replace them because I heard they wear out quickly when lowered and my rear end squats
Junior Member
Joined: Sep 2003
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From: North Bay Calif
2004 CLK320
Springs
To x15jq,
Just for your evaluation of the springs.
The coil thickness is just one factor to determine spring rate. The other is the distance between the coils when unloaded. The farther apart the coils the stiffer the spring. It is possible that the stock springs have a thicker wire dia but the coils are closer together to make them softer with a ldifferent frequency. The fact that they had preload when you took them off sort of hints they were soft, but until you look at the whole picture its hard to tell.
I have been involved with race car springs all my life and have tried all sorts of combinations on race cars but street cars are always a pain. I have Eibachs on my 320 and like the ride but the car pushes on the track at speed, would like to find a better balance. I use it during my coaching of drivers for demo laps.
Hope this helps....
bob
Just for your evaluation of the springs.
The coil thickness is just one factor to determine spring rate. The other is the distance between the coils when unloaded. The farther apart the coils the stiffer the spring. It is possible that the stock springs have a thicker wire dia but the coils are closer together to make them softer with a ldifferent frequency. The fact that they had preload when you took them off sort of hints they were soft, but until you look at the whole picture its hard to tell.
I have been involved with race car springs all my life and have tried all sorts of combinations on race cars but street cars are always a pain. I have Eibachs on my 320 and like the ride but the car pushes on the track at speed, would like to find a better balance. I use it during my coaching of drivers for demo laps.
Hope this helps....
bob
Thread Starter
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Nov 2001
Posts: 2,619
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From: Georgia
E 63S Wagon Renntech, E55 Renntech, SL65, SL 55 030, ML, bunch of old ones--they come, they go...
Yesh, I agree...
I don't think there is any way that the H/R's are of a lower rate than the OE. In fact, I'm pretty sure they are the nature of the unhappy ride quality on my car. I've used them for other applications, lots of BMW's for instance, with good results, but I just don't think that's the right stuff for this car. My wrench who helped me through all this swapping last week, first words out of his mouth in his broken German were, "man, das is lot of spring. Really, a lot!" He's an older German guy who has set these cars up for years. That's what I felt too, but could not confirm. I just think the cabrio doesn't have the structural rigidity of the coupe, and you got to take than into consideration. Just my 02 and experience, and this is my 8th 208 car.
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Joined: May 2002
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Yeah I think you are right about the spring rate. Perhaps the cabrio springs are higher rate because of the excess weight of the convertible. I got the wrong springs just out of error because they were sent to me when I ordered cabrio springs. I used them anyways, and everything feels fine. I do think you are correct about the rigidity of the cabrio, it is not up to par with having a roof. Lots of shake over uneven surfaces.
Brain fart. I meant about 2 for each MY?
