Newbie

I've got H+R sport springs on my CLK, which made the car pretty low for city driving- the front fascia gets scraped on driveways and hills, and my tires rub against the strut towers during hard cornering. Right now I've got the stock MB shocks, but I'd like to replace them with something else. Will the Koni or Eibach shocks do anything to the height of the suspension or help prevent me from bottoming out so much? Thanks a lot.

byip25

i've got h&r springs w/ bilstein shocks/struts. set has been on my ride for over 20,000 miles. not one problem. occasional scraping and not once has my tires rubbed the wells during turning. r u still riding on the stock wheels/tires? if not, what size are you riding on now?

B

lee2375

What kind of tires are you using now, with what wheels and offset?

The shocks will not raise the car any. Bilstein is what I use on my own car, just like byip25 said. They will make the ride firmer which will cut down on the "bottoming out".

BTW Eibach doesn't make shocks.

CLK55AMG

I just installed H&R sport springs, and Koni adjustable shocks on my 2002 CLK55. I also replaced my facory monoblocks with 18" I am running 225 40 ZR18 Bridgestone S-03`s on the front, and 255 35ZR18 on the rear. I am running 50 psi in the tires. To much air? The shocks are approx 60% in the rear and 40% in the front. The tires hit somewhere when i go over a dip. I`ll have to put it n a lift to see exactly where. The handling/cornering is very nice, although the ride is much harsher and I don`t like the bottoming out. I hate to see what happens if I put 4 peopl ein the car.
Anyone??

Mach430

I've had 4 in it. The ride is harsher in the back, but I don't care. I don't sit in back. You shouldn't be rubbing or bottoming out with your setup.

lee2375

I agree with Mach430, it shouldn't rub or scrape unless you're going 85 MPH over a large hump.

I have 19x9.5 with a 31 offset and 265/30/19 and it doesn't scrape at all with 4 in the car.

Newbie

Believe me, it rubs and bottoms out a lot. Admittedly, I drive my car very hard, but it is very low to the ground. There's not enough room to put 1 finger between the tire and the wheel arch. In fact, I'm on my second front fascia because it gets so much abuse. What do you think of putting thicker spring pads on the car?

I've got 18" Brabus Monoblock V Multipiece wheels with 235/40/18s in front and 265/35/18s in the back.

lee2375

You may have the 25 offset rear wheel instead of the 35. Brabus recommends both fitments in their book with either 255 or 265 rear tires, but if you have the 25 offset wheel, you have to roll the rear fenders.

I would try that first. The rubbing noise is prob. not the shocks, but the tire scrubbing the fender lip. Raising it slightly using the spring pads will help a little, but if you hit a large enough dip/bump, you will still scrape if the offset is 25. Also some tire brands are more square than others, these tires usually give more clearance problems than others.

I would also recommend using a 225/255 setup on 18". The OD is smaller.

byip25

ditto. i have 18s on my clk also and have had 4 people in the car and on occasion even 5! the only time i think i ever heard my tires rub was going over some railroad tracks at 80 mph!

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