Question for all people with H&R.
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From: Southern California
2003 E55
Question for all people with H&R.
For the people with H&R springs did you experience a much larger wheel gap on the front as opposed to the rear?? Im talking about before changing pads and shocks. I know you are suppose to have a lil mor gap on the front but not so much that the car looks uneven. I just installed eibachs and I have a considerably much larger wheel gap on the front than the rear. . Im thinking of swapping em out for H&R's hoping that I wont have this problem. But I have heard from several people that their H&R's had the same problem.
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From: San Francisco Bay Area
Mercedes 2001 CLK55 AMG, 2000 ML320
I lowered my CLK55 with H&R Sport springs and used the same OE pad sizes that came with the car for front and back. I have size 2 in the front and size 1 in the rear.. The look is very nice, low and even. You should check the size of the pads for front and rear of your car. With a CLK430, the front of your car will be lighter than my car.
My friend lowered his CLK with Eibach and his car is about 1" inche higher than my car with the same pads as my car.
All car set ups are slightly different. I recommend you buy a set of the pads from the dealer (1 through 4) and do a trial and error until you get the right height and gap.
Good luck.
My friend lowered his CLK with Eibach and his car is about 1" inche higher than my car with the same pads as my car.
All car set ups are slightly different. I recommend you buy a set of the pads from the dealer (1 through 4) and do a trial and error until you get the right height and gap.
Good luck.
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From: Southern California
2003 E55
Is it safe and ok to use different size pads for the front of the car as opposed to the rear. I was thinking of maybe going to a 1 or 2 in the front but leaving the rears the same. But I have been told that this will mess up the gepmetry of the car or something? Does anyone know what size pads are on a 2000 clk 320?
And Mark did you say that you cut your front springs or the back? Or was the front lower already without cutting them?
And Mark did you say that you cut your front springs or the back? Or was the front lower already without cutting them?
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As I understand it, the only thing spring pads can change is ride height and impact harshness/ride quality. Also, I don't think there is a standard pad combo that comes from the factory. As someone said, each car sets up differently and as a result I guess, requires different pads for different cars. To get that "perfect" look it becomes a process of trial and error. Safety would not be compromised by having different pads front vs. rear. When I asked the dealer to tell me which were on my CLK430, the service invoice said 5 dinks front and 3 dinks rear which is what came from the factory and what I kept with the H&Rs.
If you're new to the lowering game, watch out for speed bumps and concrete barriers at the front of parking spaces. I got my front end caught on the bolt that secures those barriers to the gound. The bolt was sticking out further than it should have been. I cleared the barrier no problem when I parked, but when I was reversing the front spoiler got caught and took a two inch chunk out of the bottom. I also barely cleared one of those speed-bump like things with the teeth in a rental-car parking lot. It was an isolated case since it was installed on the crest of a hill. No significant damage but a valuable lesson learned in both cases. I love my car lowered but you have to think about ground clearance much more than you would think.
They say your car settles over time and I think my car is noticably lower over the past year since I had the H&Rs first installed. Although the pic is kind of blurry, you can get a good idea about the ride height with the pads I mentioned above.
If you're new to the lowering game, watch out for speed bumps and concrete barriers at the front of parking spaces. I got my front end caught on the bolt that secures those barriers to the gound. The bolt was sticking out further than it should have been. I cleared the barrier no problem when I parked, but when I was reversing the front spoiler got caught and took a two inch chunk out of the bottom. I also barely cleared one of those speed-bump like things with the teeth in a rental-car parking lot. It was an isolated case since it was installed on the crest of a hill. No significant damage but a valuable lesson learned in both cases. I love my car lowered but you have to think about ground clearance much more than you would think.
They say your car settles over time and I think my car is noticably lower over the past year since I had the H&Rs first installed. Although the pic is kind of blurry, you can get a good idea about the ride height with the pads I mentioned above.
Last edited by LOH; Mar 7, 2003 at 07:48 PM.
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From: Southern California
2003 E55
Thanks for the reply. I am somewhat familiar with a lowered car. I used to have an Audi that I dropped quite a bit. Im just unfamiliar with Mercedes. Thanks for the pic too it helps a lot, that is just the amount of lowering i want......shouldve gone with H&R.
Last edited by davidhung78; Mar 7, 2003 at 08:19 PM.
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Mercedes 2001 CLK55 AMG, 2000 ML320
David,
Don't be affraid to experiment with the 4 or 5 different pad sizes from MB to get the correct height and or gap that you want. That is the design of those pads. You can use different pad sizes for the front vs the rear. These pads Do Not affect the ride quality. The pads are designed to provide the ability to fine tune the ride height of these MB cars, to a certain extent. This is a great option because most cars do not have this option.
Whatever you do, Do Not CUT your springs! This will affect the ride quality of you CLK in a "harsh and bouncy" way.
Don't be affraid to experiment with the 4 or 5 different pad sizes from MB to get the correct height and or gap that you want. That is the design of those pads. You can use different pad sizes for the front vs the rear. These pads Do Not affect the ride quality. The pads are designed to provide the ability to fine tune the ride height of these MB cars, to a certain extent. This is a great option because most cars do not have this option.
Whatever you do, Do Not CUT your springs! This will affect the ride quality of you CLK in a "harsh and bouncy" way.
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When I was researching changing my suspension, our friend Luke@Tirerack was of the opinion that the thickness of the spring pads do impact the ride quality. As it is a compliant piece of rubber that doubles in thickness through the pads available, it made sense to me although I am no expert. It probably isn't a major factor but just one of many that play a role in impact harshness and ride quality.
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From: Southern California
2003 E55
I was thinking of cutting my srpings about 1/2". I know usually if a spring is cut you get a bouncy ride, but will this occur even if I cut aftermarket springs and not stock springs? Will I still have a bouncy ride if I cut the springs then get nice shocks? And how much lower will I get if I went from a 5 pad to a 1?
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From: Genoa, NV
2014 GLK250 BlueTec & 2009 ML320 BlueTec
I used to cut my springs to lower my car on Toyotas, but I always replaced the shocks with heavy duty ones which will make the car stiffer.
The reason you get the "bouncy" ride after lowering or cutting springs, is because the standard shocks touch bottom due to being compressed. Koni's or Bilsteins will prevent this from happening.
One more thing, it is not worth it to cut your springs, German made H&R springs are only $250
The reason you get the "bouncy" ride after lowering or cutting springs, is because the standard shocks touch bottom due to being compressed. Koni's or Bilsteins will prevent this from happening.
One more thing, it is not worth it to cut your springs, German made H&R springs are only $250
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From: HK
MB CLK320
Re: Question for all people with H&R.
Originally posted by davidhung78
For the people with H&R springs did you experience a much larger wheel gap on the front as opposed to the rear?? Im talking about before changing pads and shocks. I know you are suppose to have a lil mor gap on the front but not so much that the car looks uneven. I just installed eibachs and I have a considerably much larger wheel gap on the front than the rear. . Im thinking of swapping em out for H&R's hoping that I wont have this problem. But I have heard from several people that their H&R's had the same problem.
For the people with H&R springs did you experience a much larger wheel gap on the front as opposed to the rear?? Im talking about before changing pads and shocks. I know you are suppose to have a lil mor gap on the front but not so much that the car looks uneven. I just installed eibachs and I have a considerably much larger wheel gap on the front than the rear. . Im thinking of swapping em out for H&R's hoping that I wont have this problem. But I have heard from several people that their H&R's had the same problem.
http://www.ahfung.com/car/clk320.html
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From: HK
MB CLK320
Originally posted by ldangeli
LOH, is that car lowered? What package did you use?
LOH, is that car lowered? What package did you use?
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From: Hell
EFF YOU JACKIE
H&R Pics
Hey guys, finally did the H&R's, don't mind the dirty pics, car sat outside when it rained, while at my girls house.
1.4 drop up front
1.12 drop in rear
Also, have had the H&R's in for a while, and occassionally I get what sounds like a pop or crack, almost like the brake pad is banging on the roter, but MB says brakes are golden, and that it may be the "new" suspension.
1.4 drop up front
1.12 drop in rear
Also, have had the H&R's in for a while, and occassionally I get what sounds like a pop or crack, almost like the brake pad is banging on the roter, but MB says brakes are golden, and that it may be the "new" suspension.
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From: So Cal
W213 '17 E43 ///AMG - W211, W208 no more
Originally posted by ldangeli
Rear
Rear
It looks good, but I think you needa lower it a little more to get rid of the wheel gap...
Any pics of the whole car?
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EFF YOU JACKIE
Gonna put 18's on there, so it should remove most of the gap. If I lower it anymore, I won't get in and out of my driveway! LOL.
I have pics of the whole thing on the CLK Picture thread! All shined up too!
I have pics of the whole thing on the CLK Picture thread! All shined up too!
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From: So Cal
W213 '17 E43 ///AMG - W211, W208 no more
Originally posted by ldangeli
Gonna put 18's on there, so it should remove most of the gap. If I lower it anymore, I won't get in and out of my driveway! LOL.
I have pics of the whole thing on the CLK Picture thread! All shined up too!
Gonna put 18's on there, so it should remove most of the gap. If I lower it anymore, I won't get in and out of my driveway! LOL.
I have pics of the whole thing on the CLK Picture thread! All shined up too!
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mmgrad, sorry for the late reply. I didn't notice your question back in March. Anyway, yes my car is lowered. I use H&R with Koni adjustables and couldn't be happier with the look and performance. My car came from the factory with size 5 front and size 3 rear spring pads and I kept that arrangement. They say over time the springs settle a little and I do think my car is a little lower in the 18 months since I changed the suspension but it may be my imagination.
