Ok, so i got my car lowered today and bilstein sport shocks installed today. It cost $720 including alignment, so they charged me $640 of alignment. which is ridiculous, i think to install vogtlands and bilsteins. its not that complicated. ill post pictures after my exam tomorrow. its absolutely SLAMMED in the front. if i go to the dealership would they stack some pads for me? or put in #4s in the front (i think i have #3s all around)

 

*****$640 of labor, not alignment. sorry.

 

I think you got ripped, but I could be wrong. My garage which deals with all Euro cars, told me he would do it for $400 canadian !! And then another $100 for the alignment !!

So...I don't really know what to say !!

 

i had quotes of $150-200 before i decided to do it myself.
took me a spring compressor and less than an hour.
i'm sorry you had to pay that much.

 

Do you have photos of DIY spring and shock/strut removal? I'm interested in doing this project to my 87 300E. It's a mint condition car, it just needs springs and sport shocks.

Thanks

 

Bro, you really got ripped off. you need to go back and complain.

If you were local to me I could of had it done for you for under $150 installed. Alignment should NEVER be that much either.

Other than that, pics plz and welcome to the Vogtland slammed W124 crew. haha

 

too bad springs are so scary go kick some *** and take names, they gave it to you where the sun don't shine

 

natural_person has a write up for the springs, if it helps !!

 

6 hundred plus?? DAYUM!

 

how much should it cost in american dollars? thanks xudeck, but i don't know the conversion rate to canadian off the top of my head

 

that's what the internet is for.... try a google search

 

I spent $330 on my installation (which includes alignment). I got it done at a place that tends to charge high rates and works with exotic cars/etc. So I think I paid too much.

You got absolutely taken to the cleaners. Did you try calling around for quotes before you selected a shop?

 

Chris,
I'm in Los Angeles, Westside, and I need to install shocks and springs on my 300E. I have been looking at the Intrax and Vogtland as well as the H&Rs and Eibachs. The Vogtlands with Billie Sport Shocks/Struts seem to be the way to go for cost and drop factor. Is it better to get the items myself and bring them to a shop or can the shop get me a better price? I know the shops need to charge mark-ups I'm just looking for the best deal price- wise. I need money leftover for 18 inch rims and tires.

Thanks for any and all help,
Jason

 

I paid quite a bit too. My normal Indy wouldn’t install any aftermarket stuff and of course the dealer would probably be even more expensive and they wouldn’t install non-MB parts either. I had to go to a high-end speed shop to have the work done. They charged $455.00 to install springs, shocks, and the wheel and tire package. Then they also charged $125.00 for the 4-wheel alignment. As if the wasn’t enough cash for my upgrade, then I paid $260.00 to have the spring pads switched and have the K-MAC bushing kit installed, which required another $125.00 4-wheel alignment. Grand total for me was $965.00, plus the cost of the parts. I have Eibach ProKit springs, Bilstein HD shocks, AMG 16” Aero I wheels with 205/55/16 tires, K-MAC rear eccentric bushings, 1-bump front pads, and 3-bump rear pads. For my set-up, 1-bump all around made it look like I was carrying a full load in my trunk. That was not a good look. Now the swaybars will probably also cost a ton to have installed and of course I will need another 4-wheel alignment.

I suppose it is less expensive in areas where a lot of this kind of work is being done. California is known for the low rider look, so that may be why they can get things done so cheaply. Or maybe it is all of the illegal aliens doing the work. (just trying to be funny, please don’t flame me) Anyway, in Pennsylvania there are more guys putting lift kits on their 4x4s than there are guys slammin their cars. The guys doing the slammin are driving Civics, so I am not sure I would want them working on my car. They may be great mechanics, but … well you know, my Benz is kind of special.

 

You shouldn't need an alignment after sway bar installations unless chassis adjustments have been touched.

 

A bit off topic, but why would you want to lower your car? Is there an advantage? Mine is stock and I have to look up at almost every car on the road. I feel dwarfed sitting next to a Camry. I feel like I should raise mine so I'm at least at the same height as other sedans. What am I missing here?

 

My personal reasons were for appearance. I would assume most others would be for the same reason. There are surely some performance gains in cornering and most do the shock and sway bar updates to take advantage of the lower center of gravity.

 

I see that you also drive a 1995 E320 SE, so I guess our cars should have been the same height when stock. For me, even though the car may have been lower overall at say the roofline, based on the gap at the wheel wells my car seemed way to high. It was like a 4x4, if you looked at the gap at the wheel wells. Then I upgraded to a 16” wheels, so it would have looked even worse. In terms of aesthetics, the car looks best if the sidewall of the tire is as big or bigger than the gap at the wheel well. With lower profile tires, you really need to lower the car or it looks weird.

I also wanted to eliminate that luxury car ride. My car was a little too bouncy and floated on the winding country roads that I love to travel. It wasn’t as boat-like as say a Cadillac, but it didn’t really seem firm enough to be considered a “sport sedan” either. I wasn’t looking for a track set-up. I just wanted some more firmness with as little degradation in ride comfort as possible. I think my Eibach ProKit springs, Bilstein HD shocks, and plus one wheel and tire package has given me exactly what I wanted. The car is firm and very stable when pushed, but it is still comfortable cruising on the highway. I achieved a symmetrical drop, which is just a little more than an inch lower at all four wheels. I still have the original rake, with the rear just a touch higher than the front. In addition, my 16” AMG wheels are 7.5” wide, ET37 offset, with 205/55/16 tires mounted, so the tires are now right out near the edge of the fender lips. When I reinstall my stock SE wheels with winter tires, you can definitely see that the tires are tucked under the car giving my car a narrower stance. The wider stance with the AMG wheels looks more aggressive and must also provide a more stable ride.

To sum it all up, I think my aftermarket “Sportline-like” upgrade makes the car look better and perform better. The car looks awesome, the way it is kind of hunkered down on the wider tires. It just looks faster and more sleek. It really does look awesome parked next to other cars. It also handles like a sport sedan should. You feel absolute confidence with a very secure and stable feeling in the turns.

 

Very sharp looking car! I know what you mean about feeling soft in the turns. Thanks for the info!

 

For the hell of it when I was at NTB yesterday I asked and they quoted me $914

 

labor only!?

 

 

yep! They gave me a quote in about 10 seconds so I don't think they really wanted to do it. Unless it takes over 10 hrs to change shocks/springs I think they might be a little off