White300sport

Any clue what could cause vibrations that come and go. Could it be the ball joints going bad since i heard a pop from the left front. This was twice in four month when i had to stop really hard. After the first time vibration got really bad,got new tires it got better. The rims where not bent,the 2nd hard stop with a loud pop from the left front made the car ride glass smooth. Now the vibrations are coming back slowly and very light only at 80 to 100 mph is it noticalable.At 60 you can feel light pulses threw the wheel.The shop was an indy and said it was the tires So i got new tires. I am almost sure its the ball joints just wanted to your feed back.I drive fast LOL. Thank for the quick replys any help would be welcomed.

rivcal4life

First guess would be unbalanced tires. Since you said theyve been changed recently, all joints or worn tie rods are the likely culprits respectively.

GEDaggett

Lift the front end off the ground grap the wheel at 12 and 6 with both hands and rock it in and out. If there is excessive play or popping it is your ball joint. Then do the same thing with hands at 9 and 3. If you have excessive play then it is you linkage. (do this with the oposite tire still on the ground.)

CDP

Damn dude I'm getting vibrations as well at that speed but it goes away after 90ish-100 haha

Probably the POS tires I have on now that need to be replaced.

GEDaggett

I am smooth at 143.7

rivcal4life

I was smooth at ~147 :-p

GEDaggett

Confession, only hit 116. Shouldn't have done that till my broken spring replaced either.

rivcal4life

Eek. Mine was on one of the longest smooth straight-aways in So-Cal that I know of. An infinity FX-45 kept up with me the whole time, and he showed how much more ***** he had when I let off and he kept accelerating. Not another soul on the freeway at 3:30am. Nearly 2.5 miles a minute is a damn rush though. Kept my heart beating for the rest of the night.

White300sport

My car is very strange it has many probs that come and go. It has a light prob sometimes when you put the brakes on that light out light comes on and the left front parking light comes on. Then it will go away for a few days,then come back,I think this car has been totaled and rebuilt. I got it at a buy here pay here lot, it is a really nice looking car looks brand new. I went from making 60k a year to making 10k and moving back with mom. I will not get in detail but i moved from California to Georgia because she ask me to. This has been a rough year for me my brother died of cancer in may at 32. Thats why mom ask me to move, I had a very nice audi a6 that bit the dust in the AZ desert. So when i got here I had no choice but buy here pay here. I think I might have bought a nightmare waiting to happen give my money state now. The car is dependable but it doesnt ride sooth like a been should it runs good one day the next like crap. It just upseting if i see it I will have to get a honda or something. And I dont want to do that,maybe it will not come to that. ANYONE KNOW OF A good cheep indy shop for benz in Atlanta,Ga.

White300sport

Sighs hope i can fix this soon

GEDaggett

Did you check the front end like I noted. A ball joint will cost you $100 if you do it it yourself including the cost of having a shop press the old out and new one in) If it is a tie rod issue then it will cost you $250 for new parts and alignment if you go to the right spot. These cars are fairly solid cars with very specific maintenance issues. If you take the car to a shop that knows the cars they will give you a pretty good idea of where your vehicle is. Best way to own these cars is learn how to fix them up on your own. Most of it is very straight forward and being a part of this forum will be good for getting information on how to diagnose and fix your issue. Hope it goes well for you and keep us updated. Sorry to hear about your losses. Hopefully things turn a corner for you. Let me know what you find on the front end tests.

johnjzjz

my 560 sel one of the bolts on the drive shaft had come loose and the vibration would come and go it wasent till we got it on a lift and went after anything with a bolt did we find it - and it was only 3/4 of a turn and it was fixed but that was mine -- jz

White300sport

Thanks for all the info I will check tomorrow and post what it was. I know how to work on cars mercedes are just strange kind like Audis. I have mostly worked on Bmws,they are very easy to work on a benz seams to be harder to work on. I can do anything engine wise but the shocks and all that stuff I take to a shop dont like getting under cars.

White300sport

https://mbworld.org/forums/e-class-w...al-demons.html Most running isues fix now it electricity LOL

White300sport

Hey Gedagget I jacked up the car and did as you said,its the ball joints. Thank you for the help I will have to get them fixed when i get the funds. I feel that I could not do it myself,dont have the tools to do the job right. Do you know of a good shop In the ATLANTA area. Any help on shops would be welcomed,thanks in advanced.

rivcal4life

The only tools you really need outside of the standard ratchets and sockets is a pickle fork and a ball joint press. Both of which can be rented at your local auto zone for free. You just leave a deposit, and it gets 100% refunded to you when you bring the tools back.

If you really don't feel comfortable, you should still buy the ball joints online. Ebay has them for $35.00 a pair.

White300sport

I mean i can prob do it i put shocks on a 535is a few years ago. It cant be harder than that i guess,I prob still have the spring conpress somewhere. I saw the ball joints on ebay,I going to buy them next week. Is it easier to change the tie rods at the same time. I mean while I am in there. And is there any other bushing that would be easy to change while im doing this.

rivcal4life

Lower ball joints are a LOT harder than shocks. You won't need to remove the springs, which is nice since our springs are a b***h to get off. Step by step:

-Once youve got the car jacked up and the wheel off, remove the rotor. Should only be one hex screw.
-Unbolt the tie rod ends from the steering knuckle and use the pickle fork to pop the two apart.
-Unbolt the brake caliper and wire up out of the way.
-Remove the two bolts holding the shock to the back of the steering knuckle.
-Remove the lower bolt that secures the steering knuckle to the ball joint.
-Slide the assembly up and off the ball joint. (easier said than done)
-Press old ball joint out.
-Press new ball joint in.
-Slide assembly back onto ball joint. (easier said than done)
-Re-install everything in reverse order....

Tie rods will likely have to be replaced at the same time, since youll be popping them off the steering knuckle, and likely breaking the grease shields.

White300sport

Thanks that helps a lot,I just got to get sometime off to do this now. I doesnt sound that hard just a lot of work and will take about 7 hours or so. If i do it I will post pic and let you know how it went.

GEDaggett

Would be a good idea to get her aligned after you get everything together. If you have never done tie rods before there are some steps to ensure that you have to do very little adjustment to the alignment when you are done.