hartj

Hey guys, I got a question for you guys. I am getting to resurrect the Benz after a few years of sitting. Before she went down I was looking at springs and shocks for her and now I can't seem to find them anywhere. Before posting this I did a full search of the forum and came up with a blank. Now to my actual question I thought hr springs made a 2 inch drop for our cars. Now when I look up there site they only list a 1.5/1.3" drop. Did they discontinue these springs or are they just a figment of my imagination.
Thanks,
hartj

ascates

I had them installed over a month ago & they are the 1.3" drop. I don't think they drop more than that. But some have been lucky and had a better drop. Maybe 1.5" at most but i doubt 2 inches on H& R.

Saijin_Naib

I think it also depends on what spring pads you use with the springs. AFAIK the drop rating is based off of the spring pad sizes that come with the car from the manufacturer. You can get smaller ones or take them out.

STLe320

H&R's have always had that drop from what I know. You can take your pads out totally or get lower bump pads. I'm not gonna recommend it, but you can cut a coil off.

appatula

Eibach and H&R's hover around a 1.3" to 1.75" drop according to the plastic bump pads in the top spring perches. Intrax springs will give you a beautiful 2 inch drop without any questions. P.S. I have a surprise for you guys

hartj

Thanks guys. I was just going off what I was remembering. I guess they never made a 2" spring. I will look into intrax. But just a few more questions, which ones are firmer the hr or the intrax springs. I am looking for more than just a lowered look. I am completing the drop with bilstien sports, sportline bushings, and 500e sway bars, as I am looking for a more aggressive road response. Not nesicarily comfort. And does anyone have more info on intrax springs I am stuck on a gov't computer and for some reason intraxs site is blocked.
Thanks again,
Hartj

RBYCC

Get it down too low and you enter into the realm of diminishing returns...
You want your suspension to be compliant and smooth when cornering so it gives feedback.

Too stiff and it controls you...you become reactive to road surfaces instead of proactive and in control

V9.

H&R makes an excellent spring but their drops to tend to be conservative (they are german after all!) I wouldn't want to go much lower than their springs because you will run into clearance issues with the w124. You can also tailor the drop and stance of your car with the different MB spring pads...#1 bump pads will give you a bit more than the 1.3 inch drop that H&R quotes. I mated mine with bilstein sport shocks and am 100% satisfied. I can post pics of my car if you want to see what the HR drop looks like.

hartj

RBYCC thanks; I am well aware of what a too stiff suspension can do. I used to autocross my civic. I used kW v3 coilovers, some of the best that money could buy, along with a stitch welded chassis and a full complement of subframe braces. I think my statement was kinda a vague. While I know that the 300e will never but the track **** that my civic was I would like to get her close. So any trade off in comfort is my least concern.
Has anyone done the math on these suspensions to see what the optimum drop height? I mean like with my civic you can drop those almost 3" before you have to reengineer the suspension or a b13 sentra anything over a 1.5" drop and you are just asking for trouble.
And yes I know that these suspensions from factory are set to the optimum between comfort and control but with an emphasis on comfort. So has any one done the math on the change of roll center or anything like that? I am not looking to slam the car, while that does look good on these cars, I am trying to drive this car on a public street, and I am sure that it is past the optimum lowering point on these cars.
So does anyone know which springs are stiffer the hr or intrax or vogtland. And v9. Pictures would be great
Thanks,
Hartj

p.s.
sorry about the rambling it is early and my kids kept me up last night

RBYCC

Not necessary to do the math...just look at the stance on any AMG cars...particularly the widebody 320CE and 5.6 / 6.0 16V/32V V* Hammers.
None of them are slammed, early cars had stock springs that were cut ( a bit of high speed wandering ) because at the time there were no performance springs available.
Drop on the powerful AMG cars was more like what the H&R provides.

You drop the car too low and your suspension slams against its stops on an irregular road surface.
End result is potential suspension damage and not so great handling !

I've posted this comment many times before about how Porsche uses the HD's on performance setups...same valving as sport, one inch less travel, but more compliant in handling weight transfer.

Brabus V12 C124 not slammed...



AMG 6.0 32V C124...side skirts make it look lower, but not slammed.



My C124....H&R and Bilstein HD's...works fantastically...



My C124...no LSD open 3.07 but obvious the suspension is keeping both rear wheels planted...must be getting some weight transfer ?

omegabenz6

@SEMA 2007 the eibach rep told me that they discontinued a lot of the older stuff. Tirerack may still have some stock or you can check ebay.

Also after you lower your car, to correct the camber to maintain good tire wear look up rdmtek.com

Saijin_Naib

That is the perfect drop V9. Any camber issues?

V9.

well yes....but here in socal with predominately dry roads all year round I don't mind excessive negative camber...it handles like its on rails. At my last alignment I have -1.25 F and -2.5 R degrees. I replace my tires every 10-15k miles to keep up with advanced inner tire wear. The car is super planted in a corner and the suspension can now control this heavy car.

RBYCC

If you are replacing your tires under 15K miles "to keep up with advanced inner tire wear" wouldn't you conclude that your setup is not providing maximum tire contact patch

YNVDIZW124

My solution to ^^ is higher offsets and bigger rear tires. I have adjustable camber arms sitting here in a drawer but the problem is that you actually need the arms and the bushings to properly align the rear suspension. Sometimes you have to live with what you have.

Next time I go to eibach in corona i'll ask if they have anything left...

I installed these but took them off because it made the tires go forward in the wheel well. You need the camber bushings too.

RBYCC

It's a street car and percentage of time under load in a corner is minimal that is why you have wear.
Foolish to set a street car up with race settings

How fast can you constantly push a car to load in a corner on the street without being dangerous?

If it doesn't concern you about replacing tires then you're a richer man then I

YNVDIZW124

so back to topic....Look at appatulas thread.... maybe intrax or vogtland is better than H&R for a 2" drop. I love my eibachs but it doesn't give that aggressive of a drop.