HOWSER

Nate,

I agree with Racin_fool. It could be either one of them, both of which aren't hard to replace. If you are having difficulty identifying which it is I may have an inexpensive solution. Why not take it down to a local indy shop for an inspection. Either one of these that are failing should be identified. Here in MO it only costs $12.50 for the service (state mandated fee).

In my opinion it would be better to drop the money on tools that you need and gain the experience from fixing these cars yourself. Especially something as novice as this.

Good luck!

Eric

citruspilot

OK, heres what I experienced just today. My 1997 E420 was making the rattle or loose sounding front suspension noise described above over the past few weeks. It has been getting louder and more often. Even the smallest pothole in the road would cause the rattle noise. Even pulling into and out of my driveway. I talked with a few different car folks and got their opinions. All in all it came down to either lower ball joints, lower control arm bushings, or the swaybar bushings. I decided to start with the easy fix and replaced my sway bar bushings just this afternoon. I bought genuine MB parts.

Magic! The noise is gone. The sway bar bushings were worn out. I still have a little loosness in the front suspension but the rattle is gone. Now I can relax and enjoy the quiet ride and deal with the ball joints next. I dont think I'll be replacing the control arm bushings for awhile as we looked at them and they appear to be in fairly good shape with no cracking or wear. The front end did seem to tighten up just a bit which is good with the new sway bar bushings. It was suggested to me that my loose front end feeling could even be an inner or outer tie rod end. Thats on my "to do list" also.

Just thought I would help with my experience for someone else that might be having the same problem. I have 155,000 miles on my car.

Jeff

OldNate

My car has some sqeaky sounds from the front end when going over some things. I thought it was the shocks, so I replaced them, nothing happened. Then I thought it was the springs, so replaced them and nothing happened; I still have the noise. I also still have the popping noise. Could these two things be related? So it might also be the sway bar bushings? Are those the same things as lower control arm bushings? What do those cost?

E320se

Definitely check on these 2 areas as the installer on my springs & shocks did a crappy job leaving me a clicking and popping sound afterwards:

1. Clicking sound cured by re-seating the springs (somehow off??). Solved by the original installer.

2. Popping sound cured by tightening the sway bar links. Went through 2 aftermarket installers and finally solved by the dealer. (What are the odds?)

Good luck...

OldNate

Well, I started getting the popping noises before I even had the car lowered (changed shocks+springs). The noises first started when I had new rims put on. After I put on the rims, immediately, it started to make these popping noises. I ALSO then changed the rims to see if that is the problem. So in total, I have changed the rims, tires, and springs and none are the culprit to this problem. What could be the problem?

vinceC

Nate - You are just changing stuff without a thorough troubleshooting process. Most of the time that just costs money and the problem persists. Several folks have suggested that you check the sway bar links. Have you done so? Also, look at the upper spring perch where it is welded to the body. Some owners have reported cases where the perches have torn loose.

OldNate

The problem is I don't know what i'm looking for =\

I will just bring the car to my local shop and suggest that it might be

1. Lower Control Arm Bushings
2. Sway bar Links
3. Ball joints