Britrover

Just had a oil change done on my 01 E430 and the gentleman working on the car told me that my ball joints are in need of replacement. My car has 96k miles and I don't believe they have ever been changed. I do notice a slight vibration in my steering wheel but nothing major.


I just had the MB alignment done about a month back so kinda upset that the car will need the alignment done again so my big question is while the ball joints are being replaced what other suspension related parts should I have changed that will go down soon with the age and miles on my car.

Cheers

ohlord

the shop that did the alignment last month.Any good suspension person doing a proper alignment inspects the suspension parts,ball joints,control arms and bushings.Befor they get it on the machine.They owe you a free alingment when the new BJ's get installed.It will need it.

Happy New Year

Britrover

Thanks ohlord - unfortunately it was the mb dealer who did the alignment but I will take it up with them for sure.

ohlord

it was the dealer it was even more valid that thet should of checked suspension components.You can't do a proper alignment on a suspension with worn parts. Especially worn out ball joints.
Call the manager and nicely explain your issue.Leave him to come up with the solution.Just be pleasant about it.

01BlackE320

Most shops make no money on oil changes and always find something else to do. Your dealer would have pointed out front-end issues when they did the alignment. The vibration you feel is more likely a tire balance issue.

My mechanic listed $1000s of front-end issues on my W210 that I need but I continue to drive, it rides perfectly and the tires are wearing perfectly evenly so the $$ are staying in my pocket for the time being.

Peter Guenther

I dont think a MB alignment tech would have missed bad ball joints, maybe your "oil changer" just checked them unloaded.

vinceC

I agree with 01BlackE320 that most shops are looking for work. I think ball joints have become a scam on these cars however. I say that because a dealer pulled the ball joint scam on me.

First time it was on our '95 C280 with 200K+ miles, so I didn't question it. Second time it was on our '00 C280 with 100K, so I started to question it, but what the heck, right? Third time was my son's '99 C43 with 30K on it. This time it was under the scam of "State Inspection" - "we can't give the car an inspection sticker with bad ball joints". I told them to hold on - I would be down to discuss. I showed up later with the a trooper from the local State Police office. The ball joints passed both the rather loose state requirement of 6.5mm (1/4") play at the edge of the tire (!) for a 16" wheel AND the much tighter M-B requirements (outlined below). Needless to say, now I keep my cars out of that shop unless I'm desperate.

Ball joints are an easy place to make money on these cars. Most techs beat the time by a huge margin, so it is pure profit.

The official test is to lift the ball joint and check the play (Repair procedure AR33.20-P-0429A on the service CD). The allowable play is 0.4mm (about .0016") measured with a dial indicator mounted on the bottom of the lower control arm and feeling the bottom dome of the ball joint itself. The procedure then says to "determine the play by VERTICAL pushing and pulling of the wheel hub". This procedure is good for the 170, 202, 208 and 210 models. Most competent DIYers can accomplish a similar test by feeling the joint while a helper manipulates the wheel hub. Most of the time you can feel no play at all.

aardvark

I want to preface what I type by saying ball joints are a safety issue, and to be taken seriously....BUT.
Shops can make a healthy buck in telling you they are bad. I would be questioning the diagnosis.
From experience in my own 96 e-320 that I purchased last May, I had a clunking sound in the front end over bumps. The search was on. A reputable mechanic put it up on the rack and said Ball Joints. Uppers were quite costly at $1000 or so and lowers were about $500.
I opted to do some of the repairs myself, and replaced the lowers at $40 a side (parts cost), Still had the clunk. Another reputable shop diagnosed the lower control arms. and steering links(probably am wrong on the steering link part name) The control arms again were well over $1000. I researched the part and found the bushings were available (but mercedes would not sell just bushings) at $70 a side(parts). Still a clunk. Finally the links (a small 6" part with 2 rubber round slip on connections) were purchased at $15 a side. PROBLEM SOLVED!
My point here is the second mechanic, who was a MB specialist of 30+ years never mentioned the upper ball joints. I also didn't see the play that the first mechanic had mentioned.
It is easy to get taken to the cleaners and still not get your collars starched.
I use Rockauto.com for many parts. ohlord cites autohaus. There are many good aftermarket sources for the basics out there.
Us on a limited budget (these days) need to penny pinch, and yet be careful to not sacrifice safety in the process.

My E320 is a fabulous car, but if I had to pay dealer costs for repair , the car would be gone. I don't appreciate rape! The electrical ghosts have been frustrating , especially since that is a weak area for me, and I still havent gotten feedback on my lack of interior lighting post. I have also had the passenger window go down all by itself in a rainstorm on a road trip. Luckily after beating on the switch for a few minutes and arguing with the ghosts in the machine it went back up and stayed.

Lots of ghosts in this ole ride, but love it.

Aardvark

chetherwick

I took in my 2004 320E on Monday for an A service. I got a call later to say that my ball joints were worn and needed to be repaired to the tune of $650.00 (the car has 53,000 miles on it). I agreed not knowing that this is often an easy way to get extra money. So I went and picked it up and it felt funny driving home but I thought that it was because it was just newly repaired and was adjusting. The next morning I drove to babysit my grandson a few miles away and it was really noisy. I could barely park it and when I got out there was a bolt on the ground. They did not tighten the bolts on the rear left tire. There was only one bolt left in it. I called and left a message but had to call a second time a few hours later to talk to the service advisor. After a few hours a roadside specialist came out and said he had never seen such shoddy work from a MBZ dealership. He put the donut tire in it and told me to take it back in the morning. When I went in he apologized and said that he would give me a free detailing for my trouble. I said I did not need one and asked for a reduction on the bill. He said that he would ask and let me know tomorrow. The bill clearly states that the car was test driven, but obviously it was not. What would you ask for to make up for the bad workmanship and dangerous situation I was put in?

monsterman75

I am not even sure what I would ask. If it were me, I would want them to discount the entire amount. And if not, well then my business would never return to the dealer. Customer Service has died a painful but at least quick death in the auto industry.