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Shorter Bilstein B4 p/n 24-100540 Installed today on 99 E320
Strange, but when I held up together both the old shock and the new B4, the B4 was almost an inch shorter. Is this normal? The shocks went on just fine. It feels stiffer when I push down on the car. Should I be concerned about anything? Car’s a 99 E320, I assume with just the regular or standard suspension. By the way, with 156k on the Odom, and never before were shocks replaced on this car, the old front shocks still look pretty good. It’s easier to compress than the Bilsteins, but right away does the piston come right back up. Before installing shocks, the car was feeling real bouncy and could be because of the rear shocks. We will see this coming Friday on the condition of the rear shocks, and whether they too differ in length.
so far, after reading your description, nothing sounds unusual. what you may want to do just to cover the bases is
measure the length of old and new shock when fully compressed. my experience with the Bilstein HD vs Sport
shock for the same model car is that though the Sport is 1" shorter when uncompressed, during full compression
both HD and Sport shocks measured the same. this told me that the internals were reworked .
yes, as with any shock, the devil in the details also includes damping rates during compression....and damping rates
during rebound.
whoops, i just re-read and realized that 24-100540 shocks have already been installed.
I'm running Bilstein B6 front shocks for an E430 Sport on my E320 wagon. It's lowered on cut H&R springs for a W210 E55 and they work great. I really have zero complaints about the setup and it rides well.
I'm running Bilstein B6 front shocks for an E430 Sport on my E320 wagon. It's lowered on cut H&R springs for a W210 E55 and they work great. I really have zero complaints about the setup and it rides well.
I will put on 18’s and cut half to a coil on each side just to get a slight drop and a little more stiffness. I want it to look a little like the e55 height.
e320toney, where are you located? trying to help you with your project. r-
Im in Hayward Ca. I got this car from my father who was about to donate it so I decided to take over. It runs real good and I just gave it new front pads and drilled rotors, installed new front shocks, oil changed, and a new air and cabin filter. The rear shocks will be put on this Friday. Then will finish off with new plugs and a coolant flush, and that should do it. Does anyone know if a typical 17” wrench could pull out the plugs? Oh, and later on I will also change the transmission fluid too, it’s gonna hurt to spend all the money on just fluids.
i have OEM springs with 1 coil cut using a cutoff wheel. yours if you cover shipping and a chick fil a.
that will leave your springs intact should you wish to sell the car later with OEM springs. i'm at 98144
and the shipping may cost about $50 since they're a little hefty.
i rode with this mod for a year, then someone on the forum was selling his Eibacht springs so I bought those
and have been happily riding on those the past half dozen years with Bilstein HD ./ Sport springs which have
higher dampening rates. I tried the Koni adjustable yellow tubes but the were too soft for me. the ride with
the Bilsteins are firm but very controlled on most surfaces. when the roads are rough, I feel the firmer
shocks. the overall lower ride and balance of shock and spring makes off/on ramp transitions feel like it
is a track car. loving it !
i have OEM springs with 1 coil cut using a cutoff wheel. yours if you cover shipping and a chick fil a.
that will leave your springs intact should you wish to sell the car later with OEM springs. i'm at 98144
and the shipping may cost about $50 since they're a little hefty.
i rode with this mod for a year, then someone on the forum was selling his Eibacht springs so I bought those
and have been happily riding on those the past half dozen years with Bilstein HD ./ Sport springs which have
higher dampening rates. I tried the Koni adjustable yellow tubes but the were too soft for me. the ride with
the Bilsteins are firm but very controlled on most surfaces. when the roads are rough, I feel the firmer
shocks. the overall lower ride and balance of shock and spring makes off/on ramp transitions feel like it
is a track car. loving it !
That's real kind of you and I appreciate that. However, I don't think I'll be selling this car because of all the memories since y2k, when my dad bought it used with only 10k on the odo and the hefty price tag of $41k during that time. I still remember how nice she drove when parts were still pretty much new so I'd like to preserve that feeling. Although personally, I like my cars just a tad lower than stock without sacrificing too much comfort. So I figure with brand new shocks and a half to a coil cut, it should already handle pretty well. Do you still have pictures of your car with the coils cut, as well as pictures under the Eibachs?
That's real kind of you and I appreciate that. However, I don't think I'll be selling this car because of all the memories since y2k, when my dad bought it used with only 10k on the odo and the hefty price tag of $41k during that time. I still remember how nice she drove when parts were still pretty much new so I'd like to preserve that feeling. Although personally, I like my cars just a tad lower than stock without sacrificing too much comfort. So I figure with brand new shocks and a half to a coil cut, it should already handle pretty well. Do you still have pictures of your car with the coils cut, as well as pictures under the Eibachs?
well, there IS one other factor to consider, too. you can only make a cut once so if it goes wrong
your spring(s) or suspension project gets snookered.
well, there IS one other factor to consider, too. you can only make a cut once so if it goes wrong
your spring(s) or suspension project gets snookered.
Beautiful shape and rare color too. I would assume these are the Eibachs? I also think we have a snooker fan here, do we? Doesn't it just drive you crazy when you wait and wait until Ronnie finally shows up at a tournament but then loses to an amateur!
So last weekend I got the rear shocks installed, Bilstein p/n 24-021555. Here's the other strange thing about this part, it's about an inch taller than the originals that came off the car. I seriously wonder if Bilstein got the parts reversed. The new rear shocks would seem like a better fit for the front and the new front shocks for the back. Has anybody encountered this before?
Yes - shocks are reversed - the cross reference was wrong - the good news front-goes-back - the back-goes-front and you should be OK... happened before..
i happened to have an older catalog on my hard drive and this is what it shows
Thank you Raymond. It's good to know that at least I do have the 24-100540 on the front, which works with either sport suspension or standard chassis. The rear shocks 24-021555 as indicated under Heavy Duty, not sure what that means, but I believe it should also be suitable for standard chassis. Just wondering if I should have gotten the rears 24-100557 classified under sports suspension, whether there is a difference or not since I do plan on cutting a half coil on the rear. But anyhow, nice to have accurate information. Sometimes you have to be very careful on some of the information posted here without any evidence.
04-23-2019, 11:41 PM
