redlinegw

I just bought a very clean well maintained 05 E320 CDI with 129k miles. The car runs and drives great however I feel like it might need new rear shocks. It feels like the rear of the car shimmy's from side to side when you hit small imperfections in the road. Do these cars have air shocks? Can I replace them with something different? Thanks for any help.

Tschuss_Bill

The stateside CDI's did not come with air suspension. To my knowledge there are 3 replacement options, Stock, Bilstein HD and Bilstein Comfort. My CDI just turned 100k. There is no visible leaking from any of the shocks, but the ride is a bit mushy. I plan on replacing in the next year or so.

redlinegw

I called the dealer that I bought the car from and found out that the fronts were replaced but they didn't do the back so I bought KYB's from our local supplier, they were $58 each. I read up on the KYB's and most people really liked them with the ride being a little stiffer then stock but not harsh so I am going to install them later today and hope for the best.

Tschuss_Bill

great, interested in your ride impressions.......

The Thomas J

KYB's are not bad. They are a little stiff. When I re did the suspension in my BMW 3 series 2 years ago I went with KYB's and between that, new springs, sway bars, center links, tie rods, CARBS and front struts the car really tighten up. It dos ride stiff, but it's supposed to. It's hard to tell if they ever softened up because the springs are new. When I go from the Benz to the BMW after weeks/months of not driving the BMW it takes me a while to get used to that stiff ride for a bit.

You may want to go with a more comfortable shock setup. You will still get all the benefits of better handling and a better ride.