Airmatic shocks on rear 2005 E500 Wagon
11-22-2017, 09:31 PM
#1
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Location: Knoxville, Tennessee
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2005 E500 4Matic wagon
Airmatic shocks on rear 2005 E500 Wagon
I noticed a weird "wag" when hitting bumps with my right rear, so I decided to check the shock since I had already replaced the air springs. The right rear shock looked in bad shape, so I decided to replace it after overcoming the sticker shock on what an Airmatic shock cost. I thought I was prepared for this as I had already replaced the right front strut, front axles, and rear air springs, but this was much more difficult than I expected.
Pelican Parts has a tutorial on changing the rear strut on a W211, but they don't do a wagon. Now, I know why! This thread gives a lot of help:
https://mbworld.org/forums/e-class-w...g-problem.html
I want to try to fill in a couple of the blanks, but, unfortunately, I did not take any pictures.
First, taking the interior apart is a real pain. After removing the most rearward panel, the panel that covers the top of the shock has a plastic rivet at the back on the bottom and a star drive bolt on top. You have to remove the door weatherstrip, and then you can work the panel loose from the door in front. There is a plastic rivet and plastic nut under the seat. I had to remove the metal bar the seat locks into. You can then wiggle and pull the panel somewhat loose, but it requires the seat to be both up and down. I had to cut the panel where the seat hinge passes through since the alternative is to somehow remove the seat. It is possible to remove the shock by just getting the panel loose at the back, but I stressed and broke enough plastic bits that it is probably worth getting it as loose as possible.
The thread mentioned above indicates the metal disk on top of the strut is hard to remove. It is. I don't have the Mercedes special tool, I used needle nosed vice grips -- channel lock pliers did not work for me no matter how hard I tried. You also have to remember that you are screwing the shock down to remove it so you want to move it right, not left. Mine was tight either from corrosion or a thread locker.
I removed the top with weight on the vehicle and then jacked it up taking all the weight off the wheel. This is probably not best. With the shock off, the rear wheel seems to have too much freedom to move, and my air spring pushed it outboard. I did open the nut on the air spring to release pressure, but I don't know if this helped. A jack under the rotor does help. I removed the bottom bolt for the shock, and the 2 stabilizer links, and the old shock came out through the bottom pretty easily. The wire runs a long way, so I just cut it off.
The new shock did not come with the rubber bumper parts on the top, so I reused the old ones. Unlike some, I had to compress the shock and tie a wire around it to keep it compressed. (I turned the shock upside down and put weight on it to compress it.) Using the jack I moved the axle up until the shock would clear the air spring and go back into the top hole. After getting the nut started on top, I cut the wire, which allowed the shock to expand. Unfortunately, I put the wire through the bottom hole, so I had to do some wrangling to get the wire out and the hole lined up. Reassembly was the same as disassembly at this point.
The electrical connection to the shock follows a twisty path which involves removing the plastic panel on the bottom of the car and the inner fender. On mine, there is a wire bale that holds the connectors in place, and two connectors (including the shock) were joined together and had to be wiggled out.
I'm sure pictures would help a lot, but I really didn't think it would be this involved. I advise anyone else looking to do this not underestimate just how difficult this is to do on the wagon. The good news is the shock I replaced is definitely bad. It stays compressed and does not act like the new one.
Pelican Parts has a tutorial on changing the rear strut on a W211, but they don't do a wagon. Now, I know why! This thread gives a lot of help:
https://mbworld.org/forums/e-class-w...g-problem.html
I want to try to fill in a couple of the blanks, but, unfortunately, I did not take any pictures.
First, taking the interior apart is a real pain. After removing the most rearward panel, the panel that covers the top of the shock has a plastic rivet at the back on the bottom and a star drive bolt on top. You have to remove the door weatherstrip, and then you can work the panel loose from the door in front. There is a plastic rivet and plastic nut under the seat. I had to remove the metal bar the seat locks into. You can then wiggle and pull the panel somewhat loose, but it requires the seat to be both up and down. I had to cut the panel where the seat hinge passes through since the alternative is to somehow remove the seat. It is possible to remove the shock by just getting the panel loose at the back, but I stressed and broke enough plastic bits that it is probably worth getting it as loose as possible.
The thread mentioned above indicates the metal disk on top of the strut is hard to remove. It is. I don't have the Mercedes special tool, I used needle nosed vice grips -- channel lock pliers did not work for me no matter how hard I tried. You also have to remember that you are screwing the shock down to remove it so you want to move it right, not left. Mine was tight either from corrosion or a thread locker.
I removed the top with weight on the vehicle and then jacked it up taking all the weight off the wheel. This is probably not best. With the shock off, the rear wheel seems to have too much freedom to move, and my air spring pushed it outboard. I did open the nut on the air spring to release pressure, but I don't know if this helped. A jack under the rotor does help. I removed the bottom bolt for the shock, and the 2 stabilizer links, and the old shock came out through the bottom pretty easily. The wire runs a long way, so I just cut it off.
The new shock did not come with the rubber bumper parts on the top, so I reused the old ones. Unlike some, I had to compress the shock and tie a wire around it to keep it compressed. (I turned the shock upside down and put weight on it to compress it.) Using the jack I moved the axle up until the shock would clear the air spring and go back into the top hole. After getting the nut started on top, I cut the wire, which allowed the shock to expand. Unfortunately, I put the wire through the bottom hole, so I had to do some wrangling to get the wire out and the hole lined up. Reassembly was the same as disassembly at this point.
The electrical connection to the shock follows a twisty path which involves removing the plastic panel on the bottom of the car and the inner fender. On mine, there is a wire bale that holds the connectors in place, and two connectors (including the shock) were joined together and had to be wiggled out.
I'm sure pictures would help a lot, but I really didn't think it would be this involved. I advise anyone else looking to do this not underestimate just how difficult this is to do on the wagon. The good news is the shock I replaced is definitely bad. It stays compressed and does not act like the new one.
11-23-2017, 11:06 AM
#2
Super Member
Thanks for the write-up. Not looking forward to changing these out on our 2004 E500 wagon in the future. Besides the wiggle when driving, were there any visuals signs the shock failed, like it was oil coated?
04-01-2019, 01:28 PM
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2005 E500 Wagon
Thanks for the great info! Just got my rear air springs and shocks today and was struck by a line in the install instructions for the Bilstein TC 26-220048 shocks: "Original control bar, positioned between level sensor and stabilizer, must be replaced by control bar delivered by Bilstein". Did you have to change a control arm? (2005 w211 4-Matic Wagon). Thanks again!
