alignment questions
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Junior Member
Joined: Mar 2016
Posts: 41
Likes: 1
2008 E350 4matic
alignment questions
Hi. I have some tire wear/alignment questions. I'm going to replace the tires on my 2008 e350 4matic (108k miles on the car) . The current tires are worn out, and they do have uneven wear. The passenger side front tire is wearing out the inside- so far inside that you cannot see it with out removing the tire. The driver side front is also wearing the same , but not as bad. The tires still have some tread left on them, maybe I could get 5k more out of them, but because I did not rotate them, they need to be replaced. The back is wearing even. I know I goofed by not rotating, but is this wear pattern normal? Should I get an alignment? thanks.
Super Member
Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 809
Likes: 74
From: Dallas, TX
2008 E63 wagon (1 of 62)
Get an alignment after you get the tires replaced. Or drive them until they start showing cords, or until you can find more free time to have them changed. Does the car drift to the left or right as you are driving down the road? How does the rest of the front tire tread look? Are the front tires close to the wear bars but just bald on the inner shoulder?
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Joined: Jan 2009
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From: V E G A S
1922 Ford Model T / no OBD
Read the previous stories about doing alignment on those cars.
W211 left the factory with non-adjustable bolts and if adjustment is needed, you have to buy new bolts. Dealers don't like to stock them and give the car back to the customer without doing the adjustment, using lack of bolts as excuse.
So call in advance and check if they have bolts available.
W211 left the factory with non-adjustable bolts and if adjustment is needed, you have to buy new bolts. Dealers don't like to stock them and give the car back to the customer without doing the adjustment, using lack of bolts as excuse.
So call in advance and check if they have bolts available.
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Mar 2016
Posts: 41
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2008 E350 4matic
Thanks for the replies -- the tread has just gone down to the wear bars, but yes the inner shoulder is toast but the rest of the tire has worn evenly....I will read up on the alignment bolts-thanks
Senior Member
Joined: Jul 2013
Posts: 401
Likes: 44
From: Cedar Rapids, IA
2009 e550 4Matic
Thats more than likely a toe issue.. Not a camber issue. Toe is what eats the inside edge of the tires. A GOOD alignment would likely fix the issue.
With that said, these cars are hard on tires no matter what you do to them.
With that said, these cars are hard on tires no matter what you do to them.
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E
More than likely your lower control (transverse) arm bushings are broken and that is the source of the wear. New arms are $400/side or bushing kit is $150/side.
alignment won’t fix the issue if the bushing are gone. tires dont just wear for no reason - worn out components do it. My LCA arms on my 4matic were gone at 105k. I elected to replace both arms in full, but bushings presses into old arms are cheaper.
as said above, toe is the largest killer of tires and LCA bushings that are bad move toe around as you shift the weight and accelerate. Align it all you want, it just moves again as you drive. Waste of time and money IMO - do the arm bushings, then align with new tires and problem solved.
alignment won’t fix the issue if the bushing are gone. tires dont just wear for no reason - worn out components do it. My LCA arms on my 4matic were gone at 105k. I elected to replace both arms in full, but bushings presses into old arms are cheaper.
as said above, toe is the largest killer of tires and LCA bushings that are bad move toe around as you shift the weight and accelerate. Align it all you want, it just moves again as you drive. Waste of time and money IMO - do the arm bushings, then align with new tires and problem solved.
Last edited by ps2cho; Feb 25, 2018 at 06:29 AM.
Senior Member
Joined: Jul 2013
Posts: 401
Likes: 44
From: Cedar Rapids, IA
2009 e550 4Matic
More than likely your lower control (transverse) arm bushings are broken and that is the source of the wear. New arms are $400/side or bushing kit is $150/side.
alignment won’t fix the issue if the bushing are gone. tires dont just wear for no reason - worn out components do it. My LCA arms on my 4matic were gone at 105k. I elected to replace both arms in full, but bushings presses into old arms are cheaper.
as said above, toe is the largest killer of tires and LCA bushings that are bad move toe around as you shift the weight and accelerate. Align it all you want, it just moves again as you drive. Waste of time and money IMO - do the arm bushings, then align with new tires and problem solved.
alignment won’t fix the issue if the bushing are gone. tires dont just wear for no reason - worn out components do it. My LCA arms on my 4matic were gone at 105k. I elected to replace both arms in full, but bushings presses into old arms are cheaper.
as said above, toe is the largest killer of tires and LCA bushings that are bad move toe around as you shift the weight and accelerate. Align it all you want, it just moves again as you drive. Waste of time and money IMO - do the arm bushings, then align with new tires and problem solved.
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Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Mar 2016
Posts: 41
Likes: 1
2008 E350 4matic
More than likely your lower control (transverse) arm bushings are broken and that is the source of the wear. New arms are $400/side or bushing kit is $150/side.
alignment won’t fix the issue if the bushing are gone. tires dont just wear for no reason - worn out components do it. My LCA arms on my 4matic were gone at 105k. I elected to replace both arms in full, but bushings presses into old arms are cheaper.
as said above, toe is the largest killer of tires and LCA bushings that are bad move toe around as you shift the weight and accelerate. Align it all you want, it just moves again as you drive. Waste of time and money IMO - do the arm bushings, then align with new tires and problem solved.
alignment won’t fix the issue if the bushing are gone. tires dont just wear for no reason - worn out components do it. My LCA arms on my 4matic were gone at 105k. I elected to replace both arms in full, but bushings presses into old arms are cheaper.
as said above, toe is the largest killer of tires and LCA bushings that are bad move toe around as you shift the weight and accelerate. Align it all you want, it just moves again as you drive. Waste of time and money IMO - do the arm bushings, then align with new tires and problem solved.
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MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 9,225
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From: V E G A S
1922 Ford Model T / no OBD
Put a pry bar between the arm loop where the bushing is and the frame and see how much you can push it?
Some of those bushings are "hydro-bushings" and they have soft play by the design, what makes them harder to diagnose, but if they move easy and few mm, you know they are bad.
If they are original at 108k miles, you can easy consider their replacement. Hydro-bushings and hydro-motor mounts have shorter life than solid stuff.
Some of those bushings are "hydro-bushings" and they have soft play by the design, what makes them harder to diagnose, but if they move easy and few mm, you know they are bad.
If they are original at 108k miles, you can easy consider their replacement. Hydro-bushings and hydro-motor mounts have shorter life than solid stuff.
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Mar 2016
Posts: 41
Likes: 1
2008 E350 4matic
Put a pry bar between the arm loop where the bushing is and the frame and see how much you can push it?
Some of those bushings are "hydro-bushings" and they have soft play by the design, what makes them harder to diagnose, but if they move easy and few mm, you know they are bad.
If they are original at 108k miles, you can easy consider their replacement. Hydro-bushings and hydro-motor mounts have shorter life than solid stuff.
Some of those bushings are "hydro-bushings" and they have soft play by the design, what makes them harder to diagnose, but if they move easy and few mm, you know they are bad.
If they are original at 108k miles, you can easy consider their replacement. Hydro-bushings and hydro-motor mounts have shorter life than solid stuff.
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Mar 2016
Posts: 41
Likes: 1
2008 E350 4matic
Bushings seemed fine, so I took it to an independent shop that has a Hunter Hawkeye alignment machine. He said it needed the camber bolts. $114 for the alignment, $64 for the bolts, and $124 to install the bolts. $329 after tax. I hated spending the extra money on the bolts and labor to install them, but I wasn't sure what it needed and didn't want to throw parts at it.
Thread Starter
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Joined: Mar 2016
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2008 E350 4matic
Senior Member
Joined: Jul 2013
Posts: 401
Likes: 44
From: Cedar Rapids, IA
2009 e550 4Matic
All too often they will nudge and shift the wheels to get specs "good enough" If your car isnt on the alignment rack for more than a few minutes and they told you it needed adjustment.. it didnt get done correctly.
