When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
My front springs broke. What replacement do I buy?
Hi All.
After hitting all the dead ends I could, I finally relented and am posting here. I figured it's time to join the MB world community anyway.
So here's the deets:
09 E350 4Matic Sedan, non-airmatic suspension.
Long story short, my front springs broke at 110k miles (seems to be a common problem) and I'm looking to replace them with a shock and spring kit, already assembled.
So far all I can find are airmatic to spring conversion kits. Do they work as a plug-and-play replacement for the standard springs? Any help on this subject would be mucho appreciated.
Thanks in advance!
Last edited by mpowlo; Jul 16, 2020 at 04:02 PM.
Reason: Added a picture
I just did the front springs/struts on my 2008 E350. You have to get the springs from Mercedes no one sells an aftermarket one. Figure out the part number using EPC or post the vin and someone will look it up for you. There's also a color coding on the spring, there's usually two dots on it, the colors will tell you what spring to get. There are no quick struts for the E350. The toughest thing is going to be to compress the spring. It will cost you more to replace it with airmatic than to just replace the springs/struts. I used the Bilstein struts, they're cheaper than Sachs by far although Sachs was OEM. Once you have the part number, you can google to find some local MB dealers that sell them cheaper online. I got mine for about $70 each and shipping wasn't that bad as it was just one state over from me. I think I went a little overboard, got the rubber isolator and the mount, maybe could have skipped the rubber isolator and reused the old one. FCPeuro also sells a kit from Sachs that had the bumper stop and the cover. Basically if you get all that, you don't have to take apart the old spring and you really have to crank down the spring so that's best to have a shop do it. You do kinda need the old one to measure the height when changing the struts as it comes set at the 10th stop which will be too high, depending on whether it's 4matic, sport, luxury, could be the 2-4th ring, you just match it up with the old one so that they're the same height.
You do have to take apart a bunch of stuff to get at it so I hope your sway bar links, ball joints, tie rods, control arms etc are in good shape, otherwise now would be the time to do them as it all comes apart then.
I wouldn't attempt to disassemble the old struts or assemble new ones without the MB spring compressor, the springs on these cars require a lot of compression to install and the cheap spring compressors make the job even more dangerous. You might be able to find a shop willing to assemble the new struts for you, with the spring and upper mount, then you could install it as one unit.
You should plan on replacing at least the ball joints if they're original, there's a good chance to boots will tear when you go to separate them (if the boots aren't already torn), sway bar links would be a very good idea too while you've got everything apart. If you've already replaced the ball joints and they're still in good shape, don't use a pickle fork to separate them as the boots will more than likely rip, you can rent a ratchet driven ball joint separator at most auto parts stores. Also a good idea to inspect the axle boots since they're also very easy to change if needed while the suspension is apart.
I wouldn't attempt to disassemble the old struts or assemble new ones without the MB spring compressor, the springs on these cars require a lot of compression to install and the cheap spring compressors make the job even more dangerous.
Nonsense, there's nothing special about the w211 coil overs that would prevent you from assembling them with generic spring compressors. If you're unwilling or unable to do the work, any suspension shop can handle it. It's not rocket science.
Thanks for the replies everyone! It looks like getting the shocks and springs separate is the way to go. I'm squeamish with springs, so I'll probably have a shop assemble them for me.
Is it really necessary to get the springs from Mercedes though? After the original ones broke, I'm a bit skeptical about getting the same kind.
Cetialpha, what do you think of the Bilsteins now that you've had them for a while? I'm assuming they're the sport version.
Last edited by mpowlo; Jul 17, 2020 at 10:02 AM.
Reason: Should have read more before asking for brands.
If you didn't have a 4matic I'd say you could find an aftermarket spring but there's just too few of those cars for aftermarket support. Pretty much everything 4matic for front suspension, steering and brakes is dealer only. It's the hidden 4matic tax.
FCP has Bilstein as aftermarket. If you have non-sport suspension, at $44 dollars it's quite reasonable. I've done 4Matics - the spring compression is crazy high compared to the many other cars and non-4Matics I've done. I used something similar to this https://www.ebay.com/itm/Interchange....c100005.m1851 and it worked fine.
Here's my dumb question of the day: My car has the sport package. Does that mean I have sport suspension?
Yes it does. The sports package was about an inch lower on the suspension than the luxury. I would just get the springs from MB. FCPeuro has a lifetime warranty on their parts, but I did my springs around 120k, they were starting to sag and I don't really expect them fail again for another 100k+ and I don't expect to have the car at that point. I think MB has a 2 year warranty on parts. Basically for MB parts, it's cheaper to get it from the dealer as FCPeuro just gets it from the dealer and ends up marking it up. I think you have to debate whether the extra cost is worth the lifetime warranty or not. That's why I also got my Bilstein struts from Rockauto instead of FCP. They were much cheaper and Bilstein has a lifetime warranty anyway. As for how the struts feel, they were decent, new springs and struts restored some of the responsiveness of the car going over bumps, it felt somewhat dead before when going over bumps. But it's a pretty stiff suspension anyway. It probably would have been a project to convert it all to a luxury suspension. I was never a fan of the sports suspension, I'd rather have a smoother ride, it's just that basically any car that is somewhat loaded always has the sport suspension.
Question? Not trying to hijack a post here.....but where is the best place for airmatic fronts? Thanks. Continue. LOL
Most people just get the Arnotts, not sure who has the best price for those, less expensive that Mercedes ones, around $500 or less and if you save the old ones, they usually give you something extra for the cores, but they're not doing that now due to the pandemic, maybe hold onto them and maybe they will pay for them later. Once you have the part number for your car, just google it and check out all the vendors, there's usually a dozen of them out there and whoever has the lowest price, that's the one.
Mercedes SLR McLaren 722 S Is Extremely Rare Example Modified by McLaren
Slideshow: A one-of-one U.S.-spec Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren Roadster became even rarer after a factory-backed transformation at McLaren's headquarters.
