Taleh

i am too disappointed with comfort suspension of W212 (16 inch rims). it bounces more than my previous W211 with comfort suspension too (16 inch rims too). i see a clear difference between these two cars. and the suspension of W212 makes the ride comfort unpleasant.
here are my questions:
1) can i change the suspension system of my existing W212 into the the one like in W211?
2) can i install airmatic now??? is it possible ?

K-A

You'd have to get a Sport Package to fix that. Be prepared for those bounces to become hard bumps over those same rough surfaces though.

thekurgan

You may be able to look into an aftermarket setup, like the KW Variant packages, with progressive springs, but other than that, what K-A says holds true and the suspension also comes with different bushings and alignment specs that are different as the sport vehicles are a tad lower, altering camber if not aligned.

PHML

get some coilovers that have adjustable dampening.

CEB

Where are you located? US cars come with 17" wheels

Airmatic cannot be readily retrofitted. You would be better off selling your car and buying one with airmatic.

ngerstman

I would agree with CEB. Mercedes has not used 16's on any e class for many years in the USA. I would also agree that there isn't much you can do other than trading it in for a sport suspension which would give you a firmer ride and 18 inch rims. That said, the luxury suspension gives the car a nice big car type of ride, more like one would expect from an s class and there is something to be said for that. You will also be much less prone to bent rims and blowouts if you live in an area with bad roads. Many people on the forum feel that the sport suspension is too hard on rough roads. Trade-offs. Regards. Ned.

Taleh

Unfortunately non of u got my problem.
I wanted to say that the suspension in w212 is worse than in w211.
Now question is: is it possible to change the suspension of my w212 to the same system like in w211?

K-A

Negative. Completely different suspension systems up front on those two cars, to boot.

Taleh

Ok. Then what is needed to do in order to at least come close to the comfort of W211? What can be done with springs,suspension and etc?

CEB

Where are you and what version of the car do you currently have?

thekurgan

You have to go aftermarket. KW makes some great coilovers that are adjustable for rebound and damp. Put in your make/model here to see what is available:

http://kw-store.com/products/complete-coilover-kit.html

There may not be any way to tell if these will match the 211, but if you're looking for more shock/strut control and a firmer/lower ride, aftermarket is probably your only option.

Taleh

i am now in germany. the car is made for german market.
the suspension is not as smooth as it was in 211 model.

CEB

Right - so do you have the Elegance or Avantgarde edition? The additional sport suspension? These are all Germany variances that don't exist in the US.

It sounds like you are not happy that the suspension is hard over bumps - is that correct? In that case, I suspect that you have the sport suspension rather than the Elegance, but roads is Germany are par better than in most of the rest of the world, so who knows.

You need to tell us exactly what it is that you find to be a problem. Saying "not like my 211" doesn't really help since there are many variants of the 211 suspension as well.

Taleh

i have elegance model with 485 suspension code. my previous 211 was also elegance. both my previous 211 and now 212 models were and are fitted with R16 wheels. but there is a significant difference in comfort...
i am so upset ((

CEB

There isnt much you can do. The Elegance is the most comfortable of the suspensions (I assume you didn't add the sport suspension) so it is as good as it gets.

The only real alternative is to trade your car with one that has airmatic. Sorry.

K-A

Isn't the W212 supposed to be more comfortable than the W211? I know that the W212 Sport was an improvement in comfort from the W211 Sport.

CEB

Yeah, there is something not right here. This is the first complaint I've heard about the lux verion not being comfortable enough - especially with the pothole free roads in Germany.

Last year I drove from Frankfurt to Vienna and back on both the Autobahn and side roads and encountered 1 pothole. There's not much one can do with cobblestones, but the OP is looking at a new car with airmatic if the lux isn't lux enough.

Paxfobiscum

On the topic of suspensions, I will be getting my 2012 E350 Wagon this Friday. I was concerned about the stiffness of the suspensions on the W212 based on everything I have read. So I was looking for a Wagon with the Luxury (elegance) suspension but it was hard to find this with all the options I wanted (Prem II, white, etc.). So I ended up just getting one with the Sport (comfort) suspension because of what a German technician said to me. He works for MB MB Manhattan and according to him, I wouldn't feel much difference with the Sport suspension due to the 17 rims. Moreover, he said that the Wagon's rear suspension is the same for both the Luxury and Sport versions. As such only the Front suspension will be different.

I hope what he says is true - that I won't be able to tell the difference. Because I am pretty obsessive when it comes to avoiding potholes and rough roads and I would rather drive a few miles farther just to avoid bad roads. But, coming from driving a W210 wagon for 10 years, I predict the W212 wagon will be a lot better. Especially since it is a new car. We will see....

Taleh

Ok then. In my case with german elegance version, is it possible to add airmativ to my car?

andy5v

its just common sense, wanna sport handling the E350 am sport package is fine, wanna soft ride and glide get a friggin' Caddy or Continental ! simple as that .

jonUF02

Comfort is an opinion. I think my sport spring suspension is very comfortable, not harsh at all, if anything a little too soft. Others think it's like a wooden wagon. Someone else posted that the soft luxury suspension hurt their back.

Your best bet would be to try a W212 with the sport springs and see if you like that more, it would be a pretty straight-forward swap of parts, or possibly try a few after-market springs swapped onto the car.

jumpman726

I was coming from a 2010 5-series (standard suspension/non run-flats) and the two things that I immediately noticed when I test drove my current E550 sedan was the un-luxurious, stiff ride over bumps and the poor brakes.

Those are the two things that still bother me to this day, but the 400 HP and 440 lb-ft of torque help make up for those misgivings.

Skyline45

Hmm, sounds like there's something wrong with your car. My luxury version is sometimes too comfortable, I've had to fight to stay awake while driving a few times. Thing is a cloud