Tom in Austin

Seem to remember a thread or two saying some W212s out there are models that the catalog shows having sports suspension but were actually built with the other suspension as shown by a build code like "677 AVANTGARDE/STANDARD SUSPENSION"

This is the actual case for a 2016 E400 I'm interested in; that model shows 'sport suspension' in the brochure but it's build sheet includes the 677 code shown above. Safe to conclude it has the suspension 'override' and isn't actually the sport version?

KEY08

AVANTGARDE Means SPORT in fancy talk, if you will. That is indeed the Sport suspension on the 2016 E400 you are inquiring about.

Tom in Austin

Thank you!

KEY08

No problem. I have the same code on my E550 and can tell you it is indeed a Sport tuned suspension. The "Standard" designation means springs as opposed to Airmatic.

ghlkal

Ah, that makes sense. I was wondering about that on mine. Thanks for the explanation Key08

Dingo L

Dingo L

Thought you guys may still be interested to know, for some suspension springs Mercedes categorize them to 486 (Sports) and 677 ( Avantgarde/Standard) as well, that makes thing even more complicated.

Tom in Austin

LOL, it sure does!

S-Prihadi

If I am not wrong, they choose the springs to match the car overall weight with options, based on the market region.
I am on 677 option and it 1 red + 1 green dot both rear and front springs.
It would be great to see the actual data for its KG per millimeter based on those color list and its total uncompressed height.

Dingo L

Not sure the front but yr rear spring is A2123240404 which could be 486 or 677, as you said depends on which models are fitted into.

So what is yr w212 model?

S-Prihadi

Its on my profile. Model year is 2014 but it left germany in Aug 2013 and its datacard call it :
code 804 212____ - 20090312 - YOM 13/1
code 804 276.8__ - 20111222 - YOM 23/1 <<< 23 ??? I wonder why

It is stated as : 677 AVANTGARDE/STANDARD SUSPENSION
Front spring: A 212 321 14 04 ,
Rear spring: A 212 324 04 04 ,
Rear shim: A 210 325 03 84 ,

Front suspension strut: A 212 320 88 38 << I replaced this SACHS piece of shiet with Bilstein B4 22-194091 and the rear with also a B4 22-194112 and
it is now so much better in handling , reduced road noise believe it or not and while maintaining the original comfort.I have a post on it.


NOTE : My car is locally assembled in Indonesia, a CKD unit.

.

kajtek1

The black car we have is limo version, when the white one has sport.
Frankly I can't tell any difference. Would have to take micrometer and compare the cars heights.

Dingo L

Thanks for sharing yr car's info
Mine is a E250 CGI, which is also stated as 677.
l only know the front spring is A2123211004 because l saw one green dot on the spring, but don't know the rear....
I found the car a bit hard in suspension, and consider to change the springs.....

S-Prihadi

Jack up the car and you will see the color dots. Like mine below : Wipe clean the springs. This is my July 2017 photo archive.


What is your mileage and age of the car now ?
I suggest you change new shock absorbers first if it has done already say 50,000KM or more.

I am familiar with Hong Kong roads, I go there few times a year.... they are decent ( Jakarta is super crappy ) and E class ride in such road is decent and not hard, harder ride is if you use a BMW.
Unless your are after... say Toyota Crown or Nissan Cedric kind of boaty ride, then you will probably find ur E class ride maybe "firm-hard".

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Dingo L

S-Prihadi:

Your photo answered a question l wanted to ask, the color code of yr front spring should be 1 green and 1 brown....

My E250 just have 29000km of mileage, so perhaps changing the springs would be a better choice to improve ride quality.

I used to ride a toyota Harrier 240G for 14 years, l really felt like floating on water with it....
But my bad luck came when 5 months ago l got a 2nd hand W204 AMG, the suspensions were so hard ( and with 18" rim...) which gave me serious back problem and l had gone through a lot of medical treatment including 2 MRI ......
I thought an E class Avangarde would be much softer in suspensions and yes it is better than the W204 but no it is still not soft enough for my wounded back...

And finally yes, the road of hk is generally good, but one big pothole could kill and they sometimes do exist.

S-Prihadi

Oopps, sorry to hear about ur back. I have back problem too, 3 nerves got squeezed/pinched at lower spine, I can't remember which L number.
I can't bend to mess around at my engine bay for more than 5-7 minutes, its a bit painful and very "tiring".

My front spring is indeed green and brown ( not beige ).
If you see here : https://www.ilcats.ru/mercedes/?func...54&language=en
There is no green + biege.

My friend have the same 240G Harrier and with air suspension.
But you must remember that the tires were 17" , 65 aspect ratio 225 wide if I am not mistaken. Back then SUV don't use low profile tires anyway.
So your tire sidewall is 147mm tall.

Your E250 if you get the 225/55/16 is 124mm tall.
If you get the 245/45/17 = 109mm tall, more harsh.

If MB HK give u the run flat & 17" = worse ride.

If I may suggest, you also need to try different tires when time to change new one.
If you are on 17" wheel, maybe go for 16" wheel so that you can use 55 aspect ratio tire.

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Dingo L

Thanks S-Prihadi for your advice, yes l'm now having 17inches tyres, have been looking for 16inches already....
and so sorry to hear that you have similar problems like mine.

So what is your opinion if l change the springs ? I'll put the 485 category springs to my car, would the ride be more comfortable?

Thanks again

kajtek1

When I can put 16" wheels on my E250 BT, other members report that their W212 with bigger engines have bigger calipers and 16" wheels will not fit. But 16" wheels make significant difference in ride comfort.
Per several reports, the different springs don't make significant difference.
Frankly, I think you should get airmatic. I would love to have airmatic on my car, but I love diesels even more and no diesel with airmatic is sold in this country.

S-Prihadi

I honestly can't say how much improvement in comfort for 485 category springs without seeing a figure I can relate to, which is a spring rate KG per mm.

Try a look here : SACHS
https://www.autodoc.co.uk/car-parts/...lier%5B0%5D=32

Comfort suspension has 2 version, automatic transmission and manual transmission.

FRONT
Auto Trans :

• Length [mm]:443 <<< total length unloaded I am sure
• Diameter [mm]:164 <<< this one the coiling diameter, 12,5 <<< this one thickness of the steel

Manual Trans

• Length [mm]:443
• Diameter [mm]:162 <<< 2mm smaller coiling diameter, 12,25 <<<< 0.25mm thinner steel

I am sure manual transmission car is lighter.... a bit.

Front , Sports

• Length [mm]:426 <<<< 17mm shorter. Usually sports version claimed to be 15mm lower ground clearance.
• Diameter [mm]:155, 12 The coiling diameter is 9mm smaller than manual trans but its steel diameter is also 0.25mm smaller.

I don't know if all 3 springs , the steel alloy is 100% same spec.

Only 1 version for rear spring though.


Is this your car spec ?
https://www.auto-data.net/en/mercede...utomatic-12854
or the Facelift one ?
https://www.ultimatespecs.com/car-sp...013)-E250.html

Anyway, they are both 1650-1680kg respectively.

My car with 1/2 fuel is 1,839kg. I measured with a scale.
I wonder..... if assuming your car is 100-120kg lighter at zero fuel compared to mine also at zero fuel and we are on the same 677 category spring rate,
I don't find my E400 "hard" even with tire wall height at front 99mm and at rear 94mm, perhaps it is the heavier weight of my car.
I am on Michelin Pilot Sport 4. Front 245/40/18 rear 265/35/18. Not the most comfy tire, but I am after the grip.

But, I am also on Bilstein B4 which in my opinion, is more comfy overall compared to OEM Sachs, on bad roads and at my city bad rail road crossing.
This is why I kind of want you to try the Bilstein B4 too.

If you can get Continental tire Comfort Contact CC6, do get them. Not the stickiest, but add more comfort.
https://blobs.continental-tires.com/...0NDAxZTc4ZWQw~

I am using this Ultra Contact UC6, the 60 series on my Mazda Biante. 205/60R16. This is already so quiet and comfortable over the Dunlop, which I forgot which type.
https://blobs.continental-tires.com/...0NDAxZTc4ZWQw~

What is your front and rear tire pressure ? I am non 30/32 front-rear.

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Dingo L

S-Prihadi you the man!!
l think l need at least half a day's time to diggest your information which are very very valuable! Big thanks!!

Dingo L

BTW mine is a 2011 pre-facelift e250 cgi sedan.
I'm now having 245/45/17 tyres with pressures 33/33.
Definitely will replace them with 16 inches rims if l could find a decent set...

EuroDriverSD

I have a 2016 with code 677 Avantgarde/Standard Suspension. The ride is much softer than my old W211 Sport and I only have 16,000 miles on it. It definitely can't handle the cornering the way my W211 did. Also, the car is very raked - the rear end sits much higher than the front. I have seen e few W212's around town that although they have a little rake, they look much more level than mine.

Does anyone know whether if I switch to the code 486 springs and shims, it would provide a firmer ride and even out the rake?

S-Prihadi

Nice reminder Kajtek 1.
Dingo, you must make sure the brake caliper must fit.



​​​Glad to help Dingo.
What brand tire does MB HK gave u ? Mine originally was on Bridgestone RE050A, I don't like it and at 3 years old, albeit +-10,000KM, I switched to the Michelin PS4.
Set ur tire to 30/31 psi front rear for HK city driving.

When u change to 16" rim, make sure the ET ( offset ) matched original design. Your ET would be 45 to 48. Inside the wheel there would be a marking.

16" example from BBS. ET48 and 7J width good up to 225/55 tire. BBS only has 1 model of 16"
https://konfigurator.bbs.com/article...00026050031853

Choose offset 45, diameter 16". My OEM AMG 18" wheel made by this company.
https://www.ronal-wheels.com/int/con...770380!7DA6246

Happy wheel/rim hunting.
.

Dingo L

So u'r saying it's not helping the riding confort just by changing the springs, even they are softer than the original ones?

S-Prihadi

I don't know if US market get the SACHS shocks or something else.
If you want to have good handling and be as comfortable as standard car can be, I suggest take a read here : Bilstein B4, for standard non lowered springs
https://mbworld.org/forums/e-class-w...lstein-b4.html

Bilstein B4 is not suitable for "hooligan" driving, as in changing lanes fast and quick repeatedly at high speed, like a moose test or slalom.
For controlled racing line kind of driving, it is good enough and better than SACHS OEM, while being comfy.

Bilstein B6 for firmer ride, also for standard non lowered springs.
I may get B6 for experiment sake, once I bring my car to the track for safe and carefree aggressive driving on the B4 to evaluate.

Bilstein B8, shorter stroke designed for lowered springs.

Bilstein B12 KIT, B8 shocks matched to lowered springs. The springs are by Eibach. Below is based on 2016 E350 rwd.
https://www.bilstein.com/us/en/produ...57202610282465
Supposedly 30mm lowered.
https://www.bilstein.com/us/en/produ...57202610282465

This is the spring :
https://eibachshop.com/index.php?p30...s-benz-e-class

TUV certificate to see their actual dimension and design.
The rear is progressive and the front is linear.
https://eibachshop.com/download/E1025021.PDF

To why only the rear get progressive is probably because our W212 is approx 53% weight at the front and only approx 47% at the rear, based on my E400 RWD with 1/2 fuel, zero person.
Once you add 2 or 3 passengers at the rear and say 100kg worth of luggage, the car rear part will have extra easy 300-350kg more.
So the rear will have the highest difference of weight between single driver only and fully loaded condition, so rear progressive springs make sense.
I don't know if OEM rear springs are progressive or not.

As to your request for lower rear heigth to make the car even height front and rear , I suggest not to do so.
With easy extra 300-400kg for rear axle to handle including full fuel , that height is the required suspension travel to accomodate such high weight difference.

This is my E400 - RWD corner weight. I am sure your E350 is very close to this figure, our engines are near twins. Its actually not bad, near 50/50 weight distribution.





Happy hunting.....