Exactly a weeks driving my truck in Nigeria I started hearing interesting noises from my suspension. Noises I never heard on the freeways in Los Angeles

I suspect balljoints and linkages.

My question, where should I be looking for affordable yet extra durable suspension stuff? I've attached a YouTube link to see some of the comical roads I drive on in Nigeria this one to my house.

 

I can’t imagine that anything other than OEM holds up to those conditions… Cheap Chinese patent parts are going to wear out in about a day!

 

Or try Siberian bushings. They are polyurethane so will be stiffer than OEM. You would feel the difference in the ride on a paved highway. I imagine with the road you have in the video it will be noticeable as well, and probably more so. Will they last longer? Not sure.

 

they will be incessantly noisy.

 

That too.

 

What’s a good place to buy low priced factory suspension stuff? Thanks.

 

If your intent is to keep in Nigeria/Africa generally, you might consider converting suspension to coils and doing away with air bags.
Please read this thread:
https://mbworld.org/forums/gl-class-...rsion-kit.html
And possibly this one:
https://mbworld.org/forums/r-class-w...onversion.html (although it's for the R-Class)

At the time our cars were designed corporate was MBChrysler and there is a fair amount of common/compatible parts between Jeep and Mercedes bigger vehicles.
The R-Class thread goes into Jeep part numbers, even.

 

Thanks for the pointers. This makes sense now because I’ve been seeing a few mention of Chrysler when looking for the rear wiper nozzle.

I plan to swItch to traditional coils once the bags give up.

 

So my front left bag gave up explosively.

I’m more inclined to go to traditional suspension.

What do you folks think about this kit?

Front and Rear Air Spring to Coil Spring Conversion Kit - 4 Piece - Compatible with 2007-2012 Mercedes-Benz GL450 (Excludes ADS and ABS Bracket) https://a.co/d/3feDa7T

Please remember I’m in Africa so choices are limited.

Arnotts warranty means little considering shipping back and forth.

Thanks.

 

The only thing I would warn about in the coil replacement is the struts. The shock absorbers inside are hidden and could be very low quality. And if anything will wear quickly on Nigerian roads, it would be shocks.

 

Duly noted. Thank you Sir. Like Wile E Coyote would say, “Back to the drawing board”.

 

I would only switch to coils if, as in a deep off road situation, the consequences of spring failure are high. You would never see air springs in a serious off road vehicle for this reason. It is possible that robbery is an issue, for example, so you badly need your vehicle to always get you home. I would be tempted to invest in an AK and body armor instead.

Off the top of my head, I don't think the air springs will fail much quicker due to rough roads. I believe they fail quicker due to environmental effects, such as ultraviolet, ozone, and salt.

If you check the bags' integrity regularly, you should be able to spot a leak before it becomes a bang. And always replace with top quality components, e.g. Bilstein, for longevity.

P.S. I looked at the Amazon selection. A bunch of Chinesium. From the reviews, you can expect them to fall apart in short order, especially if you are driving on Nigerian roads. I would replace your air springs and keep an eye on the coil kits to see if you can find good ones. Be prepared to pay for the pleasure, though.

 

I’ve decided to go with the spring conversion.

Arnott doesn’t sell one. Where should I be looking? Thanks,

 

What about this?

https://www.strutmasters.com/product...40810684416176

 

You are not likely to find anyone on here who has experience with custom suspensions. You would want to go to a pickup truck forum, where guys install lift kits and what not.

You might be able to find someone on here who has installed a conversion kit. I seem to remember someone doing so.

I can only offer one observation. To make such a kit, someone has to design the rear springs and have those springs wound. They also have to design a strut body to match the original, and design springs also. They then have to select a damper cartridge to put inside, or even design and and make one themselves. This is all a lot of work, let alone to get right.

If you are Chinese, you will scour the world for products for which the design effort has already been expended, and then copy the results in as low cost a fashion as possible.

You might be able to find a Chinesium version that is good, but there is probably a very small number of manufacturers that took on the copying process because this is a niche product.

I suggest going to U.S. based companies that specialize in custom suspension products. Strutmasters may be such a company; I am not familiar with this market.

Expect that the conversion kit will not be cheap. That does not mean an expensive one is good; a cheap one is a copy, and the odds of the copier getting it right are slim.

Do keep us apprised of your progress. There are plenty of folks on here who would be interested.

 

I do remember 1-2 people talking about conversion and one of them had done so, about 2-3 years ago.
https://mbworld.org/forums/gl-class-...rsion-kit.html

and this is the specific post
https://mbworld.org/forums/gl-class-...ml#post7807140

 

Yikes check out the last post in that thread! Poor guy. There is no good reason for that level of failure, of course.

I am startled by the poster that put ML springs in. Isn't the weight difference between vehicles something like 20%? I would be astonished if his ride height was not significantly different.

 

Whatever this thing has

 

So I stayed with air springs for this go around. I ordered from Strutmasters.

I had them installed by an indie shop here for NGN30,000 which is about $40

PS: my right front springs exploded while parked.

 

Did you happen to note the manufacturer of the air springs? Were they embossed "Continental" or something like that?

 

I’ll get back to you on that Sir.

 

After installing the front air springs, the car rose, stayed up for two days, did a road trip of about 200 miles. A day after getting back it’s on the ground again.

Will rise when car starts but goes down again.

I’m temporarily in a wheelchair so can’t do much troubleshooting.

What do you good people think?

 

Can you give us a rundown of the age and wear level of the other components in the System?

rear air springs
compressor
valve block

have you had a leak check done?

 

The truck is new to me so I’m not sure of the age of the components. The rear springs are still holding air but I have new Strutmaster replacement on hand.

I was told that the mechanic that replaced the fronts did not check for leaks.

Thanks.

 

One of the rear springs that Strutmaster sent to me has the nipple hole in the wrong location