SL55/63/65/R230 AMG: Rear Strut Removal DYI, Boot Replacement.
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Joined: Mar 2021
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From: Rocky Mountains, Colorado
Just sold my '11 Porsche TurboS cab for an '03 SL55!
Rear Strut Removal DYI, Boot Replacement.
Here's a bit of a payback to this community that I've benefited much from. I was not able to find a DYI on the subject so I learned what I could and worked through it myself. While I was able to remove the first strut by pulling the upper and rear links from the top and rear of the Hub Carrier, I nearly killed myself and destroyed a new boot trying to get it back in, that is until I worked through the problem, and then was I able to do the other side pretty easily and in ~3 hours. Get ready, this is a dirt job.
Replacement Strut Boots: I bought a pair of Chinese boots on eBay for about $60. Turns out that they were of decent even very good quality and they fit perfectly. Maybe not OE quality but given that the OE units went 18 years (maybe 16 years before starting to crack), these will hold me for quite awhile. These were made from a mold created from an OE part as I could see a washed out part number and other markings that matched the originals. I found no other source for these boots. The p/n on the boots is 230 328 00 92.
Tools you'll need:
Don't Remove: the fender liner, brake caliper or anything else except as noted below (unless you have other reasons of course).
There is no critical sequence to the following......you could pretty much proceed in any order.
Regrets that photos weren't taken along the way.
Replacement Strut Boots: I bought a pair of Chinese boots on eBay for about $60. Turns out that they were of decent even very good quality and they fit perfectly. Maybe not OE quality but given that the OE units went 18 years (maybe 16 years before starting to crack), these will hold me for quite awhile. These were made from a mold created from an OE part as I could see a washed out part number and other markings that matched the originals. I found no other source for these boots. The p/n on the boots is 230 328 00 92.
Tools you'll need:
- 21mm socket and a breaker bar, preferably 1/2" drive.
- E18 Torx Socket - I got away with a 3/8" drive.
- 12mm Spline Driver (This may be called a Triple Square Driver but I'm not sure)
- 10mm and 12mm Allen Wrenches (or socket drives)
- Otherwise standard tools - I didn't have the torque specs and just used my judgement.
Don't Remove: the fender liner, brake caliper or anything else except as noted below (unless you have other reasons of course).
There is no critical sequence to the following......you could pretty much proceed in any order.
- While your hands are clean, gain access to the top of the struts under the carpeting in the trunk (this is another DYI, but there's a UTube on it). Remove the electrical connectors and the pair of 13mm nuts on each so you won't need to go back in there until the last minute.
- Jack the rear corner that you want to work on and remove the wheel. You'll be putting some big forces on the car to remove some bolts so make sure it is on solid stands with the parking break on. You will need to get face up well underneath the car so make sure you have room for that.
- Bleed the ABC pressure a the bleeder fitting up under the body and just forward and behind of the strut.
- Clean and then disconnect the Quick Disconnect fluid fitting from the strut and protect the open QD fitting from contamination (and there's a lot of it in there).
- Disconnect the Height Sensor link - This step must be done before you drop the main Suspension Control Arm (see below).
- Disconnect the lowest suspension link from the Hub Carrier and KEY here is to loosen its inboard bolt on this link at the body so this link can droop freely down. NOTE on this inboard bolt you'll find the 21mm nut access inhibited by a snap in plastic part that supports sensor wiring. Way up on the inboard side of this plastic hanger you'll find a push pin that you can't really access at all. I was able to get a flat screwdriver up under the pin and pop it out. One side came out fine, on the other I broke the pin off. I used a tie wrap through the pin hole to replace it. If you are a purist, buy these two before you start because you don't want to go in there twice.
- Disconnect the suspension link that attaches to the rear most location on the Hub Carrier. No need to disconnect it at its' inboard end.
- Remove the Bolt attaching the bottom of the Strut to the Main Control Arm.
- Loosen (don't remove) the inboard bolt on the Main Control Arm - You'll be swinging the arm down later.
- Get a small jack or some blocks under the Main Control Arm before going too far in these next steps.
- Disconnect the Main Control Arm from the Hub Carrier.
- Now you need a pry bar to get the bottom of the Hub Carrier outboard enough to let the Main Control Arm drop down with the strut.
- From there it is easy enough to swing the Main Control Arm down to near vertical (having removed the jack or blocks underneath it) and the strut comes right out.
- Reverse these steps to reinstall and then bleed the ABC by using the up/down button inside the car while keeping an eye on the fluid reservoir. I lost maybe 5-6 ounces of fluid in total - no enough to be dangerously low at the reservoir.
Regrets that photos weren't taken along the way.
