Schweinhund

Read that whole thread. Interesting that a different platform has the same problem. I don't buy the inner diff parts. There's just not enough rotational mass and the ring gears would whine horribly if they were that loose. I have a suggestion for a next step:

Install the coil spring lifters and change the suspension damping factor and give it ride and see what happens. If the vibration speed changes, a very important and specific determination will have been made.

Here are some:

http://www.upnextcarparts.com/p-6854...abilizers.aspx

Not sure if they will fit our coil diameters but if they do, I would go with these.


The point is that:

If the vibration speed changes with the spacers, the problem is with the suspension damping or fitment.

If the vibration speed does not change, the problem is almost certainly rotational.

The key is the SPEED of the vibration. Said another way, if the problem is damping or fitment, by changing the ride height and spring rate, the vibration speed should change.

Skullnick

Schweinhund thats clever thinking! that would immensely narrow down various possibilities of what may be causing the vib. Isn't amazing how this vib problem seems to have plagued across many MB platforms.

BTW I can't believe those spacers you are referring to are still being sold, I used a set back in the day on a VW rabbit cabriolet to resolve a sagging rear end, I think I may still have them somewhere in my shed. I was actually in the process of ordering the tallest set of OEM rubber coil shims from MB in order to raise the rear end of my e320 to match the front end, IMO all e320 seem to suffer a sagging rear end. I know that the spacers you are recommending will change the spring rate but do you think the rubber coil shims would be just as effective as what you are recommending?

Schweinhund

Thanks and it is odd. As far as the spacers, yes and no. The spring shims will raise the car and change the geometry but not the spring rate. The coil spacers will change the spring rate and the geometry. Plus the coil spacers are easier to put it I think.

Schweinhund

Update: I just replaced the rear tires on my car. They were worn out and had been on there since I bought it. The vibration I had is completely gone. In this case it was the tires/wheels.

Skullnick

Good to see it was an easy fix, in my case I have 2 sets of wheels and tried 4 different sets of tires (winter & summer) and vib shows up like clockwork at the same speed. I was wondering if a bad rear caliper could cause this sort of problem... After replacing my rear pads/rotors 2 weeks ago my mechanic told me the inside of the right rear rotor looked like it was subject to extreme heat due to the color + the pads were worn more the the left side.
Nothing appeaeredto be seized but he took everything apart and cleaned it all up...

Schweinhund

I re-read the thread.

I think you said it comes from the back and you can not feel it in the steering wheel. This tells me it is likely in the back.

Did you check your shocks, mounts, and other suspension bushings?

Under 50 MPH is a very low speed vibration and makes me a less suspicious of a rotating part.

I would suspect those to come in at higher driveline RPM. Even a wheel out at under 50MPH isn't going to be that bad.

Dumb questions but I gotta ask: Lug nuts tight?

I will keep thinking about this.

Skullnick

I ruled out pretty much everything in the front end (as mentioned earlier in the thread), the vibration feels like it is beneath the seats, center console but not the steering. If I maintain a constant speed for a while during the vib I can actually start feeling a sort of "droning" vibration effect... it's hard to explain but if I were to paint an example; if you ever observed a 5 spoke wheel spinning, at a certain speed you can actually see a pattern started to take place where you think the wheel is moving in the opposite direction... That effect would be the secondary vib at a different frequency... did I confuse you

I considered and am considering the rear suspension since I want to get rid of the sagging rear-end. But the fact that this vibration always appears at the exact same speed and doesn't change in rythm/pitch; no matter what gear I am in or if I am going over bumps, no matter if there are 5 passengers or 1 makes it diffucult to believe it is something in the rear suspension. The only noticeable change is when it is very cold the vib feels more pronounced in the entire car.

I would love to solve this issue while I still own this vehcile...lol.

Schweinhund

This is a 4matic 320? Could it be something unique to the 4matic system? That's a 4WD?

nicobaires

I'm right there with you, same. I also thought about the rear brakes. The thing that throws me off is the very bad vibration I got twice in the last year. The one where I had to pull over to check for a flat. Then when I start back up down the road it was gone. The constant vibration has always been there.

I'm about to order some lowering springs so i'll see if that helps or changes anything

Skullnick

I had that happen twice in 2 years, it was scary as hell and got me to stop on the side rather fast. It sounds like we both have the same problem that is causing the vib, I know it may not resolve the issue but this spring I will be changing the tranny mount, hanger bearing/housing, and flex joints... they seem to have some moderate wear but at least I will eliminate those parts out of the equation.

nicobaires

I've already replaced all of those items you mentioned and it did nothing.
It's gotta be from the rear somewhere. What about rear wheel bearings? I've checked them and they seem/feel ok but maybe not?

Skullnick

I hear ya... my mechanic (my cousin), 30+ year experience with european cars tells me that MB vibration issues are amongst the most difficult to solve. He honestly tells me (and has been for the past 2 years) that with my vibration it will be a guessing game and a test on how much money I am willing to throw at resolving it. I want my Merc to drive the way it was intented, smoothly but he believes, in order to be practical and cost effective that I should live with the vib and wait until it gets worse in order to faciltate finding the problem.

MBFLO

Honestly effing sucks if you gotta change out buncha stuff and its still there

.. but the cheapest parts are always the best the start with if you gonna go after it .. Mine vibrates a lil always and even more over 100MPH but at 130-140 it fees pretty smooth .. but that could also be cuz im holdin on for dear life and with all the adrenaline pumping I dont feel a thing ..

Skullnick

130-140mph!...the only vibration I would feel at that speed is my heart fibrillating..lol
Seriously though, at that speed even a slightly unbalanced wheel that would not shimmy at 75mph would feel like a flat tire at 130mph. You are right though about changing the least expensive parts first, but in a Merc it doesn't take very long to run out of inexpensive parts.

Chappy

Have you checked your lower control arms bushings? Mine were shot on my CLK55 after just 25-30K miles.

Schweinhund

Get it on a lift and rotate the axles and driveshaft. Check for out-of-round runout on them with a mic.

Joshua

Hi, Newbie to the forum. I have exactly the same low 'drone' vibration on my 2007 E350. The effect is similar to the droning / buffeting uncomfortable effect of driving with just one rear window open. It gives me a headache ...literally.

I have replaced the set of tires with Continental Comfort Contact 1s. Al wheels balanced and aligned. The Vibration starts at 70 kph and continues regardless of speed (tried up to 120 kph). I am starting to get really concerned about the driveline / drive shaft. I have also at great expense changed the two engine mounts, the transmission mount (which has made the car really smooth at idle that you can barely hear the engine) but as soon as I get up t0 70 kph the vibration low drone starts. I can feel it in the centre console, seat and not so much in the steering wheel.

Just in case I intend to have the wheels road force balanced. But after reading this thread feel pretty depressed that I have a major expense as a result of the drive shaft possible problem. Any thoughts, assurances from anyone ? Has this problem been solved ? Thanks. Much appreciated.

Skullnick

[quote=Joshua;4573250]The effect is similar to the droning / buffeting uncomfortable effect of driving with just one rear window open. It gives me a headache ...literally.quote]

Hi Joshua,
What gives me a headache about this vibration is the fact I can't get my head around the idea on how many people with Mercs have this issue... and yours is not even that old.

I have been closely following my vibration for about two years and although I have been throwing money at it consistently trying to resolve this issue my indie mechanic thinks I should stop wasting money and wait until it gets much worse in order to really pin point the cause... like I said, it's going on two years now.

Amongst all the parts I already mentioned in my post that were replaced I will soon be replacing my rear tranny mount, flex disks, hanger bearing and rear suspension... but first I got to payoff the major body work my w210 just went through due to the inferior metal Mercedes used in early 2K models

Thx,

Bk1

Had this same problem with my g35 changed the rotors and pads. They weren't squeaky or making any noise to let me now they were worn. no more vibration after I changed the rotors and pads .... Check them out

nicobaires

I changed rotors and pads, same vibration

Schweinhund

FYI for those of you having the vibration below 60, you should fully and closely examine your suspension components and bushings.

tsquare

Their was a technical bulletin that came out concerning the exhaust system, creating a vibration in the RPM ranges of 1000 to 2000. I am starting to think that this vibration issue may be related to the exhaust system, why - becasue some of the posts say that the vibration becomes more noticable after the car has been driven for some time, as the heat increases is my guess.

The Bulletin is actually quite lengthy and goes into great detail in checking if the heat shields are loose (some of these are located by the drive shaft tunnel, mid car), it also discusses a replacement part that is rubber that helps support and dampen the exhaust pipe towards the front / middle of the car. It even recommends loosening the entire exhaust system from the manifold bolts on the motor to the brackets holding the tips of the exhaust pipe and re-tightening the entire system in the specific order starting at the exhaust manifold and working your way back to make certain there is no unwanted tension in the exhaust system. Below is the short introduction to this service bulletin. By the way this is the only Technical Bulletin I have seen concerning a vibration in the location of the drive train for these cars.

Maybe some one can shed some light if this could be a possible source of the vibration

This is the Bulletin I am referring to:

Date: February 2004
Order No.: S-B-49.10/08
Supersedes:
Group: 49
SUBJECT:
MODELS 129, 170, 202, 203, 208, 209, 210, 211, 215, 220, 230, 163, WITH ENGINES 104, 111, 112, 113, 119, 137, 271, 275, NOISES IN THE EXHAUST SYSTEM

This Service information contains the following guidelines and tips which are intended to help with the cause of noises within the exhaust system.
The suggested work steps and the procedure are intended to provide assistance in the event of noises in the exhaust system which may not be immediately and conclusively definable.
NOTE :As a result of the above, please replace only the part requiring replacement as determined by the procedure as indicated within this Service Information.

There are possible causes for the noises within the exhaust system, these include:
^Shields loose on vehicle underbody.^Heat shields loose on front and rear mufflers.^Exhaust system which is under tension.^Monolith in the catalytic converter is loose.

Schweinhund

For vibration that can be heard and felt in the car, the exhaust system maybe, the shields, no- they are not heavy enough. The mufflers/resonators, cats are heavy enough to cause a vibration that can be felt but I would guess this is not the case. If suspected, adding a temporary additional restraint should fix the problem and pinpoint the exhaust (or excuse it).

nicobaires

Well, i jinxed myself. Yesterday I posted that i thought the vibration subdued due to installing new front springs butttttttt this morning on my way to work it happened again. What happened was the drastic rear wheel vibration/lock unlock thing.

I think I narrowed it down to the rear right wheel. I was cruising about 30mph and I started hearing the "noise" then it got worse so i pulled over and inspected. All seemed normal. The symtoms are like if you put a rock in the wheel and you turn the wheel. the rock will slide up to a point where it tumbles down. Thats the best description i can give. It felt like the rear tire was locking itself up but it didn't affcet speed or brakes or anything. It's like a clunking with no rhyme or reason.

What's going through my head is either the rear wheel bearing is going and the little ball berarings are off causing them to grind or something or the rear axle joints? are going bad? Whatever makes that rear wheel turn is what's causing it.

In my old BMW 635csi I rebuilt the half shafts due to torn rubber boots which helped a vibration I had. Does this car have similar axles? If I remeber correclty I think we have rear axles.

Also when i pulled over to inspect and got back on the road, the problem went away and didn';t come back. I reached work and here i am, which also makes me wonder if it has something to due with the traction control system. i did turn the car off when i pulled over. Maybe the system reset itself? Because if it was something mechanical it would have continued to keep doing it when I pulled away.

So, thats that.

Any thoughts?

mfletch69

my two cents...

Unless you have a brand new set of Michelin Pilot Sports A/S on your car, do not rule out tires for any vibration. I have been through this with many cars - most recently a Cadillac STS which I put "other" tires on trying to save a few bucks and never could get rid of a pesky vibration. Upgraded to the Michelins and poof....smooth. I think some cars are just sensitive to the tires more than other and it seems to be amplified in performance cars.

Hakem's Razor - the most obvious answer is usually the correct one.