Hi Troy,


It sounds like you have a few issues going on all at once, all of which are common to these cars.

First, your wheel vibration is being caused by one or more of the following things; warped brake rotors, or more likely, a worn idler arm bushing and steering damper.

The popping noises you are hearing when braking are probably the guide rod mounts.

What is happening is you've got a whole bunch of slop in your idler arm. Things go okay until you hit brakes or a bump at which point you get a parasitic oscillation. Basically, your whole steering system is shaking back and forth. This is typical of W126 front ends when you have worn components. At a minimum you are going to need a new idler arm bushing and steering damper, and you may also need some lower ball joints.

Take it to a good suspension shop or MB mechanic and have the whole front end gone over. The state it's in now is NOT SAFE. Also, this condition causes premature wear of the steering gear (not cheap). Get it looked at soon. That vibration can become so bad you'll think you are about to lose control of the car completely. Scary stuff when it gets bad.


-tp