Hi,

I've just recently put on Bilstein HDs on to my 280 SLC and the handling improvement was disturbing. One of the Monroe (!!!) shocks on the front was totally dead but the rear had the original factory Bilsteins from 1978. They were actually in OK condition when I got them off and gave thenm a test compress/expand. The most impressive thing about the handling now, is how predictable it is through hard cornering. I recently went in a Tarmac rally tour here in NZ and the shocks performed beautifully through all sorts of crazy back roads. When before the car would twitch mid-corner, now it is totally stable and confidence inducing..

I'm not sure if the HDs are that much stiffer than the original OEM shocks. Besides, running on 205/70-14 tyres, a lot of the cushioned ride comes from them anyway.

It was definately worth the upgrade on my SLC, and it was surprisingly, not even very expensive.