yes, that's it.

__________________
'82 300SD - 361K mi - "Blue"

"Good judgement comes from experience. Experience comes from bad judgement."

listen, look, .........and duck.

OK. Thanks for the clarification.

So, it seems to me that if you have negative camber (tops of wheels closer together) then you need a longer total length of the spring/pad assembly. And since you're already at pad #3 and still have some negative camber, maybe the #4 pad won't be enough.

Jeepers, it looks like you might need some longer springs.

__________________
Never a dull moment at Berry Hill Farm.

The question is why?

These are brand new stock springs with the proper part number. These are the longest springs that are made for any W126.

I agree that the #4 pad won't be enough.

Sidebar question: Have you replaced the rear sub-frame support?

__________________
Never a dull moment at Berry Hill Farm.

I have. I did this when I did subframe bushings.

I spoke with my favorite Indy down in North Carolina.

It was a 25 minute discussion (tells you the type of fellow he is).

Apparently, he has faced a similar problem with such vehicles at one time in the past. Rear springs did not fully lift the back end of the SEL and they resorted to cutting the front springs to lower the vehicle by one inch.

He did confirm that Meyle is the OEM spring manufacturer.

He also promised to look up the specs for the height of the body and the rear camber.

I'll wait for those prior to continuing.

If anyone else has them for the SDL (or SEL, presumably), I'd sure appreciate it.

Has anyone seriously considered making moulds and pouring your own Uerathene spring pads to make up for the space you need?

__________________
Proud owner of ....
1971 280SE W108
1979 300SD W116
1983 300D W123
1975 Ironhead Sportster chopper
1987 GMC 3/4 ton 4X4 Diesel
1989 Honda Civic (Heavily modified)
---------------------
Section 609 MVAC Certified
---------------------
"He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you." - Friedrich Nietzsche

Cutting the fronts won't help the rear camber issue. I also think the rear springs are too short. You'll hate this but, I think you need to pull them back out, measure and compare the length to spec. A spring shop may be able to lengthen them if they are too short.

FWIW, in another life I restored a TR-6. After reassembling that POS, I discovered that (among other things) there was a 3/4" difference in the spring perch height between the '70 model frame that I used to replace the mangled original '73 model frame. That car always squatted after I got it on the road but, it handled like it was on rails.

I'm citing this because it makes me wonder if there's a difference in spring perch location (height) on some W126s.

__________________
Never a dull moment at Berry Hill Farm.

I think that is a bit premature.

You can't do it for the upper spring purchase because the rubber pad needs to sit in the steel purchase and the factory pad with the maximum thickness pretty well uses it all up.

It would be possible for the lower purchase, but, I think I would prefer to get a stiffer spring, if the factory springs prove to be inadequate.

BTDT.

I measured the new springs prior to installation. They are within 1 mm. of the spec. (with my crude tape measure as the equipment).

Spec is 376.5 mm. That is the longest spring made for a W126.

.........next.........

Brian,
The 3-bump pad is 19mm right? What's the thickness of the 4-bump pad?

ed: the W123 book doesn't show a 4-bump pad. the 3-bump, 19mm pad is the thickest one. The 126 is probably the same.


IMHO, those springs are either too short or, have too soft a rate.

__________________
Never a dull moment at Berry Hill Farm.

The manual shows the thickest pad at 19 mm on the rear.

The rate is definitely too soft. The situation seems to be that the wire diameter might not be to spec. Doesn't seem to be anything else.

I've got some new info.

Coil spring specialties, St. Mary's, KS can manufacture the spring per the original M/B specification and can test the spring to be sure it meets the spec.

The cost is $168.00 for the pair. This is about 1/2 the dealer price.

Additionally, I'm going to send one of the old springs down to them for testing. The old spring provides the exact same ride height as the brand new Meyle spring. So, we may get some info regarding the spring rate of the old spring and compare this to the new spring.

Then, I'll probably add 1/2" to the springs that I have them make. Worst case scenario: The vehicle sits 1/2" too high and I go to thinner rubber pads.

I have determined that the SDL currently uses the 19 mm spring pads. This is the thickest pad available for the rear. There is nothing above 19 mm.

In discussions with various folks in the industry, springs are apparently just like the injector nozzles. Made for pennies in a third world country using steel with questionable properties. No testing is done, of course.

So, why am I not surprised that the spring won't hold up the vehicle.

i dont think the springs in benzes are poor quality. one seldom sees sagging benzes excepting those with malfunctioning adjustable spring systems.

__________________
[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

Yeah I know this is hokey... butttttt. wouldn't it be a cheaper fix to install air bags inside the springs. Use the old springs and send back the new ones and you might even end up with change in your pocket.

__________________
"Know other lessons I need to learn? TELL me. Tired of learning'em the hard way".

Glow Plug Wait: [i} Time of silence in homage Rudolph Diesel. Longer you own a diesel. more honor you give". [/i]

Life; SNAFU Situation Normal All Fouled Up, & FUBAR: Fouled Up Beyond All Repair

-Now: Snafued Jeep TJ w/OM617 2Be daily driver & building SS M1079 w/Ambo boxed /live in Adv. Truck, Diesel KLR conversion
-Sold 62 UNIMOG Camper w/617 Turbo, 85 300SD