Looking into suspension upgrades for my 300Dt

[EdmondsAve]

Since you fine fellows here at the shop have helped me to get my 85 300D in such good running condition, and despite a couple of dates at the emergency room with the liquid stitches, I have decided to keep the old benz (I was about to trade it in on a focus, or just drive it until my camaro was restored because it was turning into a real piece of ****) and restore it as best I can, although with many upgrades and improvements. I dont really give a damn about keeping the car all original, because its never going to be Barrett-Jackson material anyways. So my plans have begun on metamorphosing the old eyesore into somethng unique yet classy, with my own personal flair. This may have been some old mans car (previous owner was a US Senator from Virginia ) in the past, but im 24 years old, and I love this old turd, too much to let it remain a relic.

I plan to have the car repainted (I am, however, adamant that the paint be the original color, but with perhaps some pearl additives and a few extra coats of clear), change the crappy US headlights to the clear, more prestigious euro style, replace all of the guages with a custom bezel of sheetmetal (hopefully white-faced sporty guages), newer 16 or 17 inch mercedes wheels with much wider tires than the bicycle tires that are standard for these models, a fair amount of window tint, perhaps a custom exhaust header, and most importantly to me, upgraded suspension. The old **** is covered in oil and grime, is worn the hell out anyways, and just isnt enough for me...

Anyone know of any kits or maybe a company (hotchkis, moog, bilstein, whoever) that offers suspension upgrades, i.e. wider sway bars, better control arms, some really good bushings, lowering springs (not much, just an inch or two) etc. I want to get rid of that nasty body roll and stiff rearend that wants to fishtail, and have a nice wide stance. It may not be a hotrod (yet), but I want it to drive like a sportier car. I appreciate any help

Oh and thanks again to everyone who even replies to a question with even the smallest opinion. It really helps. Now my car runs terrific, and I'll probably keep it forever, granted I can do the things I want to do.

[Ara T.]

Group Purchase of Vogtland Springs, W123........NEED INTERESTED MEMBERS!!! Group buy on lowering springs. Post in there and make sure whoever is running it knows you're interested. Other than that, best thing you can do is renew all your rubber bushings, maybe get some decent speed rated tires. Get some HD bilsteins since you don't care much about ride quality.

Not much aftermarket support for these cars, just not much interest.

[t walgamuth]

i have h and r lowering springs on my 280e. they were supposed to lower it 1" i believe. the ride is a lot harsher. since i am autocrossing the car it is fine but if it were a street only car i might not like it. if going this way i would recommend the thicker spring pads as a compliment to the springs.

tom w

I don't think you are going to find many suspension upgrades for this car, other than HD shocks. Your tire/wheel size will be limited by clearance issues. IMHO, oversize wheels look pretty silly on these cars anyway.

You may want to rethink this plan, you're probably talking about spending around $10K for very modest performance improvements. It will also be very hard to sell this car with these "modifications." You may want to find a more appropriate car to start with.