MY shocks make a clunk sound and the body has really bad sway around corners, my tentative ideas for january are four HD shocks, but i might take some advice and see what else is more crucial.

Whats my best bet for shocks?

Are you sure it's the shocks making the clunk? Worn guide rod mounts will make a clunk as you slow to a stop.

Even with stiff shocks these cars roll. You're going to need an AMG suspension setup if you want it to corner like a BMW. Get the straight ahead ride quality you like, handling will be surprisingly good for a car that size and weight with a restored suspension, but it will roll more than you expect if you're used to other cars. Even a Camry doesn't roll like a 126.

There are a range of shock options but I'd stick with Bilstein comfort or HD.

Sixto
87 300D

Moog Upper control arms with ball joints are about $70
Set of four shocks was $280 -- $69 for the fronts each

Lower Ball joints 16 each

Tie rod assembly(left and right tie rod ends)$57

Center link $65

Steering damper $16

Guide rod mounts (2) $80.00

Total $528.00

Various bushings ran about $20

I also did front wheel bearings for $40 each and the center bearing was $8.00

__________________
"I have no convictions ... I blow with the wind, and the prevailing wind happens to be from Vichy"

Current
Monika '74 450 SL
BrownHilda '79 280SL
FoxyCleopatra '99 Chevy Suburban
Scarlett 2014 Jeep Cherokee
Krystal 2004 Volvo S60
Gone
'74 Jeep CJ5
'97 Jeep ZJ Laredo
Rudolf ‘86 300SDL
Bruno '81 300SD
Fritzi '84 BMW
'92 Subaru
'96 Impala SS
'71 Buick GS conv
'67 GTO conv
'63 Corvair conv
'57 Nomad

is it tough to put in four new shocks or can it be a single day project?

would four new shocks make the car ride nicer? I feel mine are gone, when i go over a speed bumb they make a clunk,

however when i slow down from a speed such as 50-mph to a stop while slowing i feel and hear the same clunk.

I would like to help my ride and handling but also try and hit the most damaged spot first with my repairs.

Might it be a good idea to put four shocks in myself, then go to a trusted mechanic and see what he can do for repairs for a pre determined amount of money at a later date?

The clunk over the speed bump is probably your upper ball joints or guide rod mounts. If its in the rear it might be the sway bar links.

Since your money is very limited you need to figure out exactly what the issue is before throwing money at it. You really need a G note to make the suspension right. You probably need shocks, but you might need ball joints more. Prioritize and fix as you have the money.

__________________
2016 Corvette Stingray 2LT
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

I would start with shocks. Once those are in, you can judge what else should be done.Get the car on a lift and look at the bushings. My guide rod ends were torn and one of the ball joints was clicking on each side Left upper right lower. I replaced all of them so that I could zero time them. I also had a wheel bearing noise so I replaced them. The car had almost 300K on it so all these were overdue. If you take the steering damper out and it compresses with no effort it needs to be replaced. I just did it because I needed the center link it was attached to. I did the tie rod ends because they had to come out with the center link.

__________________
"I have no convictions ... I blow with the wind, and the prevailing wind happens to be from Vichy"

Current
Monika '74 450 SL
BrownHilda '79 280SL
FoxyCleopatra '99 Chevy Suburban
Scarlett 2014 Jeep Cherokee
Krystal 2004 Volvo S60
Gone
'74 Jeep CJ5
'97 Jeep ZJ Laredo
Rudolf ‘86 300SDL
Bruno '81 300SD
Fritzi '84 BMW
'92 Subaru
'96 Impala SS
'71 Buick GS conv
'67 GTO conv
'63 Corvair conv
'57 Nomad

Just wanted to clarify this in case this thread gets looked up by somebody who's easily confused in the future... I know you're simply proposing a comparable width increase in the proper size, but I feel obliged to point out that to the best of my knowledge, every unmodified SDL uses 15" tires instead of 14". Default size on the thing is 205/65/R15 IIRC.

__________________


~Michael S.~
Past cars:

1986 300SDL
1987 300SDL
1982 240D
1982 300SD


Current:

1987 300SDL

My SDL was happy with 225/60-15s. Speeo was mathematically a half percent slow.

Sixto
87 300D

i have done the front end and rear end of and '86 190 E. if the parts fit right. you should get it done fairly quickly, considering you have access to a lift and all the cool tools that come with a stock car garage plus and experienced father. but the cost of the parts is something i cannot help you with.

__________________
Current
2006 E320 CDI, 57K bought at 67K "Liesl"
1986 190E 2.3-16, 198K bought at 56K "Brigitta"
1987 300TD (Chuggin Along), 292K "Friedrich"
1995 E320 Wagon, 200K "Louisa"

Past
1987 300SDL, (sold) 125K, bought for 1$ "Kurt"

The upper arms with ball joints cannot be purchased for $35.00 each unless you're getting some type of clearance deal.

I'd also be suspicious of any $40. guide rod mount.

There are certainly cheap parts to be found........you usually get what you pay for. For most of the parts, I like OE or Lemforder.

[QUOTE=ggspeed;2041340]is it tough to put in four new shocks or can it be a single day project?

would four new shocks make the car ride nicer? I feel mine are gone, when i go over a speed bumb they make a clunk,

however when i slow down from a speed such as 50-mph to a stop while slowing i feel and hear the same clunk.

Shocks are fairly straight forward. You will need a 12pt socket for the bottom mount of the front shocks, IIRC 12mm. The rears will require removal of the seat. There are two clips along the front edge of the bottom portion. Then the back is held by bolts at the bottom and lifts out.

However, I'm betting the clunk is worn guide rod mounts. You will especially feel it near your feet as this is where they are located. I replaced mine by placing the car on ramps, using a come-along to hold in place from front to rear and unbolting the carrier assembly. When it dropped down, the guide rod mount is easily removable from the rear, being held by 4 hex-drive bolts. (A front end shop I took mine to originally said they were the most common wear item due to rearward force and their position causes corrosion to become trapped there.) If you do a search for "guide rod mounts", I'm sure you will see some photos of their degradation and good info on replacement. Be sure to count the visible threads on the guide rod in order to have a reasonable partial alignment on reassembly. Their replacement isn't really difficult.

__________________
Sam

84 300SD 350K+ miles ( Blue Belle )

Yah that guide rod mount description is almost too close for comfort...

were the guide rod mounts difficult to replace?

what would the cost be for replacing them...? do it myself or just a shop?

Guide Rods are more a PIA DIY than anything else. What makes me believe yours may be bit more of a task is the car resides in the rustbelt where every bolt that needs to be removed is a nighmare.

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BENZ THERE DONE THAThttp://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/...c/progress.gif
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00 E420
98 E300 DT
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97 S500
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86 Holden Jackaroo Turbo D
86 300SDL
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what would be an estimated repair to get them done at a shop?

how long should it take, and what is reasonable to pay for a part they often don't let you bring your own parts around connecticut.

The complication with taking it to a shop is they'll want to do it their way vs do only what you ask them to do. You might only want them to replace the guide rod mounts but they'll want to replace as well the bracket bushings and end bushings under the lower spring perches to ensure you don't come back saying something's still loose or making noise. And they'll have a good point. And you'll need an alignment.

In a rust-free car I can replace just the mounts in about 4 hours. It's one of those jobs that requires you to turn a wrench 5-10 degrees at a time million times. Pulling the springs and LCAs would probably add all of an hour to the overall time and you won't be in so much pain when you're done.

Sixto
87 300D