I've looked, don't know which I want. Bilstein's
 

I did a search for Bilstein's and saw some responses but after a couple of pages I didn't get the info I was looking for. I was looking at my shocks and saw that one of my front ones had oil seeping. At least it has oil after 200k miles.

Was looking on peach parts and saw they had 3 grades of Bilsteins. Regular, HD and Touring. I have had Bilstein's on two GM vehicles about 20 years ago, a Syclone and GTZ both had them stock from the factory. Over the years I have put other brands on vehicles and never seem to see the nice handling that I have seen with Bilstein's

Main question is which are the stiffest, and are gas charged. I went to the Bilstein site and didn't get the info.

I think touring are for a different suspension setup, I put the regular (comfort) bilstiens in. HD would be pretty rough, based on how firm the regular ones are.

I did front shocks on mine about a year ago. I'd have to look through my very thick folder of parts receipts to be completely sure, but I think I went with the Touring Bilsteins. Handling is considerably improved over the original shocks. Ride quality is firm, but not harsh, exactly where I want it and about on par with a well sorted classic 911 (and way smoother than my sport bike).

I probably will be digging through those receipts pretty soon, since the rear shocks are finally starting to go.

Looking on some parts sites....some have touring but not comfort. Are touring and comfort synonymous or are they different shocks?

Just found out that touring is new name for comfort.

About 10 percent of my normal miles are on gravel roads. I find that the car has pretty good ground clearance but seems too mushy for much of the driving I do, rural roads.

I have HD on my 84 & 85SD and like them. My other vehicles are a 00 Diesel Ram and 78 Datsun Z. I prefer stiffer suspensions & find the SD ride very comfortable.

I have a set of good front comforts that I removed from the 84 if anyone has a need. The rears were shot & I replaced all 4. Professor Google looked up the part number for the existing fronts once I had the part in-hand.

Junk... PM sent

As long as we're on the subject, I have a good pair of KYB Gas Adjust shocks I removed from the front of my 300. They actually feel firmer than the Meyle's I replaced them with.

In my opinion, there's no substitute for OEM Bilsteins, at any price. And yes, the Touring are closest to OE on our cars.

The KYB's that are on my mom's E320 wagon are crap. So were the Monroe's on my 300E before I replaced them.

Sachs/Boge are comparable quality and I have them on the front of my 300E (Billie's on the back though). I'm going to put Billie's on my mom's wagon in the next month or so.

Thanks
I am pretty well set on Bilstein's.

Just got back from a road trip that included about 70 miles of winding ridge roads and 60 miles of interstate. The rear sway bar links are still not replaced and click a lot. Hopefully next week. We get a lot of moderately rough pavement. This car needs a lot of help, which it will get.

Sach/Boge were OEM on all the cars as far as I am aware.

Bilsteins are the way to go if you're replacing. I've got all new Billstein B8's (Sport, the yellow tube ones) on my 190E and its a pretty slick ride. Granted the car is lowered...

My 300D has KYB's on front and originals on the rear. The ride is alright.. Maybe next year I'll replace the rears with some Bilstein Comforts or HDs....

I have Bilstein HD's all around on my w201 (190E) and love them to death. I had heard for a while before I bought them that they are one of the best starting points you can do to your car, to give it more of a performance feel in the corners, and they all were right, they are firm but yet still very forgiving, you will never feel like you are in a lowered out Honda or anything like that, it will still feel like a Mercedes 100%. That's one of the next things I am doing to my 87 300D.

Word of caution, if these are original to the car, and oil is leaking, you might be in for a surprise when changing them. After renting the OE spring compressor from a dealership that a buddy of mine (owns a shop and worked on 300's) borrowed, we took off the shocks and one exploded green slimy oil in our eyes and mouth and ears. It was probably the most disgusting thing that has ever happened (i'd rather have my hair soaked with gear oil/ATF or split a VW case and smell 40 year old putrefied oil hiding in bolt holes). In any case be careful, those springs are HUGE.

I went with Bilsteins, the KYB's I've had in a Porsche project-that-wouldnt-end 914 and while they're okay, they're really stiff. Kill Your Back they used to call them. It's worth the extra for Bilsteins.

It really depends on the driving you do. I installed touring shocks on the front and I like the smooth ride and the way they handle bumps, etc. I have driven on country roads and I am happy with the ride. If your shocks are worn out, you will notice a very mushy ride. The touring shocks will provide a firmer ride than worn out shocks but not as firm as HD shocks. I would use HD shocks if I wanted performance driving capabilities to reduce body roll but in a 300SD, you are not going to do much performance driving to begin with. I do not think I would enjoy riding on gravel roads with stiff shocks. I like my teeth. LOL

Spring compressor? I don't even recall jacking my car up to replace the front shocks. That goes for the bearing bracket rebuild as well. Just find an appropriate dust boot/cover because for some reason, the shocks do not come with them. That is one thing I wish I could have found in time. I may need to revisit my shocks to install the dust covers.

my car is a regular 300D, a w123 chassis. No McPherson struts, so I don't anticipate any spring compressor.

Exactly. No struts on the W126, either. Both are very similar. If you are nimble and have good arm strength, you should be able to unbolt, compress and remove the shock with the car on the ground. Same as I did. When installing the new shock, attach the correct bushings and washers in the appropriate order, shove the top of the shock into the shock tower mount, push up, align shock to the lower mount point and tap it into the correct position to start the bolts. If the clearances for the inner shock bolt are not enough to start the bolt, start the outer bolt, compress the shock, rotate the shock ccw (for driver's side), start the inner bolt, torque it, compress the shock, align it into the shock mount, torque the outer bolt. Finally, attach the upper bushings and washers before torquing down the upper rod bolt.

thanks

I am going to disagree with you on this one. The 300d factory came with front shocks pn# 1233200030 and rear shocks pn# 1233200131. Which are Bilstein Comforts or the slightly firmer Sachs/Boges.

According to Bilstein, the HD's is an aftermarket replacement for a firmer more controlled ride.

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Here's a good comparison of the two types. When it's time, I think I'll go for HD's.

Mercedes Bilstein Shock Absorbers: Understanding the difference by Kent Bergsma - YouTube

The first 4 inches or so on a bilstein are the same. HD is 2 valved and will increase in resistance as it continues to travel down. You want the HD's.

A comparable story (one that I dont let my wife ever forget) is when we bought our current mattress. I said lets get the firmer one and let it break in. She said no. After the second kid came around (alot of time in bed) she said I was right....

Agreed. I don't believe I've seen Bilsteins as original equipment on any of the Mercedes of this era. Sachs/Boge yes.

HDs.

I have them on two of my four W126s currently. The Comforts are on the front of the 560 to match the dampening of the SLS. I have not gotten around to installing HDs on the SD yet.

Also, I am curious as to what a 'rough ride' is to some people. If HDs ride rough, they need to drive a one ton truck solid front axle truck for a few days unloaded.

Shocks
 

I have the H.D.'s front + back and like them on my 85 300SD. I think the car sits up a little higher with them also which I like.

I am tied between the HD and the Comforts/Touring for my 300D. It'll be a good while before I feel like dropping cash on that cars suspension really. Its got 2 year old KYB's up front and original rears.

I have been using Sachs for a while and have found them to be very good. My SD is Bilstein HD front and Sachs comfort rear and it rides great. My bro's W123 is sachs comfort all around and rides very nice and smooth. Used sachs comfort all around on my 420 also and it drives very nice, no excessive body roll or bounce, just nice.

I have Bilstein HD shocks on my 85 300D. I love them, a bit stiff but they make the car feel much more like a suspension in a modern car.

I also have a hitch on my 85, when pulling heavy trailers the rear end feels great with the HD shocks.

My 300D still has the original Bilsteins, IIRC. Stamped on the shock housing is the MB logo too.

They came with both brands. My 300d came original with Sachs/Boges shocks. Pretty dead at 130,000 miles. Replaced them with Bil' comforts to keep the smooth ride.


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Replacing the shocks on my car has been on the to do list since owning it. Either other repairs or lack of time to research what to buy has always kept it at the bottom of the list. But thanks to this thread I've decided to order some Bilstein's for my baby.

Started at the Bilstein website to find the correct part #'s. Then off to do a bunch of price shopping. During my shopping I learned that none of the auto part sites would allow me to use a discount code on Bilstein's. However after further searches I found a coupon code good for 10% off items not eligible for a discount. Their price before discount matched the lowest price I previously found and included free shipping. The 10% savings on the 4 B8 (SP) - Sport Bilstein's covered the cost of new Front, Upper Shock and Strut Mount's.

If I can't get some slightly used ones from a salvage, I plan on getting new ones from peachtree.

Last Friday I ordered a box full of stuff from them. I verified that every thing was in stock, received the stuff today, over 2000 miles away. They had miss spelled my address but it was corrected after it was sent out to FEDEX. It was sent out the day I ordered it and it was past 3 their time. They kept me in the loop. A good company.

One thing to consider is that this appears to be the most active forum for our older cars on the internet. The money to make it happen has to come from somewhere.

I'll admit it does bounce a bit more with comforts with a heavy trailer....I experienced that when I was bringing my OM601 engine/trans home with my SD.....admittedly the roads that caused bounce were TERRIBLE (down in Ohio/Indiana)...on the highway and decent roads it was fine.