THREE'S A CHARM

This AM, I went ahead and swapped out the springs for a third time, and success. I got the exact look I wanted. The springs come from http://slsconversion.com/How_To_Install.html

The SLS wagon flavor are a hair over 14" in height. I cut one entire coil, and ended up with 12". The 14" with 19mm pads was way too high. The 14" with 9.5 pads were still way too high. The 12" with 19mm pads were too low IMO.
So, I ended up getting the same 18mm springs from ProPigSkins (ATTN: Erik) at 13+" I want to say 13 1/4"-ish. I ended up using new OEM MB 9.5mm pads. My car now sits around 30mm higher in the rear which is just about perfect for my tastes.

I drove the car right afterwards. I took some really sharp corners, going uphill and downhill in the cornering and was very aggressive and I can say those springs are "WOW". Very very tight steering, no splashy rear end, and an overall 2 thumbs up for the 18mm springs.

Word of caution. The 12" spring height with 19mm pads is barely high enough to create tension in the rear spring pocket; however, once you install the shocks and put "some" weight on it, they ride just fine, just too low for me. I still got an occasional twang when driving aggressively, BUT the twangs were going away since I am thinking those springs finally seated. So, if you want your car to sit just a tiny tiny amount lower, then 12" (or one coil) is the lowest height IMO.

So, for a rear suspension upgrade, this is best way to go until I tinker with the 6.9 M100 W116 hydropnuematic four corners system down the road. However, for an hour or two job ... YOU CANNOT BEAT THIS ONE ! Even tinkering with it 3 times, it was well worth it. I also installed new Bilsteins. A thanks to Patrick (MB Beige) for his well documented spring install.

My car was NOT originally equiped with SLS. Rather, stock sedan with stock rear springs, e.g., 15.9mm. These are an upgrade and originally marketed for wagons, however, I think they should be also sold for our sedans.

Erik at the company provides 100% customer service. You cannot beat his attentiveness and concern with the hobby.

Attached Thumbnails

       

Finally got my windshield fixed from last July's incident on I-20 Eastbound, headed towards Florence, S.C. Very happy with the work. Real pro's -- took about one hour. My insurance company of 28 or so years ... not so happy with them.

Got a real MB Dealer gasket. Also, super happy about the condition of the inner frame. Looks like Jay Bob put down a nice coat of POR-15.

Attached Thumbnails

 

The birds in your area have some unusual droppings?

__________________
You can't always get what you want, but if you try sometime you just might find you get what you need.

LOL ... green "frog" tape for the hail damage. My cars got hammered. I had to count the dings since the heavier gauge sheet metal in the panels held up a little better than my wife's 2011 Camry, so the dings were not as immediately noticible. My front clip was pristine until the hail storm ...My roof and trunk lid were almost pristine.

Ohhh, that's sickening. Is USAA not treating you well?

__________________
"Senior Luna, your sense of humor is still loco... but we love it, anyway." -rickymay ____ "Your sense of humor is still loco... " -MBeige ____ "Señor Luna, your sense of humor is quite järjetön" -Delibes

1982 300SD -- 211k, Texas car, tranny issues ____ 1979 240D 4-speed 234k -- turbo and tuned IP, third world taxi hot rod

2 Samuel 12:13: "David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” And Nathan said to David, “The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die."

Nope ... no "loyalty", even after 28-ish years. Joined USAA around 1986. Never a claim until 2010. They lowballed my first MB, a 1985 300D. I should have seen the writing on the wall then. Then, my daughter totaled her car (really my car) a few months ago and that was a mini-battle. Now, the hail storm of 2014 and I anticipate all of their antics. Even a windshield was high drama. USAA got sued a bunch in South Carolina over their efforts at price fixing windshield repair and they made it a point to make this process sort of miserable. And yes, USAA lost their lawsuits in S.C.

Overall, I do not trust USAA and that is a sickening feeling to not trust your insurance company.

Uhh ohh, I was planning on switching to my wife's USAA plan and getting full coverage. I may have to re-evaluate that move.

I currently have full coverage, with collision and comprehensive on my MB with $0 deductible. I can tell you that USAA has completely lost my trust and my wife's trust.

USAA does a GREAT job selling stuff. One cannot beat their customer service but that is ONLY when they are making money. When you need USAA for a claim, that is, you want to use your insurance, forget it. They suck. I can understand if I was a new customer or a frequent flyer claim person, but 24-5 years and no claims, and a very suspect totaling of a MB in 2010, and then low ball valuations, and all the magic from that point foward. Ultimately, it's my fault for not finding a new insurance company sooner.

Overall, as I said, I have zero trust in USAA.

Nope, that was done before my time. I did have the windshield replaced while it was in my care by Safelite on I-20 at Monticello. But I could only see from a distance through the observation window into the shop so I could not see the condition of the frame. They did not want to do the windshield in the field due to it needing to be roped in.

Only rust repairs I made were to the left rear foot well, the seam started to open up so I ground it out and filled it with fiber glass mesh and resin. I was starting to get serious about fixing the rest of it before my son changed my mind for me.

__________________
The OM 642/722.9 powered family
Still going strong
2014 ML350 Bluetec (wife's DD)
2013 E350 Bluetec (my DD)

both my kids cars went to junkyard in 2023
2008 ML320 CDI (Older son’s DD) fatal transmission failure, water soaked/fried rear SAM, numerous other issues, just too far gone to save (165k miles)
2008 E320 Bluetec (Younger son's DD) injector failed open and diluted oil with diesel, spun main bearings (240k miles)

1998 E300DT sold to TimFreeh
1987 300TD sold to vstech

Had about 30 minutes time in the AM before the sun really heated things up in sunny S.C., so I started the sound deadening process. Added a few CLD tiles. No more than 25% coverage is needed per the seller. I think I will add some small slivers in each of the upper corners to make sure I hit 25%. On the prowel for some Mass Loaded Vinyl (MLV) and CCF (Closed Cell Foam). I do need to get the package shelf done ASAP as well as where as the back seat goes since I should be installing the re-skinned back seats pretty soon. Too hot during the day, traveling, family, and work in and out of the house sucks up most of the time. Who would thought a one day project would take months ... lol

Here's the odd part. Drove it around a little and they seem to work. The rattily resonance is really not as noticable. With the MLV and CCF as a de-coupler, I won't know what to think with a super quiet diesel ... It's actually pretty quiet now with the factory stuff, which appears to be pretty lame. So, next week or the following week I will try out a decible meter to see what I really have.

Attached Thumbnails

   

Greazzer-
I bought and used MLV from Best Soundproofing Materials, Noise Control Materials and Solutions by soundproofing.org. Their prices were fair (even with shipping) and their service over the phone was good. Putting the 1# MLV in my 220d made a noticeable difference. I didn't use CCF because I have the following layers...
floor sheet metal-->OEM soundproofing and carpet --> MLV --> aftermarket carpet

I guess I am using the OEM carpet as my decoupler. Probably not ideal, but seems to help in my car and kept the budget down.

On my car at highway speeds (before the MLV), engine noise was still very noticeable even though the wind noise is high as well due to poor door seals. Now, with the MLV, the engine noise is much quieter compared to wind noise. Once I get my door seals all done, it is going to be like driving an electric car (ha!).

Good luck.

__________________
1968 220D, w115, /8, OM615, Automatic transmission.
My 1987 300TD wagon was sold and my 2003 W210 E320 wagon was totaled (sheds tear).

Since I really cannot do much car stuff recently, I got my teenage son involved. He's now starting to show an interest in cars and the ladies. I'm pretty sure they go hand-in-hand. With instructions from me, he installed the shift boot in about 45 minutes. That included removing the console, contact cement (Permatex contact cement @ $5 from Autzone) application, boot install, and then console back in car.

Here's my sexy red leather shift boot. Directions are pretty straightfoward and for real leather with a real quality appearance about the product, I am very happy. Also, it is almost an exact, precise match to my red leather interior which was a bonus. Seat covers are still pending. There are a few issues with the covers which I am trying to iron out with the manufacturer.

Here's a few snappies. Hopefully, I will have my interior completed by the end of August. My son will be learning he ropes ...lol

Here's all the contact info from Redlinegoods.

From: info@redlinegoods.com
Have a great day!
Maciek (Mike)
Goods - In Your Ride!
FB: RedlineGoods

Great product at a great price with great customer service.

Attached Thumbnails

     

Very nice looking boot!

__________________
[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.

Kudos to my son for cleaning out the garage. He drove in the Sleeper Part Deux and it's resting quietly.

Very, very odd question. Excluding the stepped hose adapters or even the SS braided stuff, does anyone know if there is a universal heater hose from some other application which would work in the MB? The manual heater control on the fire wall is 22m (7/8") and the nipple on the radiator is 3/4". I have seen some Toyotas which have these long heater hose setups, but it's a needle in the hay stack trying to find just ONE piece of hose which has 7/8" on one end and 3/4" on the other and its around 4 1/2" long. Summit makes some nice stuff, but I was just looking for the low cost, no thrills hose. I am thinking one does not exist.

Attached Thumbnails

         

Forgot to mention ... ignore the dopey cone air filter. Still pestering folks for pictures of their California set up. I think I am missing one bracket and I need to see how it connects to the inner fender. In any event, what's another 50 HP ... lol