Most rubber parts in the front end are shot. - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

fender_bender · #1 03-26-2013, 09:36 AM

Do you ever want to go find the PO of your car and punch them in the face? I put the car on ramps Saturday to do a trans fluid and filter change. While the trans pan and TC were draining I was looking at other parts of the car. I discovered that most of the bushings and what not are in pretty bad shape in the front end. I don't think the PO did ANYTHING to this car. The trans fluid was low when I bought it so I added some to get me by until I could drain and change filter. The fluid coming out was brown and opaque. Oil leaks abound from the oil pan and other places. The alignment was way out. Who knows what else is needing attention. I want to do a rear diff drain and refill if the rest of the fluids are so bad. The vacuum system was a mess (finally got it under control).

my question is should I make it a priority to dig in to the front end steering and suspension? Here is a pic of what i'm seeing. This is the worst one, but a lot of the others have cracks and tears in the rubber. Is this hard to replace since it is the one that the front coil spring rests on?

Everybodyghost · #2 03-26-2013, 09:55 AM

I guess it would really depend on your plans for the car. I had an old Datsun that was missing half the bushing in the steering system, they just rotted and fell away with time. I drove it for a year like that and it served its purpose, you know?

If it's just a daily beater, replace anything dangerous, keep an eye on the marginal ones, and drive it.

charmalu · #3 03-26-2013, 10:59 AM

This is either your 80 or 85 300D? the suspention parts are the same.

Well these are old cars, and as such the majority of the population treat all old cars the same, as an old beater, and drive them till they quit, or put in just enough replacements parts and fluids to keep them going.

If someone pays $800 + for a old car that need a ton of work and $ dumped into it and it exceeds what they paid for it, there is no way it is going to happen, most folks look at what they can get when it is sold, and will be far less than what was invested. no old car is an investment, or new car for that matter.

I can understand your frustration of all the defered maintenance and neglect of the past PO`s, but the full burden now is the fault of the person that looks back at you ea morning in the mirror. this is the person that made the decision to take on the care and feeding of this new baby.

How much does he want to pour into this care and feeding, and what condition is the baby in?
If you have a passion for these ol W123`s, then don`t look back and think about the cost and enjoy the journey.

There is a ton of front rebuild threads etc... on the forum. here is a few from the DIY section.
PeachPartsWiki: Front End Suspension Rebuild

PeachPartsWiki: Steering Rebuild

PeachPartsWiki: Upper Ball Joint Replacement

PeachPartsWiki: Front Shock Replacement

Steering:

Charlie

Air&Road · #4 03-26-2013, 11:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fender_bender

Do you ever want to go find the PO of your car and punch them in the face? I put the car on ramps Saturday to do a trans fluid and filter change. While the trans pan and TC were draining I was looking at other parts of the car. I discovered that most of the bushings and what not are in pretty bad shape in the front end. I don't think the PO did ANYTHING to this car. The trans fluid was low when I bought it so I added some to get me by until I could drain and change filter. The fluid coming out was brown and opaque. Oil leaks abound from the oil pan and other places. The alignment was way out. Who knows what else is needing attention. I want to do a rear diff drain and refill if the rest of the fluids are so bad. The vacuum system was a mess (finally got it under control).

my question is should I make it a priority to dig in to the front end steering and suspension? Here is a pic of what i'm seeing. This is the worst one, but a lot of the others have cracks and tears in the rubber. Is this hard to replace since it is the one that the front coil spring rests on?

fender,

Have you pried around on things with a pry bar to see if they are tight? Not often, but sometimes a joint will look bad, but still be tight.

I would suggest that you assess the situation by getting the car safely in the air and use a pry bar for the four P's; Push, Pull, Pry and Prod on all the joints and determine where the slack is and replace only the loose parts at first. If you're on a budget and have to do it a little at a time, tighten the steering linkage to begin with and then move on to the suspension joints.

Don't forget to shake the front wheels while they are off the ground and make sure that the wheel bearings are tight.

Hope this helps.

whunter · #5 03-27-2013, 03:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fender_bender

Do you ever want to go find the PO of your car and punch them in the face? I put the car on ramps Saturday to do a trans fluid and filter change. While the trans pan and TC were draining I was looking at other parts of the car. I discovered that most of the bushings and what not are in pretty bad shape in the front end. I don't think the PO did ANYTHING to this car. The trans fluid was low when I bought it so I added some to get me by until I could drain and change filter. The fluid coming out was brown and opaque. Oil leaks abound from the oil pan and other places. The alignment was way out. Who knows what else is needing attention. I want to do a rear diff drain and refill if the rest of the fluids are so bad. The vacuum system was a mess (finally got it under control).

my question is should I make it a priority to dig in to the front end steering and suspension? Here is a pic of what i'm seeing. This is the worst one, but a lot of the others have cracks and tears in the rubber. Is this hard to replace since it is the one that the front coil spring rests on?

Feel free to call me to discuss your concerns and strategy.

.

fender_bender · #6 03-27-2013, 09:05 AM

Thanks for the replies guys. While I was changing the oil in the rear diff yesterday I saw that my rear flex disc was cracking on both sides so I'll probably hit that first before the front end. Not really wanting my drive shaft going all kinds of wobbly while driving down the road!

vstech · #7 03-27-2013, 11:05 AM

good call.

Diesel911 · #8 03-27-2013, 11:17 AM

When My Lower Control Arm Bushings were Shot it caused the Tires to wear severly in only 3 Days.

It is a lot of work but the Upper and Lower Control Arm Bushings are realitively inexpensive compared to some of the other Parts on the Car.

vstech · #9 03-27-2013, 12:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by fender_bender

my question is should I make it a priority to dig in to the front end steering and suspension? Here is a pic of what i'm seeing. This is the worst one, but a lot of the others have cracks and tears in the rubber. Is this hard to replace since it is the one that the front coil spring rests on?

do you have any better pics of the parts? that's pretty small to see much...

vstech · #10 03-27-2013, 12:15 PM

Looking at the larger version of your pic... you need a Lower control arm NOW!!!

fender_bender · #11 03-27-2013, 02:34 PM

so That means I need a coil spring compressor...Those be $$$$.

The general thought is that the cheap parts store compressors are dangerous? They slip off and kill people or something?

I looked at the procedures for doing some of the other front end work. I'll have to look for this and see what is the up.

That's probably the original control arm or at least very old. I have the service records from 1992 to 2006 and the left tie rod was replaced and I think something else on the front end and that's about it. The left tie rod is the best looking part down there replaced in '06. Most of the rear end was replaced in '06 as well praise the Lord. The PO from '07 to 2012 before I got it is the one who didn't do anything.

The odometer was broke the whole time between '07 and '12 so I have no idea how many real miles are on this car. When I fixed it I ran it forward to the amount of miles I put on it since I've owned it. I found it at a Ford dealer down in TN where the car spent most of it's life. I brought it up to Rust Virginia, I mean, West Virginia.

Air&Road · #12 03-27-2013, 02:39 PM

It's great that you have records, but that doesn't tell you the condition of things at this point in time.

As vs pointed out, the enlarged picture indicates some immediate need. You need to raise the car and pry around everywhere with a crow bar and evaluate. Get everything tightened up and you will think you are driving a new car by comparison.

Best of luck with it.

fender_bender · #13 03-27-2013, 08:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Air&Road

It's great that you have records, but that doesn't tell you the condition of things at this point in time.

Which is why I'm checking everything, BUT I am starting with things that have never been replaced or even looked at for a long time according to the records

. I checked the rear end and everything looked good so I looked through my records and saw everything was replaced in '06. Which makes me happy.

I'm trying to set priorities on what to replace as the money comes in.

I am a newbie, but dang...

bamba · #14 03-27-2013, 09:28 PM

I just did a front end rebuild not too long ago. I think it's kind of an all-or-nothing job. It's a system where the weak point will always be exposed. You COULD just replace LCA bushings... but then what about (for example) the guide rod mounts? They seem a little worn. And those ball joints don't have much life left either... etc. etc. You can replace one part, but the next weakest link in the chain will then wear faster, and won't last as long.

That said, a complete front end rebuild isn't cheap. Plan on spending $500+ just in parts.

If it's not worth the money, you could wait. But check tire wear. I made the mistake of putting a new set of Michelin's onto a worn front end. The uneven wear was so awful, and the outer edges were going bald after 10k miles. So it's a catch-22.

Diesel911 · #15 03-27-2013, 09:30 PM

When I removed My Lower control Arms I found that My Lower Control Arams were extremely badly Rusted. When the Rust was removed the bore was too enlarged.

You don't know what is under there until you see it.

http://i242.photobucket.com/albums/ff279/Diesel911/zMVC-330F.jpg

http://i242.photobucket.com/albums/ff279/Diesel911/zMVC-334F.jpg