Here is how I removed the rear wheel carrier on my 1994 E320. I removed this to have the rear wheel bearing changed by a machine shop.

I. Remove Wheel - Put the car on jack stands

II. Remove the brake caliper (2x 19mm bolts) - hang the caliper from the suspension or frame (I used a coat hanger cut up)

III. On the 30mm nut that is screwed to the axle shaft there is a tab that is bent in - bend this out so that you can remove the bolt. Put the parking brake on (firmly!) - use a 30mm 12-pointed socket and an extension to loosen this bolt. The manual says the tightening torque is 200+Nm (a lot!)

I used my 1/2" ratchet and a rubber mallet as a 'manual impact wrench' - after 5 - 10 good pounds with the hammer I had it loose. Others will recommend a torch - I didn't have one so I didn't use it.

IV. Remove the allen bolt that holds the brake disc on the wheel carrier. (Don't forget to remove the parking brake). I had to hit the disc with the rubber mallet to get it off because it was rusted on. If you are blessed without rust this would probably be easier.

**Note - I was replacing my differential as well - so I left the parking brake/disc on to remove the axle bolts (10mm XZN bolts).**

V. Now you've got the disc off you can remove the parking brake assembly. This is a bunch of springs that are a bit of a pain to get off. I used a variety of flat head screw drivers and needle nose pliers to remove them.

A. See Pic #1 - #1 spring should be pushed in then turned. It has a hook on the end that catches in the wheel carrier to secure the shoe against the inside of the wheel carrier space.

B. Once the springs are removed you'll need to get the cable assembly apart - see pic #2. To aid in this give a good tug on the parking brake cable behind the wheel carrier. You'll need to open the assembly all the way by twisting it down below the metal protrusion so that you can remove the pin that holds the thing to the cable.

C. With all that stuff off remove the retaining bolt that holds the parking brake cable to the wheel carrier on the back - see pic #3. This is a 13mm bolt.

VI. With the parking brake removed you can remove the 3 allen bolts/screws that secure the dust shield. You'll need the car in neutral so that you can twist the axle/spindle to align the holes in the wheel carrier with the screws.

VII. With the wheel carrier loose you'll be able to turn it to get the caliper side lined up with other things to give you room to loosen all the suspension bolts.

VIII. Most of the suspension bolts aren't too terrible you'll need a 17, 19, and 21mm ratchet and combination wrench (sometimes you can't get the box end in all of the spaces) to loosen everything.

A. There are two tricky ones - the lower control arm bolt is the biggest and I had to use a punch (aka a 3/8ths drive extension) to pound it out all the way - even after I jacked the LCA up a bit to relieve the pressure on the bolt. (See pic #4 and 5: I labeled the order I took them off - but this isn't really important. Note that you have to rotate the dust shield.)

B. The tie-rod or control arm stabilizer on the right gave me a little trouble - loosen the nut but leave this until the last thing so that you can maneuver the wheel carrier to get it off the bolt.

IX. With once you've got all the stuff off you just need to pull the wheel carrier off of the axle splined shaft. I removed the axle earlier because I was changing my differential at the same time - so I can't comment on any procedure here. To get the axle shaft out (with the diff end removed) I had an assistant tap the spline through the carrier (again with that cheap 3/8ths drive extension)

X. With the carrier removed you've got a big hunk of machined metal. I took it to an auto-parts store with a machine shop and they pressed the old bearing out and the new one in for ~$50.

Good luck - any tips/comments from the experienced techs? Did I forget anything important?

I'm sure this isn't the most efficient procedure - it took me maybe 4 - 5 hours with reassembly, learning as I went. The parking brake reassembly was a pain getting the springs back on and in the right place (BTW I also replaced the parking brake because I originally concluded that this was the source of my rear end noise).

Notes on Rust: I used "Liquid Wrench" to soak each nut, bolt, thread - then I scraped as much rust as I could off them with a flat head screw driver (including the threads of the bolts). I repeated this process, fitting my socket or wrench each time, until I got a satisfactory tight fit on the bolt and nut. By doing this I didn't have any trouble stripping bolts and was surprised by how easily things came apart.

Attached Thumbnails

         

__________________
Daily Driver: 02 E430 4MATIC
In the family: '03 E500 // '04 ML500 // 64 220SE

Thanks for the post. Do you need to get the wheels aligned?

__________________
Prost!

Yes - espeically since I replaced the toe-link/tie rod piece (I destroyed the boot attempting to get it off).

__________________
Daily Driver: 02 E430 4MATIC
In the family: '03 E500 // '04 ML500 // 64 220SE

I sent this to webmaster for the wiki page.





Thank you, and have a great day.

__________________
ASE Master Mechanic
asemastermechanic@juno.com

Prototype R&D/testing:
Thermal & Aerodynamic System Engineering (TASE) Senior vehicle instrumentation technician.
Noise Vibration and Harshness (NVH).
Dynamometer.
Heat exchanger durability.
HV-A/C Climate Control.
Vehicle build.
Fleet Durability
Technical Quality Auditor.
Automotive Technical Writer

1985 300SD
1983 300D
1984 190D
2003 Volvo V70
2002 Honda Civic

https://www.boldegoist.com/

This DIY is now in the Wiki:

CLICK HERE

__________________
Bill Wood - Retired Webmaster
My Personal Website
1998 Mercedes E430
2010 Toyota Sequoia
My Photo Albums

Great article ... I will attempt bearing replacement on my CLK 430 (w208) which appears to have a similar rear axle, and your article will act as inspiration. For now, I have a couple of questions though.

Is it possible to remove the wheel carrier from the axle without removing the axle from the car? I am unclear on this.

Also, how did you get the correct torque on the 30mm axle nut upon reassembly?

__________________

2000 CLK 430
2004 BMW R1150RT
2001 Honda VFR800i

It is possible to remove the wheel carrier without removing the axle at the differential. You'll just have to be careful and pull the carrier off the axle after everything else is disconnected.

To get the torque on the 30mm nutI guestimated based on the amount of threaded axle exposed on the side of the car I didn't take off. If you look at the nut you'll see that there is just a little bit of the axle protruding over the of the nut (on both sides of my car). This was also about as tight as I could get the nut!

** Don't forget to cut a slot and bend the tab in on the new nut as a precaution from having it loosen itself! **

I also should have thanked MB Doc, BillyBob, and ozawa for their helpful advice about the project. I don't think I could have succeeded without them!

__________________
Daily Driver: 02 E430 4MATIC
In the family: '03 E500 // '04 ML500 // 64 220SE

I am attempting to remove the rear wheel carrier, and have disconnected all of the necessary parts that I know of ... now it's time to actually remove it from the axle, but I'm unclear on how to do this. There's a boot on the axle inside of the wheel carrier ... do I have to disconnect it somehow? Also, how do I actually remove the wheel carrier? Do I knock it off with a hammer or will it just slide off easily? Thanks.

__________________

2000 CLK 430
2004 BMW R1150RT
2001 Honda VFR800i

There is no boot to be loosened - I had the same question as it appears (at first glance) that the boot will come with the carrier. The boot is actually part of the axle - if you've got the wheel carrier free just tap it off of the axle (easier said than done i'm sure). I'd use a generous application of your favorite penetraing oil as well to help loosen any rusted parts.

Good luck!

__________________
Daily Driver: 02 E430 4MATIC
In the family: '03 E500 // '04 ML500 // 64 220SE

i have a question about this;

what can you use to pull the hub off of the carrier?

i have tried like heck to do so with no luck...

Slide hammer should work. Do you have a bearing puller for the rest of the job?

__________________
Prost!

yah i have a press

what is a slide hammer?

Mine came off much easier than it looked like it would. Before I tried it looked as if there was no way for it to come off, but in reality it came off very easily with no special tools. I hope yours loosens up and does the same.

__________________

2000 CLK 430
2004 BMW R1150RT
2001 Honda VFR800i

http://www.mercedesclubs.de/cgi-bin/vdhforum/dcboard.cgi?az=read_count&om=4500&forum=DCForumID1

Markus is using it in the 5th picture. As a 2nd option he suggests bolting on a junked wheel and then banging around its edges with a mallet.

__________________
Prost!

Hi Guys
I thought i would spend my few days I have off renovating my wifes old 230TE that she loves so madly however... I am beginning to regret it!
Great article Skiier 3 9, but it left me concerned and confused a bit.
I have stripped down the whole area of the rear wheel. Brake calipers hanging, wheels sitting on the floor, Brake disc (rotor) carefully placed, hub nut is removed (Just) I drowned it in WD40 and walked away smuggly ha! returned about fifteen minutes later and hit it harder that Mike Tyson and off it came. BUT, now i have a real problem.. I cannot remove what i think you are referring to as the wheel carrier. I mean the actual part that the wheel nuts bolt in to. I have hit it with everything i can find of any sizeable note and it just sits there as though somebody welded it to the shaft. Can you confirm this can be removed on the car and slid off the splines. My aim is to simply replace the wheel bearing, (never done this job before) but it now looks like beirut in my garage and I/m not best pleased because my poor SL which was wintering in relative comfort is now outside the British weather!!
Help! Mayday! Need advice and valium fast.
Best regards
The Limie