The shocks and struts on my 95 E300D are badly in need of replacement. The dealer confirms this after my complaints about the car feeling under-damped.

So, I'd like to make the ride more responsive since I'm having to do the replacements anyhow.

My goals are:
less body roll in cornering
more confidence in high speed manuevers (lane changes, on/off ramps, etc.)
a sportier feel - more fun to drive
smooth ride quality (think CLK not Caddy)
comfortable (subjective, I know...) noise and vibration levels
I know my diesel doesn't perform like a sportscar, but I want more fun when tooling around and more confidence when rolling at high speeds.

I've been reading alot in this forum and on mercesesshop.com and am currently thinking about:
H&R sport springs
Bilstein sport shocks/struts
same 15" wheels, new 185/65 tires (or 185/60 @ -3% tire diameter)

I'd happily order these up if I could get a sense of my future ride quality. I have no hesitation to sport-tune my suspension, but I do not want to feel all the bumps on long rides. I want to dive into corners, but I don't want to feel the road too much on long highway trips.

Here are some factoids I've gleaned (feel free to correct if you are absolutely sure):
Bilstein HD & Sport have the same valving, but different ideal travel ranges. (from Bilstein techs via Carl at BergWerks)
Correct Bilstein model numbers for my 124.131 Chassis are sport v36-0365 and b36-1470 and HD v36-0361 and b36-1385
H&R suggests that the W124 sport springs (unsure of model number) can be used on the Diesel, although they are untested in this application. It may require thicker pads up front to compensate for the slightly heavier motor (also some question about whether or not the motor is actually heavier since it may be a reworked normal gas motor).

OK, Question time:
Has anybody used the H&R sport springs on their W124 diesel?
Just how sharp/harsh/stiff/unpleasant is the ride on the H&R-Bilstein sport setup? Would I be taking the nice smooth high speed quality out of the ride?
H&R OEM sport springs & Bilstein HD shocks with wider, lower AR tires? If I don't lower, I can change the tire size to 205/60ish.

Bottom line:
I want a comfortable family sedan that is fun to drive aggressively when I want to, without taking too much away from the comfortable Benz sport sedan feel.

Thanks a ton!
Kevin

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1995 E300D 115K miles (stock)
on biodiesel since 2003 & running great