As promised, here ya go, gang!









Also, if you haven't read it, here's the complete story I posted in wheels and tires a while ago. Enjoy!


First of all I just wanted to say thanks to everyone here on the boards for the hours of great reading, stories, information, and experiences. I have found these pages to be a wonderful resource, and I thought it only fitting that, after careful research and study, I would post my comments and impressions after doing some handling improvements for my car. Here goes:
First of all, I have a 1995 E420. I don't have to tell you people what a great car it is... I'd just be preaching to the converted. Great power, timeless looks, and that great German feel. But... there was room for some handling improvement, so that's what I tackled first.
I purchased some progressive rate Eibach Springs, and got some smaller pads from the dealership (#1.. the thinnest). The combination of these two items dropped the car a tastful amount (approx 1.5-1.75"). No more 4x4 look in the wheel wells... in my humble opinion, this is the way the car should look: classy and understated elegance.
Next was the part that took the most research, rims and tires. After numerous calls to Bekkers, Discount Tire, The Tire Rack, and a couple of local Mercedes Dealers, I came to a couple of conclusions. Mainly, that most of the people I spoke with didn't *really* know what they were talking about, as almost everyone had a unique solution to my problem. After sorting through a lot of B.S. I came to these conclusions:
As the stock size for the tires is 195-65-15, the near perfect match would be 225-45-17 on a 17 by 7.5" rim. No odometer adjustments... an excellent fit. Trouble is, that tire is just a wee bit too wide for the fender... a 215 would fit better, but would result in a slightly smaller overall wheel diameter. The question was, would the resulting rubbing require a fender roll? I'd say that if you do not plan on lowering the car much, there's really nothing to worry about. I've dropped the car probably as much as anyone here would without going for that "slammed" look (ugh!), and it only rubs a little bit when I hit a dip/bump too fast. Really nothing to worry about, and a small price to pay for such a dramatic improvement. My main concern was getting as wide a tire in the car as possible, since I do not have ASR, and it rains like crazy here in Seattle. Which brings me to my tire choice...
The Bridgestone Potenza RE-730. After doing my homework on the forums, websites, and telephone, this was the hands down winner for what I wanted- a good handling tire with excellent Seattle-weather ability. Plus they look cool. They look especially tasty on the rims I got... the 17" AMG Monoblock II copies from Bekkers. As soon as I get my pictures developed I'll be posting a link here for everyone to check out. I *highly* recommend these modifications, as it provides an excellent combination of practicality, functionality, and looks.
So, on to the driving impressions. Lowering the center of gravity did wonders for this car. I don't need to slow down for corners, brake dive and acceleration squat are nonexistent, and again, just the look of the car hugging the ground is worth the price of admission alone. The 17" rims, while a bit noisier at highway speeds, provide a substantial improvement in steering feel and cornering. Plus, those rain tires are a terrific improvement over the wimpy stock rubber. Yes, I can still break the tires loose if I plant my foot on the gas, but I don't feel like I'm going to do a 180 if I take a corner in the rain.
So what's next? I've already put K&N filters in, but that seems to be about it without spending tons of dough. PAD doesn't sell the e420 chip anymore (recall problems, I hear), and a differential swap is a bit too spendy, although that would be the biggest improvement you could do outside of adding a turbo/supercharger, of which they also do not sell for the V8. They make them for the I-4, I-6, and V-6 (and the diesels, of course), but I guess they just figure that if you've got a V8 you have enough power. Can you ever have *enough?* : )

So that's it. Thanks guys! Enjoy your rides!

Dr. Julio Fuentes, BS MD PhD

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1995 Mercedes E420

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1995 Mercedes E420

Bilstein Sport Shocks
Eibach Sport Springs
ATE Slotted Front Rotors
Stainless Steel Brake Lines
Motul Race Fluid
Euro Headlights w/PIAA superwhites
17" Monoblock Rims
K&N Air Filters
Matched Leather/Burlwood Shift Knob
S Class Leather/Burlwood Steering Wheel

Very nice...love the number plate too!!
Are you using stock shocks?

VERY NICE! Did you install the wheels/tires before lowering your car? If so, did the wheels/tires rub BEFORE the lowering? How come you don't have ASR? I thought it was standard in '95 cars. My car looks like yours...but mine is black pearl/black, not black pearl/tan. Is your antenna mass broken? Why doesn't it go down all the way?

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1995 black pearl/black Mercedes-Benz E420 :

Thanks for the responses, gang! : ) Okay, to answer the questions, I am currently running on the stock shocks, since they weren't overly worn or anything, but will most likely upgrade to Bilsteins in the near future. I'm also planning on adding slotted front rotors and Mintex brake pads. A friend of mine recently installed them on his Audi, (a car that's notorious for brake dust), and has been absolutely amazed at the results.
As far as the installation, I did it all at once, so I did not get a chance to run just the wider tires before lowering. I can't imagine them rubbing though, as it's pretty rare to do it now even with nearly a 2" drop. The antenna mast needs some lubin'... it sticks once in a while. Also, ASR was an option (along with heated seats, the CD changer, and rear sunshade). Sadly, the only option on mine was the changer, but I am looking into aftermarket seat warmers, and I'll let everyone know what I find.

thanks again,
Dr. Julio Fuentes, BS MD PhD

__________________
1995 Mercedes E420

Bilstein Sport Shocks
Eibach Sport Springs
ATE Slotted Front Rotors
Stainless Steel Brake Lines
Motul Race Fluid
Euro Headlights w/PIAA superwhites
17" Monoblock Rims
K&N Air Filters
Matched Leather/Burlwood Shift Knob
S Class Leather/Burlwood Steering Wheel

Hey Julio: What model of Mercedes-Benz is a BS MD PhD anyway?

Dean Albrecht, BBS K&N H&R

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Dean Albrecht
"Lead, follow, or better yet, get out of the way!"E500 owners motto

Doc,
Extend the attenna fully by turning it on an pulling it gently.If there are no dents or kinks in the mast then take some WD40 or similar and spray it on a piece of cloth and rub the attenna CLEAN with it every time it is extended for about a month. Works like a charm!

Sweet lookin' stealthy car you got there Doc'! I'm waiting for my 18'AMG's and Pilot Sports to arrive today for my E!

J.G.

Thanks for the tip, yal, I'll dig out the tri-flo tomorrow and work on the antenna. (tri-flo's like WD-40, but for bicycle components and is less corrosive)
18's with Pilot Sports, eh Jay? Sounds like you're really stepping up to the plate with the good stuff. Be sure to let us know how the new setup handles. What size tires are you running now, and are any other mods planned?



muchas garcias,
Dr. Julio Fuentes, BS MD PhD


(you guys think I should get another place that says "got beans?") : )

__________________
1995 Mercedes E420

Bilstein Sport Shocks
Eibach Sport Springs
ATE Slotted Front Rotors
Stainless Steel Brake Lines
Motul Race Fluid
Euro Headlights w/PIAA superwhites
17" Monoblock Rims
K&N Air Filters
Matched Leather/Burlwood Shift Knob
S Class Leather/Burlwood Steering Wheel

I've got a '99 E300 Turbodiesel. Currently I have the stock wheels and tires- 215 55ZR 16 Michelin MXV4's,(which really isn't all that bad from the factory.) I just finished installing the full E55 suspension, and the ride is still great, but the handling response in all respects is AWESOME! (springs, shocks, sway bars and bushings, as well as 1 notch spring pads.) Ride height is down nearly 1 1/8 in front and 7/8 in rear.

The wheels and tires arrived yesterday, but they will remain in my basement until warmer and snowless weather arrives. (I'm in eastern Pennsylvania) I expect the ride will be considerably stiffer with the new wheels and tires on, but I figure, if this setup is good enough for the factory original E55- and the rave reviews it has attracted- it's got to be good enough for me!

Talk about having it all- the ride and handling of an E55, the power and performance of the fastest factory turbodiesel sedan ever built, and on top of all getting nearly 40 MPG on the highway!- I'm lovin' it!

J.G.

Jay, I plan on doing the exact suspension upgrade on my '97 E420 Sport. I've already put on the 18" wheels and tires. I'm waiting for the E55 springs, shocks and anti-roll bars. They should be in any day. A couple of questions if you don't mind: do I need to replace the existing bushings? What are 1 notch spring pads? Are there different size pads for the E55 springs? if so, is there a "best" size?

I'm glad to read that you're impressed with the handling. I can't wait!!!

Hope to hear from you soon.

Simon Mekari

Simon,

The only "bushings" I replaced were the rear swaybar rubber mounting bushings that are secured to the underbody by the steel "U" brackets. If you haven't ordered the updated "U" brackets, you will need them, as the E55 bushings are wider and your old brackets won't fit around them. Your original sway bar "end links" (which are the outboard mounting pieces) are reused from your old bars and do not need replacement.

As for the spring pads- they are merely used to "fine tune" the ride height of the car front and rear. The pads are of varying thickness and sit on top of the spring between the spring and car frame. The "notch" I am referring to is essentially a small bump or nipple that you should be able to see under your car if you look really closely with a flashlight at the rubber mount at the top of the spring, underside edge of the pad. For the FRONT, the 1 notch pad is the thinnest at 5mm., the thickest is the 5 notch pad at 21mm thick, with the 2 through 4 notch pads being in between staggered in 4mm intervals.

There are only 4 different REAR spring pads, each also separated in increments of 4mm, with the thinnest (1 notch) being 5mm thick, and the 4 notch being 17mm thick. I have the part numbers for all of them, plus all the other parts I used if you need them at some point.

To get an idea of "how high" my ride height should be, I measured a stock E55 on level floor in the dealer's showroom (and got alot of weird looks from salespeople) and got the following measurements:

I measured from the very center of the Mercedes "star" in the wheel center caps up to the very edge/underside of the fender lips for all 4 wheels. On the stock E55 this measurement was approximately 14 1/2 inches.

The stock E55 setup still left what some would consider "too big" a gap between the top of the tire and the fender lip. I don't personally like the super low "slammed" look that some people do, but I opted to bring MY car slightly lower by using the 1 notch spring pads, so MY car's measurement from center cap to fender lip is about 14 1/8 inches. This is versus my car's original stock spring/shock measurement of about 15 1/4 inches. Which leaves what I feel is a very tasteful gap between tire and fender- moderately aggressive stance without that "low rider" look!

Hope this helps a little. If you have other questions, or run into any problems, let me know. GOOD LUCK, and ENJOY the great new firm ride!

J.G.

Jay,

Thank you very much for the explanation. It is very helpful. If you don't mind, can you please provide me with the part numbers for all of the parts you installed. I'm pretty sure that with respect to the shocks, springs and anti-roll bars, I'm using the same parts that you did, however, I just want to be absolutely certain. I have not ordered any bushings, spring pads, or "U" brackets and would appreciate those part numbers if it's not too much trouble.

Thanks again for the advice. I'll post a picture of the car when it's completed.

Simon