Dave:
Re: the different p/n for springs, the '300E' referred to in the attachment is the earlier gas version of the 124, not the diesel, right?
If so, am I missing the part # for the 95 E300?
Also, doesn't MB use a 'point' system to correlate springs to a specific body type with options, equipment, etc.
Where can one find this 'point' system?

The rear links are the same. There is a different torque/thrust link you can get that is aluminum instead of stamped steel (used on the W210 station wagons). But there are no different links for the Sportline package. The price sounds suspiciously low - like that's for one side only (4 links instead of 8) or something. I'd expect all 8 to be $300+? I haven't checked prices closely with aftermarket vendors though. Don't forget the fifth link (lower control arm, also called the 'spring link' because the coil spring sits inside). That has a bushing on the inner pivot. And it connects to a bushing on the outer edge that's pressed into the rear wheel carrier. This bushing is often worn and needs replacement, if the others are also worn.

Warning: This is a fairly big job, and if you replace them, the bolts must be tightened with the suspension in the 'at rest' state, meaning the car either has to be on the ground on it's wheels before tightening, or the suspension has to be compressed to that level. Otherwise the bushings will be in a constant stressed state when not in motion, and may affect ride height & suspension action. This is noted in the service manual but probably ignored by a lot of people.

The subframe bushings are usually shot before all the links need replacement, though.

__________________
Check out my website photos, documents, and movies!

The same springs are used for all W124's. The lighter/shorter ones are for the 4-cylinder models used in Europe, like the E220 etc. The diesel probably will just use the taller/stiffer ones. You are absolutely correct about the 'point' system, I thought I mentioned that in a previous most, sorry if I didn't. That point system is in the EPC. (The service manual doesn't show the points for Sportline springs, AFAIK, but I haven't checked recently.)

Your 1995 E300 Diesel would use:

124-321-30-04 Sportline front springs
124-324-23-04 Sportline rear springs (without SLS!)

The rear springs are right on the edge of needing to go with the taller/stiffer version. If your car has ASD (limited slip), with the little orange warning triangle in the middle of the speedometer, you bump up to the 124-323-28-04 rear springs instead. Or if you often carry rear passengers, and/or stuff in the trunk, you might want to consider the '28' springs with a thinner shim (instead of the 23's with a thicker shim, as the EPC indicates).

Either way, you fine-tune the ride height with the different thickness shims between the spring and the chassis spring pocket. The EPC 'point guide' gives a baseline but you can adjust to personal taste if you want.

thanks gsxr. thanks for sharing the wealth of past experience. the links are meyle from net-parts-express. i am not sure if they are oem quality, but all 8 joints for 231.25. (probably junk!) lower control arm is a genuine unit for 72/side. ( other suppliers are karlyn, lemfoerder, febi and genuine mb )

my situation. 70k mile 95 plain jane diesel sedan with spent rear shocks and rotten front a-arm bushings. luke sent me 4 round 205/55 rubber things on 16x7.5 et38. i am dying to slap them on, but don't want to pay for repeated alignments. i need to get on the suspension before they roll.

we have the spring numbers

124-321-30-04 Sportline front springs
124-324-23-04 Sportline rear springs ( or 124-324-28-04 )

shocks? logic says to go with stock oem sportline (front=124-320-64-30 and rear=124-320-23-31),but i have enjoyed bilstein install-it-and-forget quality way to many times. ( sport fronts / hd rears ie shocks should match the spring rates. compression dampning is the same and the rebound is stiffer on the sport )

sway bars? east tn roads are not straight and not a whole lot of traffic lights. we run the dragon and the skyway on the motorcycles at night, so i can get my speeding fix elsewhere. imho, the stock set up, gas or diesel, with mxv's will let the rear slide quite easily. i like the idea of e500 or limo bars, but don't really want to load up the mounts. just go up one size or wait until everything else is installed and fine tune....

rear sub-assembly. sport rear/upper mounts, new stock fronts. i'll add up the price of the oem rear linkage bars. are the offset bushings required if the car is lowered less than an inch?

front a arms. sport bushing. rusty has the complete arm for 200ish/side. might be cheaper than the dealer labor to swap the bushings. mine are toast. diesel eats rubber.

__________________
g-wagen

...and where can I find the EPC? on your site?
That squeak I mentioned earlier, pushing down on the corners doesn't reproduce it; it just occurs over speed bumps or irregularities in pavement.
Rules out shocks and implicates sway bushings as you suggested?

Meyle, per my supplier and my tech, are now junk.

Lemforder or Febi are good.

IMHO, no need to spend the extra money for Sportline struts, when Bilstein HD's or Bilstein Sports (when changing to shorter springs), are fine, and have a LIFETIME warranty.

The only Mercedes OE shock for the W124 worth getting is the 500E struts that have limiting springs built into them, and this is only if you want the STOCK ride, otherwise Bilstein Sports work fine.

Our 500E has the Bilstein Sports after my 2-year old Mercedes OE 500E struts started leaking.

IMHO, do the springs LAST after replacing subframe bushings, links, and control-arms bushings. If you want to REALLY feel the road like a BMW M3, replace the control-arm bushings with the SportLine/190E16v bushings!

:-) neil

The only Mercedes OE shock for the W124 worth getting is the 500E struts that have limiting springs built into them, and this is only if you want the STOCK ride, otherwise Bilstein Sports work fineDo the 500E struts require removal or replacement of the stock 124 springs?
Do they lower the stock ride height?

No, and No.

:-) neil

i just looked up bilsteins pdf file and comforts are the only shocks available for post '92 cars. what's up with that? c, hd and sports are available for all years in the coupe chassis?

i ordered shocks for the truck and rear comforts. i can move them to another car when i get some sportline money.

will work for suspension components!

__________________
g-wagen

Like Neil said - no and no, BUT the 500E struts are designed for a car that is approx 1" lower than the normal W124 - meaning either the Sportline or 500E. I wouldn't recommend bothing with the 500E struts if you intend to use stock springs. On the flip side, my car is lowered, and I would like to someday get the 500E struts up front. The internal rebound limiting springs are tuned to the car's ride height. With stock springs, the car will sit higher than those struts were designed for, and will always be slightly compressing the rebound springs (or, not allowing a bit of travel w/o spring interference - I'm not sure which). The 500E struts are a 'dealer only' item, not available aftermarket.

BTW - the early struts (through ~1992) have an M12 pinch bolt, the later struts have an M14 pinch bolt. Otherwise they are identical, AFAIK.

I think your other questions have been answered, but here's a little more info. Rear camber correction is not required at all, it just depends how fast you wear out rear tires. The lower the car is, the more negative camber there is in the rear. Wider tires will wear out faster. With only a one inch drop, and near stock size (maybe 205/55/16 or 225/45/17 tops) your wear won't be that bad. If you run pricey tires with short life spans like Pilot Sports, then yeah a camber correction kit like K-Mac might be a wise investment.

The complete lower control arm up front is probably cheaper to replace than paying a shop to swap the bushings and ball joint. Remember that for ~$225 you are getting the stock LCA. If you want Sportline, the cost for the arm goes waaaay up, and at that point buying just the bushings becomes an option to consider. Remember that you CAN NOT replace the front LCA without a proper spring compressor (and that means a Klann or a copy of the Klann, not those silly external Harbor Freight cheapies.) The bushings should last a LONG time if there are no oil or fuel leaks that deteriorate the bushings. It's not uncommon for them to go 150-200kmi, or 15+ years, before they're 'bad'. Even then you may not notice a huge difference in comfort or performance with new bushings (if the old ones weren't totally shot).

I did not know whole sportline control arms were available. But as long as nothing is seized changing the front lower control arm bushings is not that hard. I knocked mine out with a hammer and screwdriver. But use a 4 pound hammer. You need a 1 1/2" pipe nipple and vice to get the new ones in. Use the same hammer to replace the ball joints. You will need to make a holder and will need a 1" pipe coupling to reinstall to avoid caving in the center dome.