W210 SPRING PERCH = Front Spring Bracing - Page 2 - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

whunter · #16 10-02-2013, 10:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pabster

My driver's side spring perch finally gave way. I cut out the beat up spring perch using a grinder and dremel cutting wheel. I also grinded out a small hole of rust and cleaned up the work area with a metal polishing wheel. I then primed the area and got it ready to install the strike plate.

The area is in good shape, less the small area of rust, and that is why I decided on the strike plate. Had there been more and wider rust issues, I would have bought the repair plate and installed it.

The stealer in my area wanted $1850 to do the work...spare me please! Thus, I was motivated to do it all myself. Nobody in my area would weld it, so I am committed to Riveting in in. The stealer told me that it would take 40 rivets! Thats a lot of Rivets, but I have them ready to install. Others have successfully used the pneumatic 1/4" rivet gun from Harbor Freight to install the MB rivets and have said its easy and the least of worries. Drilling the holes for the rivets is the real work.

Thats a lot of Rivets to put on this strike plate and common sense will help you figure it out along with the photo above. It will be very secure when I am done. I am also changing out the Springs and Shocks after I install the strike plate/spring perch.

I am taking photos of my progress and plan to give peach parts a good write up on this and hopefully this will help other DIYers. This is my weekend to get it all done and get my Benz back on the road.

Pabster

the Harbor Freight pneumatic rivet gun does not have a setting force of: 20.000 N bei 5 bar = the MB required specification.

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Pabster · #17 10-12-2013, 09:01 PM

I didn't use the Harbor Freight Rivet gun. Instead, I rented one that was very close to the specks of the 20K bar/5Klbs pulling recommendation. I put in 15 rivets to start and some went in nicely, but some didn't do a great job of closing the tiny gaps between the car wall and plate and didn't finish tight. Hence, I wasn't convinced this was the way to go and I wanted a good peace of mind that this plate was secure.

So, I had to make a bunch of calls before I could finally find a welder who would come to my house and weld it on. Going forward, I would recommend this to anyone going through this process. I was shocked at how hard it was to find this welder.

Pabster

Wurster · #18 03-26-2014, 12:22 PM

I have a 1998 E300D with a failed perch on the passenger side. It also has extensive rust and would need the entire section replaced. I have found the MD work procedure on replacing just the mount but does anyone have the suggested fix procedures for replacing the entire section? Does anyone have an idea where I could purchase the whole section part as well?

zaklee · #19 03-28-2014, 10:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Wurster

I have a 1998 E300D with a failed perch on the passenger side. It also has extensive rust and would need the entire section replaced. I have found the MD work procedure on replacing just the mount but does anyone have the suggested fix procedures for replacing the entire section? Does anyone have an idea where I could purchase the whole section part as well?

Having just completed repairs on both sides of my '98 after literally months of research and preparation, I have a lot more info on this than I can type out right now. Also have repair procedures for all three levels of repair(reinforce, replace perch, replace striker plate with perch).

Peach parts and ECS can get the part. Since it's special order with no returns from them, get it from the dealer. The parts I got from the dealer were less expensive. Order rivets from Fastenall - much less expensive especially if replacing whole striker which requires something like 32 of the! Use $60 pneumatic rivet tool from Harbor Freight - worked perfectly.

More to come. See following posts.

Zak

zaklee · #20 03-30-2014, 09:04 PM

My frame member was bad enough that I really though I would have to replace the entire striker panel. But once I got it all apart and took a good look at the load paths on the failed system and those that this repair would present, I decided that this was a much less risky and less expensive solution. Truthfully, I really didn't like the idea of cutting through the frame member face to remove the section that the new complete striker panel replaces. Nor the price tag for it and all of the rivets. So I decided that a hybrid repair that combines replacing the perch and adding the reinforcement would be the way to go. The perch was about $75 and the reinforcement $15, both from the dealer. The striker panel would have been about $460. Never mind all the rivets...

I've attached some photos. The first is of the failure as I discovered it (with spring removed). The second and third with the area all cleaned up. The fourth is ready to install the perch and reinforcement. The fifth is ready to weld the reinforcement to the perch.

You'll notice that the majority of the rust on mine is actually in the open field beneath the replacement where there are virtually no structural reactions. It was also clear at this point that all but one rivet would be in completely unaffected steel.

Once I had ground everything down I applied a phosphoric acid rust conversion/inhibitor solution called Ospho, made by Skyko. I also fashioned a bent tube that fit on a large syringe body so that I could apply the same solution inside the cavity through the small area of rust-through. I put a little mesh and body filler there just to keep water out. Once everything was primed (I primed the perch both sides separately) I fitted the new perch.

Initially, I thought that I needed to make the rivet hole a little larger than 1/4" because I was having a hard time getting the rivets in. The I figured out that I could use a 3/8" drive deep well socket to tap them in. Socket size doesn't matter since you put it on the rivet backwards (drive side toward the work piece) and tap it in with a hammer. Nice tight fit. The countersunk rivets were a bit of a challenge but worked out fine. Be patient.

The countersunk rivets are Klik-Lok SC88KL Structural Rivet from Fastenal. $.60/each. The other rivets are Klik-Lok SB8EKL Structural Rivet, also from Fastenall. They are $.63 each. I think MB wanted $3.75 for those...

Once the perch was in place I started fitting the reinforcement atop it. Since I'm not a terribly skilled welder I used the old perch that I had removed to practice on. Afterall, it should be the same alloy and is similar in thickness. So it was perfect for dialing in my little old Craftsman MIG welder.

With the new perch and the reinforcement in I primed it all once more, added a coat of heavy body seam sealer (see install instructions about where NOT to put sealer), applied a rubberized & paintable undercoat, and then sprayed a couple of coats of automotive paint - closest color I could find off the shelf at the local AutoZone.

Links to rivets:
Products | Fastenal

Products | Fastenal

Spring Compresor:

Mercedes Coil Spring Compressor Suspension Tool Kit Set | eBay

Pneumatic Rivet Tool:
1/4" Air Hydraulic Riveter

Will post the repair instructions shortly.

zaklee · #21 03-30-2014, 09:14 PM

Here are the three different spring perch repair procedures; reinforcement, replace perch, replace the whole striker panel.

Also included a PDF with all of the torque specs for the front end parts that you need to take out to get the job done.

I spent about 6 months researching this whole thing to make sure I knew everything that I possibly could before getting into it. I hope having it all in one place will help others get through it all more quickly.

EdzBenz · #22 05-08-2014, 11:48 AM

Wow Zaklee. Thanks for your contribution to this post. I hope I never have to do this repair, but knowing that I have this DIY resource if it needs to be done is greatly appreciated.

notahint · #23 04-16-2015, 02:09 PM

It looks like there are now three flavors of this part available?

210-626-01-19-MBZ
210-626-01-19-05-MBZ
210-626-01-19-28-MBZ

The first number, I've always seen pictured with just two holes. I know I've seen 05 pictured with all the holes drilled (although I'm not sure if someone drilled them on their own.)

I've got a '01 Wagon with a failed passenger perch. I'd love to go the rivet-only route. I've seen people mention a "brace" of some sort as well but never a part number. Is one of the three above part numbers going to be just-add-rivets for me?

EdzBenz · #24 02-28-2018, 05:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EdzBenz

Wow Zaklee. Thanks for your contribution to this post. I hope I never have to do this repair, but knowing that I have this DIY resource if it needs to be done is greatly appreciated.

Welp! Four years later and it looks like my passenger side spring perch has failed. It hasn't failed completely, and just looks like a small part has rusted out. I'm ordering the new cup and hoping I don't have to replace the entire backing plate, etc. Thanks again for the info Zaklee.

EdzBenz · #25 03-21-2018, 11:06 AM

I wanted to thank everyone on this post for their contribution. I just had my passenger side spring perch replaced and being able to have a reference for the parts and tools needed was a gigantic help! Luckly, my perch didn't fail completely. It had torn/bent a little between the spring cup and the inside wall of the wheel well. I'm pretty sure this tear/bend was caused by me hitting a gigantic pothole in Chicago. My passenger rim was bent too.
My body shop removed the spring and perch and investigated for any rust after removing the rubber lining. He found very little rust, and what rust he found, was replaced with new metal.
The shop installed a new spring perch plus the special reinforcement cup that is meant for the armored cars. He used a few rivets and welded the heck out of the rest of it. I'm very confident my perch will stand up for years to come.
We checked the other side and it looks pretty good and solid.

EdzBenz · #26 03-21-2018, 11:13 AM

Finished Product Photos

torsionbar · #27 03-24-2018, 06:10 PM

Nice work taking care of it! I've seen lots of w210's in the junk yard with nothing apparently wrong with them aside from a broken perch. The repair is really not a big deal, good on you for keeping it on the road.

John1974 · #28 08-20-2021, 11:05 AM

The right ear on the bottom of my front passenger spring perch is cracked on the outside at the seam where it attaches to the car. When we tried to stick weld a brace the mastic began to burn. There must be a lot of rust underneath because a hole burned in the sub structure beneath the mount near the top. If I were to remove the spring and lightly go over the area with a wire wheel how likely would it be that I would speed up the or cause the failure of the perch right there?
Does anyone have the part number for the reinforcement? My dealer can't find it. Not the striker plate.

whunter · #29 12-12-2022, 03:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by John1974

The right ear on the bottom of my front passenger spring perch is cracked on the outside at the seam where it attaches to the car. When we tried to stick weld a brace the mastic began to burn. There must be a lot of rust underneath because a hole burned in the sub structure beneath the mount near the top. If I were to remove the spring and lightly go over the area with a wire wheel how likely would it be that I would speed up the or cause the failure of the perch right there?
Does anyone have the part number for the reinforcement? My dealer can't find it. Not the striker plate.

left 210616671605
right 210616681605

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