Weird strut replacement

[samiam4]

. Here’s the deal- these are new v36-0185 Bilstein replacment struts for a –93 W124.

I set the car up and the ride height was correct. Drove the car and suddenly the camber was noticeably different because the steering wheel no longer centered.

Humm? I look at I’ve got 2-3 inches of extra clearance between the tire and wheel well. So, I do some internet search and several other ppl-mainly W201 owners have experienced a similar situation-maybe 20 in the past 3-4 years. Very small considering Bilstein claims they are selling 4,000 replacements a year in the USA.

I take it to the dealership. Sitting right next to my car is 94’ W124 and it has a huge amount of suspension travel and the struts are WAY softer. We even compare it to a AMG which is softer also. Something is wrong… no reason to align the car, take it home.

Call Bilstein and I talk with 3 different customer service ppl. East and West coast customer service claim to have never heard of this. I talk with the technical assistance man. He’s much more helpful and agrees- nearly impossible to install wrong. Pulls up the drawing on the computer and rattles through some specs. Much more reassuring, but no advice other than warrantee the struts and hope it solves the problem.
I go out to remove a wheel and find the production date and lot number.
But, decide to pull it in the driveway first. When I do this, I back up the car and it settles by 2-3” to the correct ride height. I pull forward and it returns to the high position…..

I loosened the lc bolts and the strut upper nut and re-torque while the car is in the lower position. Doesn’t seem to make a difference.


Got any ideas??

Michael

[deanyel]

Sounds like the twilight zone - I would try the backing up and pulling forward again and see if it does the same thing - on a level surface.

[samiam4]

Very repeatable. Pull fwd- front end goes up.... Put it in reverse and go backward a yard- frnt end settles.


Michael

[JoeR]

"I set the car up... suddenly the camber was noticeably different... steering wheel no longer centered."

From your comments and especially the above quoted clips, it sounds like you somehow messed up the toe setting.

Suggest you get an alignment done and see if that doesn't cure the problem. Also have all the suspension and steering components checked for wear.

[stevebfl]

Based on this reply, I'm guessing you have a severe toe setting problem. Changing struts can make a severe camber change and a camber change on a MB makes a huge change in toe.

Either that or you have something loose in the front end. But I'm betting on the toe. For toe to be the problem it has to be a huge toe problem. Do a basic check with a piece of string. Take a large nail and place it on a 12 inch piece of sting. hold the string end in the exact center of a tread bar (center of tire) on the rear side of the tire. Make the string is long enough so the nail acts as a plumb to the ground. mark the point on the ground exactly. Do the same on the other side of the car. Measure the distance one side to the other.

Toe is the difference between the rear of the tire and the front of the tire (at the center - height wise it doesn't matter on the face of the tire but if you measure from the outside,inside, or middle as long as you do it the same at the front measurement - remember a difference in distance is the measurement not the total distance). In the front the distance between center at the center is easy to read straight off the tires with a sting stretched between them. At the rear it is harder as a string stretched between centers at the center would have to pass through the motor and chassis. By dropping down the rear center measurements by plumb, a fairly accurate measure can be made. For your purposes the measurement front and rear should be the same "zero toe". The desired reading of 3mm + or - a mm is insignificant to your problem. If I am right you will have a toe deviation of 40mm or more, maybe a lot more.

if this is the case, shorten or lengthen the tierods till you are close and see if the problem is solved, then take the car and have it aligned properly.

[samiam4]

Steve,

Now that I think about it... it's probably toe-d in a bit. That is the first comment that makes sense to me! I'll check it by hand.

Joe- that's but all the suspension stuff is very tight, confirmed by the dealership alignment guy. In fact, asked me a bunch of questions more like-where did I find it and he would be interested in the car. Nicest W124 he has worked on-showing his age=)


Michael