Front shock/spring mount failure on 300TE

[mcvespa]

I took my wife's '92 300TE 4M into the shop today b/c we were experiencing some suspension noise most noticeable when going over speed bumps. My indie found that the top bracket that the front left spring(?) sits into had pulled away from the chasis. Essentially the seems began to crack and the spring was no longer going straight up and down but was now bent towards the tire.

Anyway, they said they don't usually see this on 124's but have seen a few 210's with this issue. A body guy that my indie suggested came buy and quoted $500 to put a new bracket in. This seemed a little steep to me but he said the part alone for the 124 was $125.

Has anyone else seen this on a 124 before?

Thanks,
Michael

[softconsult]

The part is around $75 to $90. You can replace it easily. You should be able to remove the nut on the strut shaft. Then press the shaft down until it clears the bottom of the mount and moves to the side. Remove and replace the mount. Then using some creative tooling like a large straight slot screwdriver and maybe some vice-grips with a red shop rag around the shaft, maneuver the shaft back into the mount and tighten the nut.

$500 is ridiculous, unless there is something about the 4-matic front suspension that is radically different from a normal 124.

Steve

[david s poole]

i think he's talking about the spring not the large shock absorber.at 500 the guy is certainly charging for his expertise,but he also has a lot of exposure so i would bet the job will be done right.

[michael cole]

the front suspension on a 4matic is quite different from a regular 124.the front springs are of a totally different design to accomodate the front drive axles.i beleive your tech will have to RandR the spring and front shock to weld the spring perch.shop rates being what they are these days im not surprised

[mcvespa]

Thanks so much Michael and David. This particular body shop guy does them all the time on 210's for just shy of $400 but said the part is more money for the 4matic. I'll keep my fingers crossed and will hope it's done right.

-Michael