190e shocks - what's wrong with this picture?
 

So I was drying my wheels after washing the car and took a peek at the left rear shock absorber and I saw this... :eek:

I'm no mechanic but it does not look right, what do you all think?

Is it surface rust?

I guess the rubbers should meet the top of the shock as in the foto below.
Are you sure you have the right shocks on? The top of the shock canister should be flat.

Take the boot (trunk) lining out and check the top of the shock. There should be another rubber damper and washers on the top of the shock on the inside of the boot (trunk). They do get compressed. Cheap to buy and easy to replace - DIY job.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3197/...a18236d3dc.jpg

Has the plastic protection ever been painted in white? Or removed

Looks like a KYB or some other aftermarket shock.

The rust on the shock is merely surface rust and shouldn't pose any immediate problems. The top rubber bushing looks like its in good shape but judging by the compressed look of it, the top mounting nut may be over torqued a bit.

Are you experiencing any ride/handling problems or are you just concerned with the appearance of the shock?

i'm concerned with the gap between the rubber and the top of the shock. It just looks like the top nut is loose or it's missing a rubber bushing.

and yes it is a cheap KYB shock :) . It's rusty and the back is bouncy so I think it's a good time to replace these anyway.

I just hope it won't come off. This might also explain why the back of the car is higher on the left side... :confused: