So, I thought I'd be an upstanding role model and allow my younger cousin to assist me in the 150K service I performed on my 96 E320. Long-story-short, the little hoodlum loosened all my lug bolts, and re-torqued them (to spec at least) without jacking the car! Now, I have the strangest transient motion whenever camber changes. The closest description I can think of is the "head toss" I'd feel when driving my old 97 Grand Cherokee. Also, the steering wheel is all over the place. I must constantly make corrections in response to camber changes to maintain a straight heading. My rear tires are balding on the inside from all the negative camber. I guess my question is, whats the weakest link? Should I replace the lug bolts, or do I need new hubs all around? Or both? I really don't have the money or the time for any of this. Any suggestions?

Any help? Does anyone know if the bolts are stronger or the hubs are stronger? Anyone? Please?...

Have you taken the wheels off to check everything and reinstalled? It may just be that a wheel isn't sitting correctly on the hub any more.

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I agree, just redo the procedure for re-torquing the lugs the right way and see how that affects performance.

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I think lifting each corner and re-doing the wheel/bolt installation would have been my second thing I tried. (First being not letting anyone else touch my car)

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The "long" part of the story described me doing just that... only after discovering the problem, and working back to the source. That took about two days, and apprx 100miles. Even after lifting the car, removing the wheels and re-tqing the bolts I've seen no improvement in stability. I'd hate to think the hubs are ruined, but I can't think of another reason for the car to ride that way.

I always re-torque my wheels after I lower the car, have done for the last 35 years.
Just out of curiosity I looked it up in the shop manual (for the W126) and it states "lower the car and tighten the wheel bolts."

There is no way that re-torque wheel bolts can affect the geometry of your car. There must be something else wrong.

ROb
I would suggest to have your suspension checked and your car properly aligned by someone who has experience with Mercedes.

The thing is that it's hard to come up with a scenario that he could have done just by retorquing lug bolts. At 150K there are plenty of steering and suspension components that can need attention, and maybe the timing is a coincidence.
I think you're going to need to get it on an alignment rack and locate the source(s) of the problem. Swapping hubs and lug bolts pre-emptively is not cheap (or easy, if you're talking about the rears).

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Prost!

Did he do one lug at a time, or loosen all of them on a wheel before torquing?
Ed

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Ed
1960 220 SE Coupe (Ponton)
1999 E320 Wagon
2007 E350

When you raise/lower the car, the track change from lifting the car puts a substantial side-load on the tires, no effect. The car can slide sideways on the tires, on rough pavement, no damage to the suspension. To damage/bend something, it is my experience that you must create side-loads that far exceed what the tire's traction can provide.

Why did he loosen/tighten the bolts? Just to re-torque? Did he test-drive it for you?

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It may be something simple as low tire pressure.

Driving over a speed bump at high speed can ruin your suspension and cause all problems you described.

If your cars camber changes when driving in a straight line there is something seriously wrong with your car and not safe to drive.

Rob

Rob, I always snug the lugs in the air, drop the car, then tighten them.. as you described.

ed, He loosened THEM ALL, then re-tq'd to spec! Thats what has me SO concerned.

Babymog, I had tires installed a few days prior and noticed the techs bumping the wheels on with guns, but no tq-sticks. I just needed them tq'd to spec. I went on a short test-drive, all was average (as usual). My girlfriend drives this car daily, she notified me of the change in stability and said it kept getting worse. I'm concerned the damage was done by driving the car like that.

Rob, the camber doesn't just "magically change". The changes in wheel camber are in response to changes in the road. Its much harder to describe than I expected. But, its as if all the lug bolts are 1mm loose and the wheels have that much "play" to change camber with road crests and the like. The resulting sensation while driving is a "head tipping/tossing" motion whenever road camber changes (and wheel camber in accordance). Tire pressures are 32F 30R.

I would suggest re-doing the wheels to insure the wheels are seated on the hubs correctly.
Ed

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Ed
1960 220 SE Coupe (Ponton)
1999 E320 Wagon
2007 E350

ed, as soon as I worked the symptom back to the cause I re tq'd them. The problem is, that took me 100miles (108 to be exact). Now, even after re tq'ing, I still have the stability issue. I had a steering rack installed about 2K miles prior to all this. Its a new rack (surprisingly hard to find for this car), but the symptoms didn't appear till after my 150K service. I'm on my second set of rear tires in 40 days, how hard will it be to replace the rear hubs? Ive noticed a few older 210s driving around with the camber out on the rear wheels. Are rear hubs a consistent failing point on these cars when not serviced? I have to do something, I'm just trying to be smart and not throw parts at the problem.

Obviously something is wrong, a set of tires a month sounds like a structural problem, and yes, don't throw a bunch of bucks at it.
I had a '97 and no problems until it was wrecked two years ago.
I would not think that hubs or lugs are the problem. Do you know a reliable independent with a good alignment set up? They should be able to diagnose the fault. I would consider the safety factor with what you describe.
Ed

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Ed
1960 220 SE Coupe (Ponton)
1999 E320 Wagon
2007 E350