124 front ball joints

[michael cole]

does anyone know if a new front ball joint for 87 TDT will fit a 95 e320 wagon

[engatwork]

Iirc the gasser lower ball jt is built in to the lower cyl arm.

[Zulfiqar]

the last W124 with the 3.2 litre M104 christened as the E320 did not have replaceable ball joints. you have to buy the entire arm.

The last gasser W124 that could take them was the 300E 2.8 of 1993, all diesels including the 1995 E300D had replaceable joints.

To make sure, turn the wheel and look at the joint/arm boss - if you see that it has 2 projections (shoulders) and has a rectangular shape where the joint is - then its replaceable, If you see a triangle section (like a pizza slice shape) then the joint is cast into the arm boss and is not replaceable.

To test it raise the car on jackstands and take a strong 2x4 and try to move the wheel a bit in and out from the bottom, if you can move it, the joint is bad and requires immediate replacement. The W124/201 ball joints are under pulling stress and can cause very dangerous incidents if the joint lets go.

[michael cole]

well mine let go.fortunately in a parking lot.the mystery is the control arm looks relatively new.the sticker is still on but faded

[engatwork]

How many miles are on it because I'm wondering at what point they fail. The ones on the silver 95 E320 are at 312k miles and are original.

I do have some new ones sitting on the workbench. Just need to get around to replacing them.

[michael cole]

i just bought this car and unfortunately the bad ball joint(s) did not show up in the safety inspection.i was there and the mech had the car on the hoist.a month later it breaks.the shaft of the joint just broke off.429,000 km

[engatwork]

I guess I need to go ahead and replace mine. Thanks

[michael cole]

i recommend it.this is the 2nd 124 where ive had the problem.my 300tdt let go in a underground parking.the ceiling clearance was too small for a towtruck.dont ask me how we got it outta there.im gonna post a pic cause im not sure which control arm i have

[cmcdonnell]

Mine just broke last week. I was turning my 92 400E onto my street very slowly and BANG!!! the front left wheel fell off. It cost me 100 bucks to have it towed the 1/2 block to my house. When I removed the control arm it had "Febi/Bilstien 08 09 " stamped on the top. So I guess that it lasted four years. Not very impressive performance. I have only had the car for a year and a half, and yes the ball joints were sqeaking a bit now and then, I wish I had changed them sooner. The fender was bent back around the lip of the wheel arch, but really isn't noticeable.

[rayhennig]

Originally Posted by cmcdonnell

When I removed the control arm it had "Febi/Bilstien 08 09 " stamped on the top. So I guess that it lasted four years. Not very impressive performance.

Some say Febi/Bilstein is OK but I have my doubts. Lemfoerder or MB seem to be the preferred choice over in Europe.

My 300CE Sportline now has nearly 250 K miles on the clock and it has the original, 22 year old ball joints. Should I be worried? Should I replace them as a preventive measure.

RayH

[Zulfiqar]

check the ball joints every year or so, put the car up on a jackstand such that the weight of the car is on the lower arm, then use a 2x4 to move the wheel up and down, if you can feel or see movement, IMMEDIATELY replace the joint.

similarly if the joint squeaks when turning it is dead and is on borrowed time. I also make a habit of turning the wheel and checking the boot for tears, if the boot is torn then the joint is bad, if the joint is cast into the arm (sportline etc) then get the boot kit and replace them immediately. You might save some time.

[michael cole]

after closer inspection it appears that the ball itself is seized in the socket.when making the tight turn out of the parking spot there was obviously a great amount of stress on the pin itself causing it to shear right off.ive got 2 new control arms on the way.never expected this to be as large a safety issue considering it is a MB.

[Zulfiqar]

ball joint failure is a very critical safety issue whether the car is a rolls royce or mercedes benz.

Surely the design can be called flawed but nearly 80% of the worlds car's use this design very effectively. The rest have it backwards - like the older W123 and the later W210 have the ball under compression - so even if the joint goes sloppy it remains in the shell.

[cmcdonnell]

I looked everywhere for Lemfoerder control arms and all I could find were Febi, and MB for about twice the price. I bought the Febi arms, but that was before I saw the date on the broken one. So I guess I will need to be hyper-vigilant about the ball joint boots and check for play more frequently.

[michael cole]

im not passing the buck on this issue.im the guy.im gonna check them yearly now.the boot can be lifted and grease injected very easily