124 Front sway-bar bushing lube?

[haasman]

What should I lube the front sway-bar bushings with on my 124?

[400E]

Why do you need to lube them? Are they squeaking or knocking? If the latter, they need to be replaced (usually wear out about 75k miles).

If squeaking, try some silicone. Will help for a while until they eventually do get replaced. The new ones have been changed and have a built-in nylon or silicone liner so they stay quiet.

[haasman]

Going into a driveway where the suspension gets compressed or extended, I get a groaning noise from the front.

The bushings were replaced 30k miles ago.

[John Plut]

I purchased a heavy duty swaybar for my Volvo and it came with a thick green sticky lube that the instructions said to use on the bushings (the bushings were polyethylene).
I can't remember exactly what the lube was called but it was for use on ships and saltwater resistant.

As for the MBZ, mine makes a little groan sometimes and I plan to lube the bushings next time I have the belly pan off. To properly lube them, you need to remove the bushings and coat the entire contact surface.

[haasman]

John ...What should I use to lube the bushings?

[John Plut]

I would use a silicone based grease like syl-glide. Regular grease is not good for rubber bushings.

[csnow]

I agree with John. Silicone grease works great for this problem, and the bushings will last longer besides.
You will need to detach the brackets and slide the bushings to one side to properly apply. Clean the surface of the bar with brake cleaning solvent (or something that does not leave a residue) before applying the grease. I also had to use a little sandpaper to get the surface smooth and clean.
The end bushings actually take the most abuse, since they allow for some 'slide' as the control arms move in addition to the 'twisting' motion you would expect. After 200K miles, the metal in this 'sliding' area has actually worn down to a noticable extent in my case.
Most other (non-MB) cars have an additional short 'end-link' segment to absorb lateral motion.

I have been searching for replacement polyurethane bushings with no success. If I do find them (or fabricate some), I will fit them with a zerk fitting so that they can be greased without dissassembly. Poly bushings are somewhat more likely to groan or squeak if not greased then rubber.

[Mick J]

Buy a new set - they cost peanuts and take no more than 20 mins to fit - you don't even need to jack the car up (though it helps).

[-fad]

...had sqeaky front sway bar bushings on the e500- - had them replaced and now no problemo...

-fad
'94 E500 (39.2k)
'94 E320 Coupe (105k)

rubber suspension bushings are not supposed to slide on the metal parts which they touch -- all the movement is supposed to be absorbed by compression and tension within the body of the rubber itself. Therefore, when they start to squeeeeeeek, they have hardened beyond proper usefulness and should be replaced, not lubed. Lubricating good new bushings just defeats their design, except to use a tire-mounting type solution (designed to evaporate away without leaving any slippery residue) to ease getting them squeeeezed into place during assembly, but if you do have some that are overdue for replacement, go ahead and lube them to get rid of the squeeeeek, but be aware that it will just finish the wear-out process faster.

[haasman]

Thanks for the replies-

Both the front and rear bushings have been replaced within the last two years and less than fifty-thousand miles.

Fimum Fit

Are you suggesting that the bushings should have been tightened at static ride height? Not while up on a jack?

[John Plut]

I agree with Fit in regard to the rubber sway bar bushings. They are supposed to flex and therefore not need lubrication. Im still planning to try it to pinpoint if my noise is coming from the bushings. If so, I will replace them. Polyurethane bushings however, are not flexible and need to be lubricated or they will make noise from the get-go.