Howdy,

I am going to attempt to replace my upper control arms next week. (the only shop I trust is busy til Sat.) Am I insane, or can I actually accomplish this without any "especially made for this task and nothing else" tool? Any hints to make life bearable or should I just wait til Sat. and buy some cheap tires in the meantime so I can watch them deteriorate in front of me?

Any, thougths/insights/advice/whatever appreciated. thanks

-Larry

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03/83 300D
07/73 280

You have to compress the spring. You may be able to rent one at the nearest Autozone. You will have to get an alignment after ANY suspension work.

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Benzmac:
1981 280GE SWB
1987 16V
ASE CERTIFIED MASTER AUTO TECHNICIAN
SERVICE MANAGER FOR 14 BAY FACILITY
MERCEDES SPECIALIST 8 YRS
PARTNER IN MERCEDESSHOP.COM

Thanks Benzmac!

It looks like I will have to remove the shock absorber too. I am going to most likely have the front of the car off of the ground. Next I would loosen the top of the shock (am I correct in assuming that I don't have to remove the shock totally?) Then I would compress the spring (?) After that out comes the bolt for the arm (the one accessible from inside of the engine compartment) and the swaybar bolt/nut. Now here is the part I am not sure of at all...will there be enough room to slide the arm off of the swaybar? It was suggested to me that I may need a tool a-la gearpuller to get the arm off of the bar, is this possible?
Again thank you for the reply, I was starting to get worried.

-Larry

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03/83 300D
07/73 280

I replaced the left upper control arm without any special tools and without removing the shock absorber. I kept the spring compressed by supporting the lower control arm.
You may need some extra hands, getting the inside bold (engine compartment) back in was quite a hassle. We managed by letting one person control the jack and thus vary the hight of te car and the other trying to get the bolt through in the mean time.

Good luck,

Pieter Noorlander
'83 300TD

Hello again!

Well I just got done a little while ago, and I could not have done it by myself. I did have to loosen the top of the shock, or else the bolt for the swaybar wasn't going to come out all of the way. The spring was compressed with a jack below ( I saw this done when the lower balljoints were replaced a few months ago). The biggest hassle was the fact that the swaybar was slightly wider than the holes it was supposed to go into...as in if you imagined the swaybar like a giant "U", the legs if you will were bowed out. That is where the "helper" comes in very,very handy! Besides that the only other annoyance was having to remove the aircleaner housing to get to the pass. control arm bolt. (boohoo)

One thing that I noticed, is that the calipers were made by Bendix...is that right? Is that OE?

Thanks for all of your help!

-Larry

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03/83 300D
07/73 280