124 rear fails bounce test
 

when the rear is 'bounced' at each corner it continues bouncing slightly a couple times more. the front bounces then returns to normal position straightaway. I presume this means worn-out shocks? rear of the car feels kinda squirelly at highway speeds too and i have the 60mph steering wheel vibration problem too... oh what fun!

Yes, your shocks are badly worn.

"Bounce tests" don't mean much. The true test is if the body wallows around excessively on bumpy or wavy roads at moderate speeds.

The OE deCarbon type shocks/struts generally maintain their damping characteristics for a very long time, then fail completely, which is usually evidenced by significant oil leakage.

Duke

thanks for your replies.

i don't see a whole lot of oil leakage though it looks like there is some on there. These look like the original struts so ast 193K i'm figuring time to replace?

Bilstein, here I come. ;)

that's what i was thinking:-) question is, do I go for comfort or HD???

Depends on the ride you want. Comforts will give a very smooth ride at the expense of a bit more body lean. HD will ride considerably harder.

I put HD on the Volvo, and wish I'd stuck with the comforts, it's too harsh on the highway now.

Check the condition of the rubber bushings on the links on the rear suspension while you are in there, too -- any evidence of shredding on the inside end of the torque strut (upper diagonal from wheel carrier to subframe) means you need new ones. Do both sides if one is bad, I didn't and now need to do the other one. When this link goes bad, the toe on the rear wheel changes with torque, so that the rear end moves on acceleration and deceleration. Makes it hard to drive.

If you just have vague and wandering steering, get an alignment done up front using a spreader bar. If the guy at the alignment place looks blank when you say "spreader bar", take it someplace else, as setting the front toe without the spreader causes incorrect toe-in (too much) and the car will feel like an elephant on rollerskates.

Peter

Peter

I have heard that rears don't last as long as fronts. If you stuck with comforts you start by replacing just the rears and see what effect it has. The rears also cost about half of the fronts and are easier to put on.

PSFRED and spreader bar
 

Ok Fred, Give us more info on the spreader bar, what it does, and why it is critical. I just put new wheels and tires on a W210 and want to get it checked just in case. (plus it may be pulling just a hair to the right since I replaced the brake rotors in the front and had to wail on the right rotor pretty hard with a 5 pound beater to get it off. Yeah I know I should have used a puller, but it was at my other garage at the time) Also, will incorrect toe cause reaction to crowns in the road?

I think i'll go with the comforts, although I like a controlled ride, from the postings it seems the HD's are a little too hard (especially with the roads 'round here, and I like to run pretty high PSI's)
I was poking around the other day to look for fluid leakage and the rear bushings seem to be in pretty good condition all-round. Not amazing, but i think ok for now.
The front sway bar bushings I want to replace though as they are starting to crack- does anyone know if i need 1 or 2 of these kits for the front?

one more thing...
 

does anyone know where the chassis # is on the W124, or what chassis# a late 91 300e is?

91 300E will be a W124. It's in the VIN number, starts out WDB124, I think.

You have all the bits for the sway bar there -- four rubber pieces and the bolts and nuts. Only four rubber parts for the W124.

The spreader bar is a bar used to spread the front wheels at the front side when setting the toe to take all the play out of the suspension. McPherson strut systems tend flex a bit under load, and if that flex isn't provided when aligning, the toe won't be correct. Yes, improper toe will cause the car to be excessively sensitive to crown and to follow ridges or ruts. My 300D needs the front done, but I'd not going to align it until I get the other links replace in the back. I had the TE done this summer when I put new tires on it, and it is almost impervious to crosswinds or crowns. Quite a difference.

Peter

re the sway bar- i should have worded my question better- what i meant was do i need one of these kits for each side, or does the kit do both L & R bars?

One sway bar, a bushing on each end and two on the frame. You have the entire set of bits for the car, both sides.

The older swaybar setups had four bushings on each control arm, and two large bushings on the frame. On the W124, there is a circular bushing on the control arms and two circular bushings on the frame.

Be careful not to twist off the bolts welded to the control arms.

Peter

Shock absorbers have NO effect on steady state body roll. Shocks are purely transient damping devices that provide a resisting force proportional the the velocity at which they are stroked. They can effect the rate at which the body rolls when you pitch into a corner, but not the steady state roll through a sweeper.

The Bilstein comfort shocks should be calibrated equal or near equal to OE. Mercedes probably has the best ride/handling compromise for normal street and highway driving of any sedan built, and I would not install the HD Bilsteins unless you're doing some serious racing or rallying.

Duke