1989, 260E, W124
A few months ago I had my front/rear suspension/steering rebuilt at about 250K
Rear: All bushings, suspension arms, and shock
Front: shock, one tire-rod-end, one ball joint and the steering damper. There is no problem with the front suspension.
But the rear suspension is very high. There is a gap of almost 4inches between the tire and the fender. All parts came from a Benz dealer (no aftermarket)
All suspension arms/bushing bolts were tighten-up with the weight of the car on the suspension.
Today, I had all those suspension bolts/nut loosen again and re-thighten. No change.
Could it be the shocks?" They are original dealer item (Boge)
Any hints?
JackD

I don't know what it could be EXCEPT the shocks.

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2012 E350
2006 Callaway SC560

jackd, Did you or someone else do the rebuild?If someone else did the work they may have put the arms in the incorrect location. That may change the height. I rebuilt a 1987 300D Front and rear myself. I changed one part at a time. Norm in FL

I would pull the part #'s off the front and rear shocks and check them against known correct ones. Try a floor jack under the middle of the front crossmember. Does the rear drop as the front goes up? If so, the front struts may be too short (e.g. Sportline).

Steve

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'91 MB 190E 2.3
'08 RAV4 Ltd 3.5
'83 Lazy Daze m'home 5.7

Hmmm.... I was perusing the latest Performance Parts catalog, and it appears some 2.6's have the auto-levelling rear suspension. Does yours? If so, sounds like a simple height sensor adjust.

Steve

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'91 MB 190E 2.3
'08 RAV4 Ltd 3.5
'83 Lazy Daze m'home 5.7

My 260E does not have an auto-levelling rear suspension or any other special parts (sportline, lowered etc).
The job has been performed by a former Benz dealer mechanic with 30 years experience on Benz using only Benz parts. He has been working on my car for 12 years and always done everything perfectly. He personnaly owns 4 different W124.
Since the job was completed, he dismantles and reassembled the rear suspension twice (no charge) to try an locate the problem.
He agrees that something's wrong.
Is it possible that some suspensions parts have been installed at the wrong place ? (I doubt it as I can't see which one can be mixed-up and installed)

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This is probably not it, but on the W124, you can have different spring pads to adjust the height of the rear suspension. But by the sounds of it, it is most likely not this. This is quite strange since you didnt replace the springs. I would point to the shocks BUT I HIGHLY doubt they have enough pressure to jack the rear end up like that. hmmmm.....

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93 300D 2.5 Turbo, Black/Palomino 273K
09 E350 Black/Black 41K

I replaced the front shocks on our '91 and the front end definitely sat higher afterwards.

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2012 E350
2006 Callaway SC560

From the pic, the rear wheel definitely looks forward of the centerline of the wheel well. This might occur if one of the rear links was the incorrect part. Also look for collapsed subframe mounts.

Steve

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'91 MB 190E 2.3
'08 RAV4 Ltd 3.5
'83 Lazy Daze m'home 5.7

I had an other session with my mechanic this afternoon. We checked for misplaced suspension arm. There is apparently no possibilities of mix-up. One part can not be installed where it does not belong.
All springs (4) are original and no pads have been added/replaced/removed.
Shocks; We disconnected the 2 rear shock. The car came down by about 3/4in. (Shocks are original type Boge)
Sub frame bushings: Still in very good condition, not collapsed or any visible deformation.
Very strange. Any other idea? My mechanic told be he'd do everything required to fix it (no charge) but he simply can't find what's wrong with it.
jackD

I doubt if it would be possible to get links switched and have them fit. You mighty be able to substitute a track link from a 201 for the 124 item, though, for instance. This might cause the sort of problem you have. easy to compare the old links against the new for dimensional variance.

It's gotta be something, right, and if you discount the unlikely, you may waste a lot of time if you've skipped over the answer.

Steve

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'91 MB 190E 2.3
'08 RAV4 Ltd 3.5
'83 Lazy Daze m'home 5.7

Thanks for your reply.. I will not be able to compare the new links to the old one as they have been discarded. I have discussed the subject again with my mechanic this morning and he offered to come with me to our local Benz dealer, put the car on a hoist and spend as much time and money necessary to find the cause of the problem (at his cost).
Any other idea. If larry read this, I'd appreciate his comments. Thanks
JackD

Gas pressurized shocks have about 75 lbs of lift each so new shocks raised my car about 3/4" as the old ones were shot. The shocks sound right. The ride height is determined by the springs. On the 107s there are 3 spring pad heights. Did you replace spring pads? I might check the spring seats. Does the suspension operate normally?

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Steve
1985 Mercedes 500SL Euro (Gray market)
1995 BMW 520i Euro (Gray market)
1992 BMW 525it Wagon
1994 Honda Del Sol Si

i'd have the parts dept double check the part numbers.
just because you're using mb parts doesn't mean your "friendly" parts dept didn't screw anything up. wouldn't be the first time i'm sure lol.

The suspension works normally, although I feel it is very stiff as compared to how it felt before having the work done. But, having everything new, maybe that is how it should be. Switching old/deteriorated bushings and shock absorbers to all new parts certainly contributes to the stiffening of the suspension.
Spring pads: Nothing has been changed from the original set-up. The original springs have not been removed.
There must be a solution somewhere
JackD