Front shocks/strut 88 Benz?

[bennett]

Just curious.. I did search but got a little confused wether I need a spring compressor of not..

We have a 88 190E with 150k on it. The front suspenison needs some work. The shock/struts are dry and show no sign of oil leakage but I was told they need to be replaced for $700
There is a clunk in the front end when the shock compresses and the front end is soft and bouncy.

I have several questions..
Looks like the best price is fastlane for the shock ( $108)and not having done a benz.. it looks like a spring compressor is not needed? am I right on that?
Any special tools or procedure that I need to be aware of?

Thanks

[tvpierce]

You're right, no spring compressor is needed. It's a pretty straight forward job.

Jeff Pierce

[JoeR]

No spring compressor, BUT you DO need to support the lower control arm somehow.

[Duke2.6]

Set the front lower control arms on jackstands or some other solid foundation. Then you can remove the strut. The weight of the car keeps the springs compressed.

I somewhat question whether the shocks need to be replaced if they are dry, but as long as you take everything apart...

You can buy Bilstein replacements through the aftermarket that are OE equivalent. They are generally referred to as "comfort shocks". Also, replace the upper shock mounts and dust gators. The OE strut shaft key is metric hex, but the Bilstein replacement I bought about ten years ago was Torx.

Duke

[tvpierce]

Excellent point, Joe.

If you can't do it with the wheel still on the car, then the control arm MUST be supported in a similar fashion to what it would be if the wheel WERE on. Remember, the strut is the only thing keeping the spring from shooting out and hitting you in the head. So if you remove the strut without supporting the control arm, things are gonna get really exciting -- really quick!
A floorjack at the ball joint will do the trick -- Duke's suggestion of the jack stands is even better.

As a safety measure, I like to wrap a chain through the middle of the spring and around the control arm. That way if something were to happen, the damage would be little to none.

Jeff Pierce

[bennett]

Originally posted by Duke2.6
.

I somewhat question whether the shocks need to be replaced if they are dry, but as long as you take everything apart...

You can buy Bilstein replacements through the aftermarket that are OE equivalent. They are generally referred to as "comfort shocks". Also, replace the upper shock mounts and dust gators. The OE strut shaft key is metric hex, but the Bilstein replacement I bought about ten years ago was Torx.

Duke [/B]

Like I said the shocks looks great... what else might be causing the clunk... control rod bushings?

[Duke2.6]

Deteriorated upper shock mounts could cause the "clunk", or deteriorated control arm bushings.

deCarbon type shocks typically maintain their damping characteristics until end of life when a seal goes and they loose the gas pressure and oil. Then they DEFINITELY need to be replaced.

I had one front shock go ten years ago at about 60K miles. A friend I had just visited called to say my car left a puddle of oil in his driveway. Inspection showed oil all over the inside of the wheel and strut. I just replaced the one shock, which is okay with deCarbon type shocks. They don't need to be replaced in pairs if just one side fails.

A couple of years ago I pulled the front struts to replace disintegrating dust gators, I removed the upper mounts for cleaning and close inspection and they looked like new, so I did not replace them.

Very occasionally I hear a "clunk" or "creak" when the wheel is turned sharp left and the suspension goes into rebound. - like turning into a steep downsloping driveway. I've never been able to find a deteriorated component, so I'll just have to wait until it gets worse and I can isolate the cause.

Duke

[bennett]

Thanks for the info.. btt if anyone else has input.

[sbourg]

Originally posted by Duke2.6
deCarbon type shocks typically maintain their damping characteristics until end of life when a seal goes and they loose the gas pressure and oil. Then they DEFINITELY need to be replaced.

I had one front shock go ten years ago at about 60K miles. A friend I had just visited called to say my car left a puddle of oil in his driveway. Inspection showed oil all over the inside of the wheel and strut. I just replaced the one shock, which is okay with deCarbon type shocks. They don't need to be replaced in pairs if just one side fails.

My experience suggests pairs are advisable. When we first acquired the 190E, it had some tricky handling characteristics I associated with a bad rear shock. I replaced both. Turns out the problem was unrelated - a loose track arm bolt - and the old shocks were perfectly fine. They felt very similar L to R when manually depressing the cylinders, off the car. They were distinctly softer though than the new comfort shocks. This is not surprising, and could be the result of worn flow passages and valving internally, and also possibly slight changes in specification.

I can't say how much difference I would have noticed in handling if I had mixed one old and one new. Had a shock failed when much newer, it might make sense to replace only one. When age is related to the failure, I don't see much point in trying to replace just one.

Steve

[MTI]

In the front of a W201, anytime you're replacing a strut, it's always a good idea to replace the rubber tower mounts, the bump stops and the dust boots as a matter of course. Seems silly to be "penny wise" on those items.