I need a new driver's side kingpin for my 108 chassis, fast. I've seen quite a few listed on eBay recurringly by several sellers, but none have kingpins listed right now. Does anyone know where I can buy a kingpin, or should I just wait and call Phil on Monday?

Thanks!

Call Phil. You will have to have the bushings pressed out, the new ones pressed in and reamed to the correct size.

__________________
Regards

Warren

Currently 1965 220Sb, 2002 FORD Crown Vic Police Interceptor

Had 1965 220SEb, 1967 230S, 280SE 4.5, 300SE (W126), 420SEL

ENTER > = (HP RPN)

Not part of the in-crowd since 1952.

Never mind, I got it fixed, but it took me and my father all day to get it done. I needed to install a repair kit for the bushings and bolt where the upper control arm attaches to the kingpin. I had been planning to do it for months, but I finally got a free minute. The old bolt was frozen in the threaded adjustor, and the adjustor was frozen to the kingpin. We had to cut the bolt off at the kingpin with a Sawzall in order to simply remove the kingpin. Then it took all afternoon of repeatedly heating and twisting to get the adjustor insert out. We welded a bolt to the insert about 5 or 6 different times before it finally twisted out of there. What a job. I thought the kingpin was done for, but by some small miracle I was able to reuse it. This is precisely what happens when previous owners forget to grease the less obvious fittings. Now I have to go see my mechanic for a proper front end alignment.

The same thing happened to my 230S. I had to use a cutting torch. The bronze bushings weren't worn so replacement wasn't necessary.

__________________
Regards

Warren

Currently 1965 220Sb, 2002 FORD Crown Vic Police Interceptor

Had 1965 220SEb, 1967 230S, 280SE 4.5, 300SE (W126), 420SEL

ENTER > = (HP RPN)

Not part of the in-crowd since 1952.

Kingpin for a w108???

I thought Scarface drove a Porsche in the movie, though.

A lot of heat, plenty of Kroil. That stuff is wonderful. Have a fire extinguisher handy when using both together.

-CTH

__________________
- cth350@gmail.com
http://www.111lakeside.com/

Mockles:

Yes, the W108/109 was the last Benz with a kingpin front axle rather than ball joints.

M-Anker:

The proper tool for removing the insert is to grind the head of a bolt down so that it fits into the notches in the sleeve, adjuster end (provided the notches are still there). I believe a 60 mm x 10mm bolt is the correct size. You can then screw a nut onto the thread sticking out and put a pair of vise grips or a Crescent on the head, works wonders. Useless if the notches are gone, though.

Save this thought for the other side if it has too much play.

You did center the sleeve, with one rubber seal on each end, right? Mine had both rubber seals on one side and was screwed almost flush on one end -- someone set the caster with the sleeve instead of the caster adjustment on the subframe. The adjustment at the upper control arm is for less than one degree fine tuning.

Also, make SURE the guy doing the alignment knows how to do one on this car, it's not ANYTHING like a modern suspension!

Peter

__________________
1972 220D ?? miles
1988 300E 200,012
1987 300D Turbo killed 9/25/07, 275,000 miles
1985 Volvo 740 GLE Turobodiesel 218,000
1972 280 SE 4.5 165, 000 - It runs!

psfred,

I've seen the diagram to make the tool, but it was completely unusable in my situation. The bolt was seized to the inside of the insert to the point that it was almost one piece of metal. I even tried pressing the bolt out with a shop press and it would not budge. The only alternative I had was to weld a bolt on the bolt/insert where I had cut it off. I had to heat it repeatedly with a torch and apply Aero-kroil several times before I was able to make it turn a few degrees. In my situation, the tool would have been completely useless.

Yes, the sleve is centered as near perfect as I can get it. I assembled it by the book, and I packed everything with lots of semi-synthetic grease.

Also, my alignment guy is about 50 some years old, so he is well aware of the older suspensions. I hired him to replace a lower control arm on the passenger side after I hit a high curb in the snow. The car slid into the curb so that only the front wheel hit, and the impact was a square blow hard enough to buckle the control arm where it mounts to the rest of the front end. I asked him to line it up then, but he found one of the bushings missing (THANKS P.O.) and refused to align the car. I tried to get him to install the repair kit, but all he did was beat it with a hammer. I'd rather not pay for a full day's work anyway I guess when you start to remove a control arm, you have no choice but to finish it, but he didn't want to do the work for the repair kit. I suppose he might have if I left him a whole new kingpin and cut the old bolt out myself

Anyway, it's going in for an alignment Friday, I'm going to get the front wheels spin-balanced tomorrow (speed related vibration at arould 80mph), and I have all new shock absorbers. It's starting to handle just like it should, tight, and ride much better.

By the way, is there some kind of O-ring used in the exhaust couplers where the down-pipe attaches to the exhaust manifolds? You know the connectors in the engine compartment with the three bolts. I had a rattle there and had to loosen those bolts, treat them with never-seize, and retighten them to remove the rattle. I would think that there might have been an asbestos o-ring in between there at one time???

Six or eight cylinder?

On the V-8, there is a small steel/asbestos (or something like that) ring that goes over the end of the pipe and up against a taper in the manifold. About 1/8" diameter, very small. It usually sticks to the pipe, and is normally squashed flat. It's above the flared portion, the clamp ring goes on the other end of that part to push the flared part up in the manifold.

I assume the six cylinder has one on each pipe.

Peter

__________________
1972 220D ?? miles
1988 300E 200,012
1987 300D Turbo killed 9/25/07, 275,000 miles
1985 Volvo 740 GLE Turobodiesel 218,000
1972 280 SE 4.5 165, 000 - It runs!

It's a six cylinder. I didn't totally disassemble it, but I assume the asbestos piece is in there. The bumps on the exhaust system must have just forced everything loose. It's nice and quiet now.