I was looking into replacing lower ball joints on my 1993 400E, so I looked at the Mercedes EPC to get a part number. To my surprise, the EPC does not show a separate ball joint for the 400E (124.034)--just the 500E (124.036).

I went to the dealer and talked to the parts manager, who confirmed that I cannot purchase separate ball joints for the 400E. A tech subsequently confirmed this. Also, when I look up 400E ball joints at Fastlane, there is no such part--only the entire lower control assembly. But there is a 500E balljoint on Fastlane.

Anyone have any idea why the 400E does not allow individual ball joint replacement?

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1993 400E, 256,000 miles (totaled)
1994 E420, 200,000+ miles
1995 E420, 201,000 miles