I need some new motor mounts. I clicked the "buy parts" link at the top of this page to order and found them to be $91. I could have sworn that they were only $60 a couple of weeks ago. Now the $115 price at the dealer is looking more attractive for a guaranteed-OEM part. Or perhaps this...

http://www.***************/catalog/lookup_parts.cfm?ovchn=FRO&ovcpn=mercedesbenz&ovcrn=engine/motor+mount&ovtac=CMP&vehiclemake=mercedes&vehiclemodel=300D&vehiclesubmodel=124.128&vehicleyear=1990&partnum=2012404317

Opinions? Would these mounts be any good? Here is FEBI brand for $75 with free shipping:

http://www.autodoctorparts.com/frames.php?go=wizard&partner=autodoctor&year=1990&make=MB&model=300-DT-003&category=A&part=Engine+Mount


Which mounts should I buy and why?

Thanks in advance.

__________________
-Dave

I have a 300D 2.5 and changed the motor mounts with aftermarket mounts at 131k miles. I think they were Febis. They only lasted 30 k miles. Even when they were new I had some rattling noises which I thought were noisy lifters or something. I assumed that the noises could not be related to the mounts since they were new.
When they failed I decided to replace them with original parts.
The original mounts are higher quality and even look better than the aftermarket mounts. They come with a 12 month unlimited mileage warranty. When I installed them all of the noises went away.

Caliber Motors (800-252-6877) gives 20% discounts and their price was not much more than the other parts houses.
Phil at Fastlane can get original Mercedes parts for you if you ask him.

__________________
Tom Hughes
St. Louis
84 300SD
92 300D
86 300SDL

Febis is if I'm not mistaken, is BilStein, which is OEM to MB.

The dome part of the original Mercedes mount is smooth. The aftermarket mounts which failed for me after 30k miles had a fluted dome like the ones pictured in the ********az catalog. (actually they did not work properly from the beginning with all those rattling noises but I did find that out until I replaced them)
From what I an tell, Febi is a division of Bilstein that makes parts for folks who want to save a little money up front and don't mind doing the same job over and over again. It has cost and will cost me over 600 bucks to find that out! ($150 or so for the motor mounts and $50 for a Febi belt tensioner shock that lasted about 5K miles plus my time to the job over again). On my 300SD I replaced the guide rod mounts with Febi guide rod mounts and was shocked to find that I can no longer get enough castor adjustment to meet the alignment specs (thats another $150 not counting the cost of the original parts I will have to use when I do the job the second time...and the installation time and the cost of a second alignment to get the car to steer properly .
I am not saying that all aftermarket parts are inferior. In fact I buy aftermarket parts most of the time. From my experience Bosch remanufactured starters and alternators are as good as what comes in a Mercedes box and Bilstein shocks are the same as originals. Lemforder parts seem to be fine.
But I have experience that is bought and paid for and the based on that I think that Febi parts are junk.
Spend a few extra bucks and get "original ersatzteile" for your job and you will save money in the long run.

__________________
Tom Hughes
St. Louis
84 300SD
92 300D
86 300SDL

Sounds like I need to get the mounts from the dealer. Thanks for the advice everyone.

__________________
-Dave

Hi,
"Febi Bilstein"aka Ferdinand Bilstein have never been,and I hope,will never be OEM to anyone of the car manufacturers...Not to be mistaken with "August Bilstein"-the shock makers,acquired by Krupp-Thyssen. Other brand with the FEBI level of "quality" is Vaico/Vemo,and ,to lesser extent,SWAG,Meyle(what they do is to wrap on their package the production of countless subcontractors and sell them MUCH cheaper...The ugly thing is that these "brands" are Germany-based Not to mention their various italian "colleagues"....Good luck!
P.S. I`m sure the mounts supplier to MB(maybe from the early 50-ies) is Phoenix AG(Megi is their automotive division)-a visit to their site and you`re sure the guys know what they`re doing...

I just ordered a new mount from the dealer today. It was $120 but I think I will sleep better at night.

__________________
-Dave

When in doubt- by from MB.

I've use to purchase aftermarket, but my time is worth a bunch! I found that when you get factory parts at wholesale, they are quite competitive with the aftermarket stuff. I've gotten Lemforder stuff that was made in Turkey-complete crap.
Yes, watch prices- bosch rebuild starters/alts are probably identical so if there is huge price difference go aftermarket.

Just don't comprimse the reliability by saving a few $$. Did every suspension part in my W124 with factory parts and aftermarket Bilsteins. I'm very happy with the results.

Michael

__________________
Michael McGuire
83 300d
01 vw A4 TDI
66 Chevy Corsa
68 GMC V6 w/oD
86 300E

Hi,
Michael,about the Lemfoerders from Turkey-did they have the turkish barcode or german???Or "made in Turkey" sign??Just curious....

box said made in Turkey...


Part in question was a camshaft for a 617. Journals were underground by 0.1 inches approximately. Garbage which fortunately wouldn't fit and I purchased a factory part instead.

I went round and round on ball joints a few years ago. The big push in the lists has been that Lemforder supplies them to MB. Looked at the stampings on the dealership joints -TRW. I did some searching. Turns out, the mechanics prefer Lemforder because they don't harden the shell of the ball joints. If it gets cocked when pressing-it doesn't damage their tool. Not a good thing for life and buying the TRW part from the dealership was 1/2-2/3 the price of buying it from a discounter.


Michael

__________________
Michael McGuire
83 300d
01 vw A4 TDI
66 Chevy Corsa
68 GMC V6 w/oD
86 300E