1984 300D: Front end rebuilt, advice sought!

[bentoCA]

Hi all,

I recently moved to CA from the United Kingdom, and I've bought a 1984 300D Turbodiesel (my first car!). It's a beautiful car and a pleasure to drive. I'm planning on looking after it as best I can afford (I had the sunroof out last weekend, new fuses, some new seals, detinted the salvaged door etc). I was assured mechanically it had been looked after, and that is certainly true for the engine, but not so for the front end suspension it seems!

After noticing a pull towards the right whilst driving, I took it down for alignment. Unfortunately I am told it needs new:

Lower ball joints $601
Upper control arms $380
Front shocks $241
Rear shocks (can wait) $476
Idler $156
Dampner $120
2x front tires $120
Alignment $90

This stomach churning total is approaching what I paid for the car... I fully expected some cost associated with maintaining an old car but this... hmm.
Do these numbers seem reasonable? Are any of these parts easily doable at home, I looked over the guides and saw that a press is needed for some of the front end rebuilt, and I'm not so keen on that.

Any advice, is greatly appreciated!

[engatwork]

Pricing sounds hi to me.

[martureo]

Originally Posted by bentoCA

Hi all,

I recently moved to CA from the United Kingdom, and I've bought a 1984 300D Turbodiesel (my first car!). It's a beautiful car and a pleasure to drive. I'm planning on looking after it as best I can afford (I had the sunroof out last weekend, new fuses, some new seals, detinted the salvaged door etc). I was assured mechanically it had been looked after, and that is certainly true for the engine, but not so for the front end suspension it seems!

After noticing a pull towards the right whilst driving, I took it down for alignment. Unfortunately I am told it needs new:

Lower ball joints $601
Upper control arms $380
Front shocks $241
Rear shocks (can wait) $476
Idler $156
Dampner $120
2x front tires $120
Alignment $90

This stomach churning total is approaching what I paid for the car... I fully expected some cost associated with maintaining an old car but this... hmm.
Do these numbers seem reasonable? Are any of these parts easily doable at home, I looked over the guides and saw that a press is needed for some of the front end rebuilt, and I'm not so keen on that.

Any advice, is greatly appreciated!

To do it at home you need a spring compressor (get the proper one), a press to put the ball joints in and some type of press (I used some massive c-clamps) to put the lower control arm bushings in.

I'd say look around on the forum for someone with those tools and rent/borrow them.

The job isn't dangerous or really intensive to the point where it's out of reach for the home mechanic. And you're really going to be paying mostly for labor, the parts aren't that pricey to begin with.

But while your in there replace the guide rod mounts as well, IIRC ~$50 a piece. They're the little rod that connects the lower control arm to further back on the body.

[cooljjay]

Price is far considering parts and labor. Make sure if you have it done, that they use non uro brand parts. Hard to say what you needed with out an inspection though. If you don't have uneven wear on the tires I would suggest just working on the steering components first as that is what is causing pulling. Everything on the list is pretty easy jobs besides the alignment and lower ball joints. I would recommend doing what you can before having the shop go in...

And remember the saying...

There is no such thing as a cheap Mercedes.....

[ROLLGUY]

Check out:
http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/diesel-discussion/332997-123-suspension-front-end-rebuild.html

When I did my own car, I spent about $400 on parts here on PP, and did the labor myself. I did not replace the guide rod mounts, as they were still stiff and no play was found in them. If you are a DIY kind of guy, you can do all the work yourself. If not so much, then you can do as much as you are capable of, and farm out the rest. You will definitely need to have the alignment done by a professional. If you are near So. Cal, I could maybe help you out...Rich