So, if anyone knows of a good existing thread covering what I'm looking for, please send me the link.
Wondering about suspension upgrades. Currently doing a lot of driving on some crazy mountain roads carrying a lot of weight. Suspension needs help. Part of it is probably the age of the shocks. So wondering about shocks. How heavy duty are the heavy duty shocks? Is there a weight rating of some kind? Would the shocks from a wagon fit into a sedan (300D), and would they be any stronger than the sedan shocks? Any thoughts on additional ground clearance? Oil pan is in SERIOUS danger of getting smashed out here. Planning on a roof rack to redistribute weight a bit better, which should be pretty straight forward once I find the right material. Also planning on a heavy duty cow catcher front end to save me from the deer, and maybe some bracing and caging of the front end to facilitate that. All of which will add more weight.
So, suspension advice?
Planning on adding a manual switch to the electric fan to keep the temp down on the long, low speed climbs. Wondering about transmission cooler options. Maybe something mounted somewhere that isn't directly in front of the radiator. Other than that. Great mountain roads. Will try to get some pics and vids. Having a hard time getting them off my camera right now.

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Kanthaka 4

For shocks your choices are usually Bilstein or Sachs or obviously MB. If I recall correctly, Bilstein has 3 styles that correspond to Comfort, known as the B4, .....I may not have Bilsteins new numbering system correct so someone correct me if necessary.......Heavy Duty, known as B6, and Sport, B8. To my knowledge ,Sachs only makes a single type of shock. Pelican carries Bilstein and MB at a pretty big difference in price.

Couldn't help you on the fitment of wagon to a sedan question you posed.

You didn't mention replacing the springs. Looks like for around $250+/- you can have new springs all the way around if you look at Pelican's offerings...front set ~$110....rear set ~$250.

And if the rubber is original...strut mounts, spring shims, ?swaybar? that's all gotta be replaced too.

Good luck.

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'89 260e (212K Mi.), '92 400e (208K Mi.), '92 400e (not a misprint) (146K Mi.), '95 C220, '81 240D--Sold

.......correction.....rear set of springs should read ~$150 not $250.....

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'89 260e (212K Mi.), '92 400e (208K Mi.), '92 400e (not a misprint) (146K Mi.), '95 C220, '81 240D--Sold

Suspension: Many options for increasing the spring strength, adding height with thicker spring pads. Look in the factory service manual for the survey of springs available for 123 cars. None of them will increase the amount of weight that you can carry, but they will increase the ride height.

SLS from a wagon can be fitted, you'll need lots and lots of parts. Would be a fun project. At a minimum: lower control arms from a wagon, SLS struts, hydraulic spheres, control valve, reservoir, pipes, and some sort of electric hydraulic pump to add pressure when called for. I'm not sure how the upper hydraulic strut mounts will work, I don't know if they are identical to the shock and bolt right in or if you will need to modify that mount. SLS was an option for sedans, but extremely rare.

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Respectfully,
/s/
M. Dillon
'87 124.193 (300TD) "White Whale", ~392k miles, 3.5l IP fitted
'95 124.131 (E300) "Sapphire", 380k miles
'73 Balboa 20 "Sanctification"
Charleston SC

I have a set of Koni's on the front. They are adjustable, from a bit stiffer than stock to are they working at all? They've been on the car for a quarter million miles, and other than failing paint, no hint of trouble. I have the heavy duty Bilsteins on the back, showing their age at a mere 150K miles, and not as stiff as the Koni's.

I'm not sure which model you have, but there are unused water passage ports on the left side of the head. One of these is where the temperature sensor sits. Fit a switch set for the temperature of your choice, rather than doing it manually. On the 60x engines, the ports are threaded 22mmx1.5, which gives you a very wide choice of fan switches. VW applications used a variety of 22mm switches with on temperatures from 170-192. I'm using a Porsche 944 switch with an on temp of 85C. The fan strategy used by Mercedes is unusual to say the least.