good morning forum friends,

Please give your advice about shock absorbers..
And WHICH brand to go with???
82' 240d
One of my rear shocks began to leak(bad) this week, should I replace both? How long can I drive on it while leaking?

Anyone have any experience with K-Y-B shocks. (they are half the money) are they compareable to Bilstien's?
I saw Fastlane has "KYB Gas-a-just" what are they??

I would really appreciate if someone could comment on what to expect between the "Heavy Duty" shock as opposed to the "Comfort".

So between:

Bilstien
Boge (I don't think they are available in HD)
KYB

based on experince or what you've heard, which would you buy?

Oh, yeah, and any installation advice would really be appreciated, any special tools required?

Thanks much in advance!!!
dave

Bilstein
Can't comment on difference between comfort/heavy duty - have only ever used comfort.
12 pt, 12 mm (if I remember correctly) box end wrench with the outer edge ground a little for clearance - used on the lower fasteners of the front shocks.

__________________
Jim

I think those twelve point bolts for the lower, front shock mount are 10MM. I have never had to grind down a wrench for this. I just turn the wheel back and forth to get to them alternatively.

There are many more shock choices for the 123 cars than there are for the 124's.

I have found that the KYB's for the 124 cars are junk. They not only are short lived, but before they play out, they are like having steel rods mounted in their place.

For the 123 cars, or any MB, you can't beat the Bilstiens, but they're pricey. Since these cars have just plain old shocks front and rear instead of the front struts of the 124's, I had good luck with the Performance Gas shocks from Sears back when I drove the 123's alot. The problem is that I don't think Sears has them any more. I was in the Sears Auto department the other day and the only shocks they had on display were Monroes.

I bought a set of Performance Gas, lifetime guaranteed shocks for my 240D early on and got quite a number of free replacements thereafter. They worked well and were certainly economical given that I put over 500,000 miles on the car. The poor people at Sears had no idea who they were selling them to.

Good luck,

On comfort and HD, I believe that comfort is OEM spec and the HD's are just that, a little stouter and firmer. I put HD's on my 300D and I love them. They start out very stiff, and soften up in a matter of days/weeks. I personally wish they had stayed as stiff as the first time I put them on the car. I think it's just a matter of taste and I like the firmer feel.

The other tidbit I would add to the installation advice, is to spend about a week before you do the job putting penetrating oil on the fasteners. I find that if I do that, removing the bolts is much easier, and in my case the shocks I removed were 25 years old. Replacing the rear shocks is pretty straightforward, if the bolts aren't frozen, as one of mine was.

Good luck and stick with the Bilsteins, you'll be glad you did.

JCD

My advise is do NOT get KYB!! I have seen them leak in most chassis they are installed in - sometimes the leak is massive!!

__________________
Brian Toscano

Keep in mind where you live. I do a lot of driving in DC, and the city roads are pretty bad. I think the ride would be too stiff if I had put the HDs on. My w124 coupe feels harsh in the city compared to the w123. Besides, you aren't really going to enhance the handling of the w123 no matter what you do, so I'd say just put in the comforts, sit back, and enjoy the ride!

GregS
'84 300D
'90 300CE

The lower bolts are 10mm, 12point. If you disconnect the upper mount first you can cmpress the shock and 'swing' it to a verticle position and the lower bolts wil have interferance free access. Always replace in pairs!! do NOT install gabrials, they suck. easy job, about 15 minutes per side. LOL.
Oops this is for the front shocks, the rear shocks are very easy also and straight forward. You need to remove the rear seat back.

thebern

__________________
1982 240D 313,000 (4 speed)
1984 300CD 172,483
1985 German Shepherd Dog -Lacey- R.I.P.11/04/05

Hood Stars, Wrist Crowns and Obsession Dobs

Yes, that's the trick. It's been a long time since I replaced 123 shocks.

Disconnect the top first when removing, and connect it last when reinstalling. With stiff gas shocks it can be a challenge. There is wire holding the shocks compressed for shipping. Get the bottom bolts both tight before clipping the wire, then be ready to guide the stud into place as soon as you clip the wire. If you don't hit the mount, you will have to muscle them closed a little to jockey them into place.

Good luck,

I told ya'll my memory ain't what it used to be - comes with age. That sounds like an excellent idea about removing the top and swinging the shock out of the way. thanks

__________________
Jim

Lucky for this wanna-be grease monkey, the Bilstein installation instructions for the fronts advised using this method for removal and installation.

Still need to buy/do rears...no idea how to remove the tops of the shocks back there tho.

Chris
'85 300SD

To remove the rear shocks the bottom is obvious, the top requires removing the rear seat back.

To remove the rear seat back, push the red buttons on the rear seat bottom, lift up the front and move it forward. Then you can reach some small (I believe 8MM) screws on either side at the bottom of the seat back. As I recall, there is also one below the armrest in the center. Once all the screws are loose where the bottom moves forward a few inches, then pull the seat up to loosen some tabs that hold the seat back at the top.

Lean the seat back forward and you will see the shock tops.

Good luck,

ck42... for the back ones I think you pull the back seat (upper) and there is a round plastic cover on each side to get to them. At least that's what it looked like to me, haven't done the back shocks yet.

__________________
1985 300D Turbo ~225k
2000 F350 (Powerstroke) 4X4, SWB, CC, SRW, 6spd ~148k
1999 International 4900, DT466e (250hp/660 ft/lbs), Allison MD3060 ~73k

Wow....that's a pretty weird thing to have to do just to remove the top part of the shock....

Definitely a warm weather project.
Thanx for the info.

Chris
'85 300SD

stay away from the KYG. They'll be half the price the many times you replace them! The Bilsteins will last almost forever (I think some have a lifetime guarantee) MIne had KYG's when I got it. All rusted out, no performance, just miserable.

I put Bilstein comforts on the back, HD's upfront. (got the comforts cheap on ebay) they feel great. Invest the money in the better shocks. YOu wont regret it.

__________________
Paul
2004 E500 4matic; 72,000mi

Gentlemen, I thank all of you very kindly for offering your ideas and opinions!
The information received here is so valuable to a MB "newbe" like me.
Install tips have instilled confidence as well as given me an idea of how much time I will need.
Much appreciation to all.
dave