Car is a manual 1987 300e with around 165,000 km on clock.

Have a small amount of play in the driveline, which is most evident with the clutch engaged on the overrun coasting to a stop.

I have recently replaced the front flex disc and transmission mount, which improved the problem considerably, howevr there is still sufficient play somewhere in the driveline to be annoying.

I have visually checked the rear differential mounts and they seemed to be ok, although I plan to check them more thoroughly by jacking the chassis up and moving the diff this weekend.

My mechanic suggests it may be play in the differential gears, which I suppose is possible if the PO did not change oil as often as he should have. This is likely. Mechanic also suggests if this is the case, it might be possible to adjust the play with shims. Does anyone have experience of this?

Another suspect is the balance weight mounted behind the front flex disc.

The balance weight is a three point triangular mounting secured to a metal collar with rubber. The rubber damper material has worn and the inner mounting has been tack welded to the outer collar (I know, I keep discovering bodges like this. Wish I'd known more about the car and taken a closer look before I bought it)

Bearing in mind that the balance weight was apparently discontinued on the later 124s (what we know as the Masterpiece edition, the last E320/124s) , I'm asking whether anyone has experience with the function and purpose of this weight and whether it being in sub-standard condition is likely to cause the driveline problems I'm getting?

Plus, of course, any other tips for keeping things smooth in the driveline.

__________________
1987 300e manual 250,000 km (sold)

Most people take the balance weight off and leave it off.

If the slop were due to low or no oil in differential, the rear axle would be VERY noisy.

The most likely place for the slop are the flex disks and the differential mounts. The front flex disk fails first because it deals with much more heat. If you replace it, pay close attention to which way you put it in. It is marked in German, so look closely at the one you are taking out and compare to the new one.

Also shake the driveshaft up and down to check the center bearing carrier.

Good luck,

Hi Larry,

thanks for the reply.

I saw your earlier post about putting the front disk on correctly and double checked when it went on. I'm pretty sure I replaced the original item so no doubt the rear is ready for renewal as well. I'll be checking that when I look at the diff mounts.

Thanks for the tip about the balance weight, my mechanic also suggested taking it off so nice to have that confirmed.

No thoughts on wear in the diff gears? Ever heard of this happening?

__________________
1987 300e manual 250,000 km (sold)

One thing to check when re-newing the rear flex disc is the centering pin a.k.a. the Driveshaft Support. It centers the rear driveshaft onto the differential, contains a rubber ring that holds grease inside. Likely the rubber ring has worn out as it has on mine.
Replacement requires removal of the driveshaft, a good time to do your center support as I should do mine. (vibration at 35-40mph, no load, from center of car) on mine.

__________________
63 220S W111
76 300D W115
2013 VW JSW TDI M6

previously-
73 280 SEL 4.5
86 300E 5 speed
2010 VW Jetta TDI M6

The U-Joints may also need to be replaced. Looks like a driveshaft overhaul is in order.

__________________
Regards

Warren

Currently 1965 220Sb, 2002 FORD Crown Vic Police Interceptor

Had 1965 220SEb, 1967 230S, 280SE 4.5, 300SE (W126), 420SEL

ENTER > = (HP RPN)

Not part of the in-crowd since 1952.

I believe driveline backlash like this is a combination of wear at several locations. I have the same problem with my 190E-2.3 Sportline 5-speed now showing almost 230,000km. I noticed service documents from the previous owner mentioning the problem. In response, the previous owner had the flex couplings replaced, engine mounts replaced and differential overhauled. Despite all this there is still backlash which I have simply learned to live with. Unless you are rough with it (or have clutch shudder as mine does cold after sitting for several days) there is no obvious problem. Checking components underneath does not reveal any one problem area. Instead, a combination of wear at various points appears to add up to cause the problem. I believe much of it may well be in the various splines, particularly on the rear axles. Remember also that backlash before the differential needs to be around 3 times more than backlash after the diff to have the same effect due to the gear ratio of the diff. My high kilometre 350SLC has noticeable wear in the rear axle splines which gives consderable backlash, masked only by the fact it has auto rather than manual transmission. As for the balance weight at the front flex coupling, I believe this was unique to the manual versions. My manual '90 190E has it whereas my auto '90 300TE (and '73 350SLC) do not.

__________________
107.023: 350SLC, 3-speed auto, icon gold, parchment MBtex (sold 2012 after 29 years ownership).
107.026: 500SLC, 4-speed auto, thistle green, green velour.
124.090: 300TE, 4-speed auto, arctic white, cream-beige MBtex.
201.028: 190E 2.3 Sportline, 5-speed manual, arctic white, blue leather.
201.028: 190E 2.3, 4-speed auto, blue-black, grey MBtex.
201.034: 190E 2.3-16, 5-speed manual, blue-black, black leather.