Hi All

This week, my mech recommended some work on the car:


Rear control arms (The ones that go kinda front-to-back, I'm not sure if they're thrust or camber control arms). The mech said that the bushing is worn and the arms need to be replaced because they are pushing into the housing.


Front Tie Rods - The mech demonstrated by lifting the car and turning the front wheel with his hands and showed that there was play in the tie rod ends (Both left and right)


Anyway, I was quoted 50-60 Cdn for each control arm and tie rod, and 2-2.5 hours labour + an alignment.


First off, is the above reasonable? Do suspension and steering items wear out in this way? What about costs - are they reasonable?

More importantly, can I do this (safely) on my own? I'm a very novice DIYer, but I am willing to spend a whole weekend on this job, if I can do it. If yes, any guidance would be needed and greatly appreciated.

Thanks a bunch peeps, I hope I can DIY this, because I really don't have the $$$ to spare for mech's labour, etc. I'm guessing I have to cough up for the alignment, but that's unavoidable, I guess.......





If anyone wants me to get under the car and take pics, let me know......









EDIT: It's a 1988 190E 2.6

I took some pics of the rear control arms:



This is the left control arm. According to the mech, because the bushing is worn, the control arm is pushing into the housing. Can someone verify this from the pic?



Right: Same thing













Anyway, has anyone actually replaced these things? I mean, it looks pretty simple, couple of bolts and that's it. However, the mech said something about the rear control arms being a ***** to remove, needing to be heated up, etc. Any opinion on that???

Hi

I'm a medium DIYer and I did this operation. I replaced all the rear control arms arms by replacing each one in turn. There is one tricky arm where the bolt looks too long to go back in the hole due to the confined space (I can't recall but you will know it when you do it). Just use a lever (big screwdriver) to push it in. Otherwise I would say from 1 to 10, a 6. It is very tedious work with all those bolts that need torquing. Please be careful in placing the jackstands as you will be pushing and pulling those wrenches quite a bit.
Front tie rods are easy if you have a tie rod breaker tool. I used the screw in type rather than the pickle fork. Replace also the centre connecting rod and while you're down there, the idle steering arm bushings. Maybe 3/10.

Finally you need a 4 wheel alignment. Oh yes, the bolts need to be fully torqued while the car is on the ground to settle them down. Otherwise a wheel alignment can go off if they start to settle after the alignment.

Good luck.

Regards
Oreo

__________________
1992 124 E200 (Euro)

Oreo:

What tools did you need for the control arms? Tie rods? I only possess the following:

Ratchet and Socket set - upto 17mm

Combination Wrench set - upto 22mm




And, is a whole weekend enough to do the tie rods and control arms?

Good that you asked. I recall now that the new set of arms for the rear uses the 12 point star socket (I forgot the name but its not hex). I didn't have it but got by with a 6 point. I used a half inch socket set which I think is necessary for suspension work because of the higher torques involved. The longer ratchet give better leverage and if you don't have pneumatic you will need them. I also use a Brittool torque wrench to finish up.

You can see if you have all the tools when you buy the replacement arms. The bolts are included. If they come with aluminium sleeves, you don't need those. Depends on which arms you buy.

__________________
1992 124 E200 (Euro)

****, I only have a 3/8" drive socket set. And no pneumatic stuff. And no long breaker bar. And no torque wrench.


How's this for a shopping list? -
1/2" drive breaker bar
1/2" to 3/8" drive socket adapter
torque wrench


Opinions? Anyone think that being a novice, I will have a hard time getting the job done with the above tools?

OK, I'm going ahead with the tie rod + control arm replacement project.

First, I'm going to replace the front tie rod assemblies - left and right are $120 together from the dealership. Centre is $80 (All prices canadian). What do you guys think - should I do just left and right for now, because that's what the mech recommended.

I guess I also need self locking hex nuts which are supposed to be replaced.

And a ball joint separator and tie rod separator (are they the same thing?)


Do you guys think I should do the entire assemblies or just the tie rod ends?







REAR (THRUST) CONTROL ARMS:

This is pretty simple in terms of parts - two arms are 60 each from the dealer, repair kit is 13, sleeves are 5 each, voila. No special tools required, as far as I know...............Riiight?????





Any answers before Friday noon would be amazing, as that's when I have to order parts.

OK, I'm absolutely confused now. I called a couple of auto parts stores (non-MB) and they said something about inner and outer tie rods. What the hell are they talking about? I asked for the whole assembly and they didn't have it!?

Don't buy just the tie rod end, buy the entire assembly, they are the same price as and much easier to deal with. (Actually when i went to the dealer to have this work done on my 560SEL they told me they've never even heard of replacing just the tie rod ends). You MUST have a tie rod end breaker tool, it's sort of a C shape with a screw on one end. This tool seperates the tie rod from the arm. It cannot be done by any other means.

I did this job also on my 1989 190E 2.6. Oreo was right, get the steering damper too.

Another thing to note is that it might be helpful to turn the steering one way or the other once you are under the car as this will give you better clearance at times.

Check Ebay and other online parts stores for the parts @cheaper cost than the dealer. The Tie rod arms come with new bolts I believe.

~mark

Mark:

Yes, I will be doing the whole assemblies - left and right.

Tie rod end breaker tool - if this is shaped sort of like a fork, I can rent it for free.

Replacing other stuff. Thing is, I'm short on $$$ right now. So, I'd rather do the necessary. I love wrenching, so I absolutely don't mind coming back to the same area 6 months later to do something different. Still, I'll see how much the steering damper (aka centre link, right?) is at the stealer.

I want to get the job done this weekend, so I'll stick with the dealer. Online, prices aren't that much better - 5-10 bucks cheaper than dealer at best, and there's the whole shipping to Canada, paying duty, etc. hassle. I only found one canadian online store and that was expensive too. Locally, called a couple of parts stores and they were as expensive as the dealer, so no go.

There is a left arm, right arm, center arm, and steering damper, which runs parallel to the center arm. It is about 50 US dollars, and is well worth replacing. When i replaced mine it had no shock left in it, in fact, hydraulic oil was dripping out of it.

The rear job I know nothing about so i cant help you there. I wouldn't wait too long between jobs. I would do the front job last, then get it aligned. After i did mine i waited about 2 weeks before i could get an alignment, and it was off pretty bad, the tires would squeal when i made turns--even at slow speed. So, plan ahead, see if you can have a shop that you trust, or the dealer align it for you right after you install the tie rod arms.

Yeah there's a great indy mech in Toronto, Charlie McNally. I'll have him do the alignment too. Any reason to do the tie rods last, rather than first? Reason is, I was given to understand by Charlie's tech that the tie rods should be done within a month as they could break soon.... So I thought I should focus on that first......

im not sure how the components you are replacing in the back effect the alignment, but if they do then you should have the alignment done after everything is installed. If they don't then go ahead and do the tie rods first. Just don't wait too long after installing the rods to do the alignment, it'll eat up your tires.

OK guys, it's a go. Well kind of. I had a disastrous day at the stealership. Their EPC and ordering system were out so all I could get was a tie rod assembly that they had in stock. The other one I have to drive 50km to get, which I'll do in the morning. I'm also going to borrow the tie rod separator tool and get cracking with the tie rod job tomorrow. Then, I'll order rear suspension parts online, save a little bit of money that way and do THAT job in 2-3 weeks. I promise to post pics (if I can borrow a digital camera), or at least a DIY writeup of the job. Watch this space, same time, tomorrow for a (fingers crossed) successful completion.

Whatever you do, avoid ebay sellers who don't list the manufacturer of the parts. If you click on the "Buy Parts" link at the top of this page, it will take you to a catalog. Phil has good prices on these parts. Perhaps not as good as the cheapest ebay sellers, but he has OEM parts and will be there if there is a problem with them.

I'm not exactly a neutral party. I have no affiliation with this site, but I was burned on an auxiliary fan assembly by an ebay seller less than a year ago. Phil had the right OEM part and a great price.