changing sway bar links
 

1989 420 SEL

I have started replacing various steering and suspension components in the front end to relieve the constant barrage of noise that I hear while traveling down the road. To date, I have replaced:

- tie rods
- guide rods and mounts
- steering damper
- eccentric pin
- shocks
- lower control arm bushings
- idler arm (repair kit)
- ball joints
- drag link
- subframe bushings

These needed to replaced (many of them were original) and there were some improvements in the noise. I searched the posts and found suggestions to replace the upper control arms and the sway bar bushings. I purchased both sway bar bushings - those at the upper control arm and those that rest at or just inside the firewall. The only post I found related to the latter bushings discussed removing the sway bar which I have no intention of doing. Can anyone provide some insight on what might be involved to replace these bushings?

If the noise persists after these parts are replaced, are there any other suggestions for eliminating the knocking and clunking noise that I keep hearing?

Thank you in advance for any information.

sometimes a worn shock will rattle.

tom w

He's right, you've about gutted your entire suspension and it may be shocks.

However, you may have replaced a ton of parts for nothing. IMHO it's gonna be:

wheel bearings
loose lug nuts
strut/shock caps <-- this is VERY common on later 140s, not sure about your car

Finally see the DIY for sway bar links on this forum, covers a lot of ground

And no, "loose lug nuts" has nothing to do with posters at benzworld.org

the noise I had with the upper control arms was more of a "crunching" sound when going up driveway or turning into parking place.

progress
 

I had a chance to replace the upper control arms and the sway bar bushings this past weekend. The noise has continued to improve but I still get some "knocking" when I drive over uneven surfaces.

As per the suggestions, I checked the bearings and made sure the lugs were secure when I put the wheels back on so those do not appear to be the problem.

The other suggestion concerned the shocks. The shocks are about 3.5 years old (Bilsteins). Is there something I should be looking for specifically to determine if these are the source of the noise?

Thanks for the help.