I have a 1992 Mercedes 400E with approx. 156K miles. Overall the car is in really great condition. I have owned it for a little over two years and bought it with about 135K miles.

I have a problem with Rear wheel excessive negative camber (both rear wheels angle outward at the bottom like: /===\
I have made some measurements and I will also post some pictures later today. To the best of my knowledge, the car has not been in any accident involving the rear.

The Wheels on my car were changed by the previous owner to 17" rims with 225x45x17 tires. The car looks like it sits a bit low on the ride height, but is certainly visually affected by the 17" rims.

The measurements that I made indicate approx. -2.0 to -2.5 deg (negative) camber at the rear (arctan 1.125/22.0)

Height is measured from ground to outer lip of the wheel well.

Right Rear 25" high 1.0 to 1.125" in at top (at 22")
Left Rear 25.125" high 1.0" in at top (at 22")

Right Front 24.75" to 24.875" high at wheel well lip
Left Front 25.0" high at wheel well lip



So the rough height measurements are not quite uniform, but are within about 0.25-0.375". Slightly lower on the right side as opposed to the left side.

Does anyone know the alignment specs and height specs for the 1992 400E?

A new set of performance tires 225x45x17 is dangerously worn on the inside edges at only 13K miles.

I am trying to better understand the cause of the negative camber and some suggestions to fix or improve the situation.
It seems that the reduced height is related to the negative camber. Increasing the ride height will tend to reduce the negative camber, right?

Do springs tend to permanently compress or shorten on a car of this age and with 156K miles? I would think this is not too likely unless it has been overloaded a lot. If the springs are suggested, how do you determine the correct length spring to buy? How difficult is the job to replace the springs as a DIY project?

Can the shocks be a factor? By searching the forums, I have also read that there are rubber pads that can be inserted between the shock mount and the frame that will tend to increase the ride height. The posts I read mentioned 9.5mm, 14mm, and 19mm pads. Are they available for the 1992 400E for the rear? Is this a viable improvement?

I would very much appreciate your help and wisdom!! I have done a lot of searching and read through other posts. I definitely got some insights on similar problems for other model cars.

Thanks,
Kim