Could this be my suspension problem?
 

I just spotted this today.
http://www.ps2cho.net/downloads/phot...sion_tower.jpg

When I push the car down, that hard rubber boot definitely moves very slightly.

What exactly does this tower do? Is this something I should really be concerned about (for safety reasons on the road)

....and COULD this be why my suspension is rubbing the top of the arch when I hit dips or carry more than 300lbs of weight on that side of the car? If this is a problem, could it be influencing that?

ya thats your problem

I think you can toss the drawn-aluminum caps and find the extruded ones from a 4matic in the junkyard, which hook under the top of the tower to prevent blowing out the top.

I looked into those myself and it seemed that using those on a non-4matic might cause issues with the strut travel as it seems that they have a different height for the strut mounting point. I'd love to find some solution as I'm blowing those strut "hats" all the time. Quite maddening really.
Regards, Eric

I wasn't aware of that issue Eric, looked like the bottom surface was in the same place. I guess I'll have to look again. I had hoped it would be the perfect solution for turning the Konis to full-stiff.

ps2cho,

Change those strut mounts A.S.A.P.

To make a long story short, change it before you get nice big dent in your hood. Spending $30 a side costs less than spending who knows how much for a dent removal and repaint.

Will do. Won't be driving it until I get new ones.

So I can understand, can someone explain to me what the purpose of that is? I would like to understand why that side was causing the tire to hit the arch.

You posted a picture of the upper shock mount.
The condition of your mount is allowing the top of the shock to move in all directions.
You will have no noticeable movement in the rubber with a new mount.
Can be very dangerous if it fails.

Ok thanks. I posted a thread a few weeks ago about my suspension hitting and I inspected the spring + strut and I didn't see anything out of the ordinary which was confusing. This would explain it. I will get on it ASAP.

Any tips for the procedure from anybody with experiencing doing it before?

EDIT: The other side looks fine. Is this something that should be replaced in pairs? Or should I just do the other side for peace of mind?

I'd replace in pairs.

Might as well replace in pairs. If your shocks are relatively worn, the repair is not that bad. If your shocks are relatively new, it is a struggle to compress them and keep them compressed while getting the old mount off and the new one on. A lot easier if you have a helper. As always, extreme caution is advised whenever you are working around the springs. The repair is a cinch if you have spring compressor, a little nerve racking if you don't.

glenmore
1991 300CE
2000 C280

FWIW, here's how I did it. Proceed with due caution. The weight of the car must be on the jack supporting the control arm. This keeps the spring compressed while the top nut is off.

Remove wheel, support control arm with jack so that spring is contained after you remove nut at shock tower. Hold shock piston with 8mm allen while you undo the top nut. Remove three nuts holding strut mount. Compress piston, slip new boot over shock, swap new mount for old. Attach shock mount with new nuts, 20nm. Release piston, hold piston again with allen while you tighten nut, 60nm. Reach up and attach rubber boot to ears on bottom of shock mount. Try a dry fit when you get the parts to see how the boot attaches.

glenmore
1991 300CE
2000 C280

Thanks for the quick steps. I found the MB FSM PDF on it too. Doesn't look too bad. I'd doubt if these aren't the original shocks.

You don't need a spring compressor to do this job.
Just a support underneath the axle area.

I have had a couple of W124's where the strut has come off involuntarily. The spring does not fly out. It's too long. Still you must be careful.

Unless your struts are heavy duty sports stuff you will be able to compress them enough by hand to remove the top strut mounts.

You will do the first one in about 45 minutes - the second 15.

You cant tell whether or not the struts are faulty without taking them off. - unless they are leaking. The bounce test is inconclusive on a W124.

You may need a wheel alignment if you remove the strut altogether.

The original struts will have a dab of paint swabbed across the central area. All original parts are daubed with a swathe of paint - that's how you tell if original or not. Even some bolt heads have the paint swipe.

Reviving an old one here,

I recently went in for an alignment and could not get the FR camber and caster dialled in correctly, Im presuming this above statement is quite "on the spot" as my strut hats have largish cracks in them on that side which is upsetting the knuckle geometry with the ball joint.