W210 Wagon SLS

[JerryBro]

A few months back we purchased a W210 4Matic E320 wagon. The intent is for the missus to use the care to cart stuff around for her seasonal craft show business. The car came with the rear struts removed and shocks installed in place. All the SLS hydraulic lines were intact, the globes were in place but the adjustment linkage removed.

To anyone considering removing the SLS and installing standard shocks, don’t. The springs rely on the struts to compensate for the load. The stock springs are so weak that the rear will bottom out in dips and bumps and you cannot run it with a full tank or any load at all without hearing painful banging coming from the rear.

I located a used set on the bay, no leaks, no rust, plastic covers intact, and all the labels were still good. These looked almost new and came with a 90 day warranty for half the price of a new set. Bought new globes and linkage on line and commenced to installing them.

The hardest part was, as always, working without a lift. It took a while to figure out how to access the top bolts without destroying the interior. The control arms where the shock bottoms mount had to be opened up as they were compressed when the shocks were installed. I ground down an 8mm wrench to make installing the linkage easier. All in all, not that difficult a job.

The result? It is a completely different car. SLS combined with 4Matic make this a very practical vehicle here in the NE. As I said above, if you are considering replacing the SLS with shocks, don’t.