The sway bar bushings are THE WORST. Figure at least 8-10 hours work to do them
alone because of their position (underneath all of the
electronics/fusebox/brake booster that are between the firewall and noise
panel). The caster bushings MAY require a press (the manual says to knock them
out with a plastic hammer, I argue that it was a mistranslation and they meant
plastique (see figure C4)); I took them to a mechanic who told me he was afraid
that it was going to break his 25 ton press; they finally came out by the
rubber surrounds shearing. The rest is pretty straightforward, you will want
some assorted large sockets/pieces of pipe, a couple of various sizes of BFH, a
large vise or medium sized press. You WILL need to take the ball joints to a
mercedes mechanic to have them PROPERLY pressed in. They will knock right out
with a 3lb hammer and an appropriate driver. Make sure to pb-blaster the UCA->
sway bar bolts a day or two prior to removal. IIRC, I removed the LCA bushings
by using a large drill bit to drill through one of the "cap" bushings on the
end so that I could get on the "tube" that was in the middle bushing-- I then
pressed out (using a BFH and a large bolt as a drift) the center bushing, which
in turn pushed out the other "cap" bushing. I then flipped it over and knocked
out the (drilled) cap bushing.
Don't use soap on the two support bushings for the caster brackets. They will
squeeze right back out. I used CRC silicone spray with no apparent ill effects.
Other sprays (ie liquid wrench) contain stuff which WILL damage the rubber.
The CRC MAY, but did not seem to. YMMV. You will need some appropriate
washers/pieces of pipe/large sockets so that you preload those bushings when
you press them back in. You can measure (CtC) the old tie rods and set the new
ones to the same length.
You will need a re-alignment. if it is any distance, you may want to have it
towed. If it isnt too far, IIRC you can "ballpark" the toe-in by driving the
car 6 ft forward and measuring the spacing on the front of the tires vs the
rear and setting it approx 1/8" narrower at the front. (or is that the rear?).
I would also recommend cleaning the area where the LCA mounting bolts go and
then spraying it with a contrasting color of paint to give a "guide" as to the
position of the bolts upon reinstall (they have eccentric washers on them.) It
may be helpful to only do one side at a time so you can use the other side as a
guide. It is important to inspect the springs for cracks, as it is not unheard
of (but is not common) for springs to break (and have large pieces fling about
with great force) upon compression. Make sure there is a clear path from the
wheel housing outwards when compressing them (just in case). From a safety POV
it is worthwhile to arrange to turn the compressor fr
om the front of the vehicle just in case. Mercedes springs are EXTREMELY potent
and will maim/kill you if given half of a chance. If one gets loose on you and
does not hurt you... well you will be rushing off to change clothes at the very
least.
It is worthwhile to just replace the tie rod assemblies vs the ends from a
cost/effort POV. IIRC my parts list was:
-shock bump stops (2)
-LCA bushings (2x sets)
-LCA mounting bolts (2x)
-Lower ball joints (2pcs) (lemforder, not TRW)
-Bushing for Caster rod to LCA. 2 sets
-UCA assemblies (include the mounting bushings)
-UCA -> sway bar bushing (4pcs)
-Upper spring seat pads/shims (count the "nubs" on your old ones before
ordering; they are a couple of places on the rim of it and look like the umm
"teats" left over from injection molding. They are not; they are there to
identify the thickness.) 2pcs.
-Caster bushings (2x)
-Front and rear caster braket mount bushings (2x each)
-Left and right tie rod
-Center link
-Steering damper
-Idler arm bushing kit
-Wheel bearing kits (2x)
-MERCEDES seals for hubs. the ones in the kit were not of comparable quality by
far. This MAY have changed.
-Tube(s) of mercedes wheel bearing grease (neon green stuff)
-blue loc-tite.
-can of black paint to repaint all the parts such as LCA's, steering knuckles
and brake rotor shields. (optional)
You may want to do shocks.
Front brake rotors (if your old ones are iffy)
You will want the appropriate pages from the manual, as certain things (ex: LCA
bushings which are oval) must be inserted in a certain manner.
Total parts cost was $1000 (including rotors/shocks) or so about 3-4 years ago.
It is well worth it IMHO. This was for an 84 SD, but should be pretty much the
same for any 126.
Oh-- I hope you have thin hands; fat hands(as opposed to merly large ones) will
have a tough time getting in under the master cylinder/booster to remove and
insert the upper bolt.
I didn't take pictures as I have a decentish memory, so I can remember where
each bolt came from 6 mos later after taking it apart.
BTW I suspect some parts of this post belong on banned ;)
-j.
--
1984 300SD (RIP via rear-ending)
1985 300Dt "Gerta"
1999 E300Dt "Hans"
1999 E300Dt "Frantz"
I just sold the 1991 Jeep XJ "Fishbowl" (leaking windsheild seal)
-------------- Original message --------------
From: "Constantine N. Polites" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
> I am planning on replacing the various bushings, ball joints and upper
> control arms (with ball joints attached) on the 350 sdl.
> I guess you'd call it a front suspension overhaul. Does anyone have this
> procedure? Has anyone photographed the work? If so please advise. I
> have some information for the 123 series. I do have the Klann spring
> compressor and a C clamp for removing
> ball joints/ bushings. However, I'm inclined to take it to a shop with
> a good hydraulic press, so that I can remove and install the bushings
> (and the lower ball joints).
>
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A disassembly of the taillight assemblies revealed no smoking guns. I
took them completely apart, down to the individual socket level, and
disassembled the wiring harness connector shells as well. Nothing, no
signs of abraded insulation, corrosion, broken connector springs...
So, I hooked up a battery charger to the connector for the neutral
safety switch (NSS) and ran the lights that way. Flexure and pounding
did nothing, the lights just worked. Left with few other suspects, I
drilled out the five aluminum rivets that hold the NSS together. (It
is possible to have a pinched wire or something in the harness, but
good luck finding that!) The inside of the switch looked good. A bit
of crud built up in the bottom, if it was conductive it could maybe do
some harm as the lamp switch contacts are very close to the aluminum
cover there. But not so close as to make me suspicious. Otherwise
the insides looked pretty good. I did notice that the 'hot' leaf for
the lamps had more sideways flex in it than I'd like, if it got far
enough out of plane it could perhaps contact the cover and blow the
fuse, but that is really stretching it. To 'cure' this I put a blob
of Shoe Goo over its mounting end, there should be no way once that is
cured for the thing to flex much towards the cover. But I really
don't expect this to have any effect. At this point I think I just
need to put it all back together and see what happens, I'm running out
of ideas. I am _positive_ that the fuses blew upon shifting into
reverse, I don't think it could have been anything else on the
same circuit.
-- Jim
