E55 W211 Rear shock leak

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Alps

MB Enthusiast
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London\Essex
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E63s s213 2019, E55 2004 Silver-SOLD, E63 w212 Weistec AMG-SOLD, E55 2004-SOLD, C36 1997-SOLD
Driving the 55 on Saturday I noticed handling was pretty shaky over any kind of bumps.

got home and parked up but noticed a little oil patch near the rear drivers wheel, the little patch grew to a pool of oil in an hour.

after getting underneath it was clear the rear drivers shock had blown its seal and was leaking oil, the car was bouncing all over the place on the air spring only.

the retail price for the each rear shock is £380 :eek: and recommended to replace both as any other shocks.

got a 30% discount from my usual parts guys and they will be with me for Wednesday.

will write up the fitting depending upon time and stress factor as ill do these myself.
 
Will be interesting to know the part Number Alps, as Boge Replacements are nowhere near that amount from our supplier.

Maybe a different part number to what i have, INFACT just realised they will be electronic wont they? be good to get a number just out of interest. :)
 
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They are adaptive shocks hence the price, made by bilstein for mb.

mb part number a2113262700

Bilstein equivalent from parts supplier still worked out more expensive than mb, haven't found any other manufacturers that make it for the e55.

bilstein have a separate part for all other w211 with airmatic and a different one for the e55, typically more expensive too.
 
Sorry to hear the old girl is costing you Alps. Will be good if you can do a DIY thread.

Even with the AMG tax the 55k still worth every penny.
 
They are adaptive shocks hence the price, made by bilstein for mb.

mb part number a2113262700

Bilstein equivalent from parts supplier still worked out more expensive than mb, haven't found any other manufacturers that make it for the e55.

bilstein have a separate part for all other w211 with airmatic and a different one for the e55, typically more expensive too.

Ta buddy, Yes different strut to what i was thinking

Bilstein only part number 20070915:thumb:
 
Easy to replace... I have done this before, It won't take long.

Lucky you to get 30%, I could only get 10-15%... Better than nothing.
 
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MSLP did my rear shockers a couple of years ago after one was weeing a bit.

Wasn't too bad a job actually.

Just waiting for the fronts now which require a small mortgage (£800 each I think).
 
So spent the last few nights replacing the rear shocks

first of all, mercedes have replaced the a2113262700 part with a2113266800 retail at £386 + vat each and you need two!



So before you start have the following tools at hand
- 17mm socket and spanner
- 5/8 socket and spanner(or good adjustable spanner)
- 10mm socket
- 8mm socket
- flat head screwdriver (smallish)
- 35 torx (if you have luggage hooks in the boot)
- vice grips
- 2 x jacks
- Rags
- length of thin wire\string

first start by stripping the boot liner on the side of the shock you are replacing.
- there are two push clips near the top, use the screwdriver to ply these out
- unclip the hinge surround and either tape it to the hinge or carefully remove it, they can break easy.

- if you have luggage hooks, unclip the screw cover using the screwdriver and use the torq to unscrew and remove.


This should allow you to remove the cover carefully.

Jack up the car from the jacking point and remove the rear wheel.

remove the lower rear wishbone cover, it has two clips, be careful as they may break s they get brittle. You may want to give this a good degrease before putting it back on.


then using the 5/8 socket and spanner, undo the nut holding the bottom of the shock in, but DO NOT remove the bolt yet.



Then move into the boot and attach the vice grips to the top of the shock to stop it spinning and use the 17mm spanner to undo the nut and remove.



Make sure the hub is jacked up nice and high by the 2nd jack else the shock will spring down and the nut will ping off and may cause damage or injury.



you can now release the jack holding the hub and the shock will come out



now undo the plastic 10mm bolts from the wheel arch liner and pry the plastic clips out and remove the whole liner. You can remove a few bolt but its easier to work if you remove the whole thing,



follow the wire from the shock round and pull out the rubber holders and release from the plastic clips. Flick the metal clip out which holds the plugs in. you will see it attached to another plug, this separates easily.



Hammer the bottom bolt out and you have a shock removed!




installation is reverse of the above.

you can reuse the rubbers as they do not come with the new shock or order new ones, mine were still in good nick.

Before installing the new shock, press it down to compress as much as possible and tightly tie a bit of wire to the top and bottom of the shock to stop it coming back up, this will make it easier to get back in.



after putting the bottom nut and bolt loosly in, use the jack to push the hub up again to allow you to do the top nut up.

pics were taken during left and right removal so dont let them confuse you on side.

once all put together, take it for a spin an feel how different the backend is!

enjoy
 
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Great guide write-up mate!

:thumb:
 
Great write up Alps. Thanks:thumb:

Hopefully the mods make this a "Sticky"?
 
Excellent write up Alps with very good process layout, saved a few £££ doing it yourself, has been put into DIY section on other side, needs sticky in here to help others:thumb:
 
Superb effort Alps, pitch perfect DIY.

Many thanks.
 
thanks Gents,

try and do a write up and take pics when possible, normally need to get the job done quick and trying to grab the phone with oily hands is normally tricky lol.
 
Alps, I note you have only cut small holes into the boot liner for the easy pack brackets.

I tried this method but struggled with the 3x mounting screws for the rails . I found cutting larger square holes so that the top of the bracket (flat part) is flush with the boot liner allows the rails to contact the flat part, sit flush against the boot liner with no gaps and is super strong as the mounting screws are fully seated.
 
Is this the same part number for CLS 55 rear shocks
Would someone share some usefull info
Thanks
 
Looks like the car is jacked up with a hydraulic jack, where is the safety jack stand?

two axle stands were there under the diff and next to the jack , just out of camera shot!

good call tho, always put safety first!

also use chocks on the wheels (or bricks) as they always roll a bit when jacking!
 
can someone confirm if part number a2113266800 will fit a cls63 W219? i need a new rear left shock absorber as it too has started to leak :(
Could someone point me in the right direction on how to get hold of a new or referred part please? I can fit it myself as I've done a front strut previously.
 
hey hunty, yes that will fit

a2113266800
a2113262700
a2113265700
a2113267300

all the above are all the part numbers (some superceed others) but all the same thing

all fit the 219377
 
Hi i have W211 E350 elegance, i have owned this car for 3 years now.But recently i started to notice it bouncy feel at the rear mainly left side. I then got the car on the ramps and checked the rear suspension and i found the rear drivers side spring was broken, and i thought hey presto i found the cause of bouncy feel. I replaced the springs both sides and the bouncy is still there.
What i had noticed was the rear passengers shock had a slight misting at the top and was also hard to push up when i was doing the springs. Now my guess is the bouncy feel is the shocks? am just not sure if anyone has experienced this before but i would still like to replace them the fact that one has a slight misting(leak) at the very top is good enough reason to replace them. What would you guys recommend other than dealers own? These are what i know Sachs, Monroe, Boge (been told Boge are sachs dont know if this is true) & Bilstein
My car has a normal standard suspension with springs no airmatic.
 

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