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C200 Still Knocking

Gunny

Active Member
Joined
Jun 23, 2003
Messages
124
Location
Guisborough Cleveland
Car
1999 CLK 320 elegance 2001 C200 Kompessor Avantgarde
Well as you may or may not know , purchased a 203 C200 Komp Avantgarde with 70.000 on the clock ( cheap I may add) a few months ago.

After owning the car for a couple of days I noticed there was a knock from the front end, this was diagnosed as the the drop links, which I subsequently changed - no difference.
Next the anti roll bar bushes diagnosed as worn - changed - only a slight difference.

I think I have pin pointed the knock - its somewhere on the near side, the car handles ok so I have almost ruled out shockers but only almost - it could it be top strut mounting bushes ,or there again bottom ball joints.
I think I need help quickly on this one, or I will end up changing all of the front suspension components or go completly mad.

Gunny
 
very difficult to diagnose from a website... id get the car up on a ramp, and go over everything using a pry bar to try to jiggle everything until you find somthing that wobbles more than it should.
 
wheel clonk

Sounds similar to my experience.
So far..........
New n/s wishbone complete with all bushes, new rollbar with new bushes, new steering idler drop arm bush, new shock absorbers and new top mounting bushes.
Clonk still there.
Any ideas for both of us?
Oh! Nearly forgot - new front springs and engine mountings too!
 
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william silver said:
Sounds similar to my experience.
So far..........
New n/s wishbone complete with all bushes, new rollbar with new bushes, new steering idler drop arm bush, new shock absorbers and new top mounting bushes.
Clonk still there.
Any ideas for both of us?
Oh! Nearly forgot - new front springs and engine mountings too!

I thought I was the only one with this problem.
My mate works for the local stealership, he is going to go on the MB technical help website & punch in the problem, we will see if it is common with early 203,s - will keep you posted.

Gunny
 
203 knocking

Just spoke to said mate- he tells me that MB changed design of front anti rollbar on 203 aparently its now a more solid peice of kit, with different bushes.

I will be a bit miffed if a have to fork out for a later type bar/ bushes after spending my hard earned on new bushes for the old one.

I think MB should come clean on this, i'm not saying do a recall but at least a favourable discount or reasonbly priced exchange unit - any veiws on this from MB employees.

No price as yet for replacement bar, parts dept closed until Monday !!!!

Gunny
 
Check the bottom ball joints as they can cause the clonk you have, 70k is probably about the right mileage for this.

Jack the car up and lift the wheel up and down. You will be able to feel and see the movement.

Also check the front wheel bearings by gripping the top and bottom of the wheel and rocking it.
 
Dieselman said:
Check the bottom ball joints as they can cause the clonk you have, 70k is probably about the right mileage for this.

Jack the car up and lift the wheel up and down. You will be able to feel and see the movement.

Also check the front wheel bearings by gripping the top and bottom of the wheel and rocking it.

The ball joints have been checked & given the ok, I cant agree that ball joints whould require changing & 70k this is my 3rd benz, my previous C Class a 202 had covered over 130k & drove like new - no knocks - origonal ball joints, wheel bearings, shockers, anti roll bar, etc.

As for wheel bearings they tend to just grumble if very worn - for them to knock,the front wheels would have to be hanging off, which there not
I dont think 70K is a lot of miles with full MB service history.

Gunny
 
C Class Still Knocking

:confused: :confused: :confused:

I had the front anti roll bar changed yesterday - guess what - left hand side front still Knocks.
I put on a new OEM roll bar complete with the bushes bonded on to it, my mate who incidently is a Merc Mechanic help me fit it, there were no obvious signs that that the old bar was worn or damaged ( it had new bushes fitted only a month ago)

We also re checked the ball joints & the suspension / subframe mountings - all - seemed to be ok.

On completion I took the car for a test drive & the knock was still there - no less - no more - just still there.

After a lot of swearing & kicking things around the garage - we have now decided that the only other things that it could possibly be, are either a shock absorber & or a top suspension mount & as the w203 is on struts rather than seperate shocks, this is not a 2 minute job, as both sides will need to be changed to keep the suspension balance right.

Although I get my parts heavily discounted, I dont know if my budget will stretch to this, I am sure Merc OEM W203 Avantgarde front shocks won't be cheap.
(any alternative suppliers out there)

Gunny
 
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sorry to hear about your problems i have a slight clunk drivers side w202 100k i think anti roll bar bushes or and lower ball joints

have you asked mbz uk if a clunk is to be expected i am thinking of changing to a w203 but what i read makes me a bit concerned i feel lexus better bet
 
W203 C Class still knocking

Oh dear Oh dear

The continuing saga of the front end knock just goes on & on

Changed the front struts & the strut top mountings - yes you've all guessed right - the bloody knock is still there.

So just to recap - to date I have have changed

*Both front drop links

*Front Anti roll bar & bushes

*Both front suspension struts

*Both front suspension top mounts

Checked the steering rack for movement / wear - all OK

Checked the front lower ball joints for wear - seem OK no play etc.

So what can this knock be - its only on the front near side
(or it seems to be coming from this area)

This weekend I am going to check the front subframe mountings again - these have been previously checked for tightness & I cant see any obvious signs of wear.

I am now open to any suggestions short of 'This car needs a new owner'

Gunny
 
nickmann said:
Windscreen washer reservoir loose?


I can see a bit of lateral thinking coming in here - all input will be checked out I can assure you.

Gunny
 
Wheel clonk

I recently had a similar problem when traversing rough surfaces, albeit mine's a W202.
Changed the A/R/B mounts (you can on a 202!) to no avail. Stealership said it was "probably" shock mounting, so I then changed entire shock absorber assemblies (both sides obviously)........still clonking like mad!
A local mechanic carried out a thorough underside inspection (as did Stealers) and stated no immediate problems evident but most likely cause was 'undetected' ball joint wear. Changed the ball joints and.....hey presto! Now as quiet as a mouse.
So, given that you have already replaced virtually everything else, I'd be inclined to do these as well, as clearly MB missed mine.
Hope that helps,
Best regards
 
Alex Argent said:
I recently had a similar problem when traversing rough surfaces, albeit mine's a W202.
Changed the A/R/B mounts (you can on a 202!) to no avail. Stealership said it was "probably" shock mounting, so I then changed entire shock absorber assemblies (both sides obviously)........still clonking like mad!
A local mechanic carried out a thorough underside inspection (as did Stealers) and stated no immediate problems evident but most likely cause was 'undetected' ball joint wear. Changed the ball joints and.....hey presto! Now as quiet as a mouse.
So, given that you have already replaced virtually everything else, I'd be inclined to do these as well, as clearly MB missed mine.
Hope that helps,
Best regards


Thanks for this

I think on the W203 the balljoints are part of the bottom wish bone ( alloy as well) I will have to be totaly convinced before I change these as I dont think they are cheap.

Regards
Gunny
 
Gunny said:
I can see a bit of lateral thinking coming in here - all input will be checked out I can assure you.

Gunny

It could be as simple as a spanner or something similar that has got "lost" during the pre-delivery service. There are a few places for this to happen, not least of which is the splash-tray under the motor.

I once lost a socket whilst working on my bike, only to have a marshal hand it to me at a trackday about 6 months later. He told me it fell off my bike as I landed coming over the Mountain at Cadwell Park.

Once you've checked/replaced all the obvious stuff, it just has to be something else.

Good luck.
 
Gunny- I can understand your frustration. Some years ago, I had a Nissan with a knocking noise from, what I thought was, front RH suspension. I changed just about everything, no difference; even got a mate to sit on the bonnet while I drove the car ( yes, he is mad). Anyway in the end the noise was traced to a loose door hinge. I would try jacking car up a few inches and letting it down suddenly to see if you can recreate the noise.
 
It has been suggested twice already, but if I were a betting man, William Hill would get my money on lower ball joints.

70k isn't a bad life on a W203, in fact it's pretty good.

Check and recheck those joints by lifting the wheel and prying the wishbone up and down.
 
Dieselman said:
It has been suggested twice already, but if I were a betting man, William Hill would get my money on lower ball joints.

70k isn't a bad life on a W203, in fact it's pretty good.

Check and recheck those joints by lifting the wheel and prying the wishbone up and down.

OK- I will do a bit more than this, i am going to dismantle the whole of the bottom ball joint assembly & check for wear / any unusual movement.

Watch this space.

Gunny
 
I've got a similar problem with my c220 cdi rear nearside. I've had the shocker changed to no avail. The garage are talking trouble shooting changing suspension arms one at a time - any quick fix ideas? It's fine on flat roads - just uneven pot holed roads that make it knock.
 
knocking noise

penaz said:
I've got a similar problem with my c220 cdi rear nearside. I've had the shocker changed to no avail. The garage are talking trouble shooting changing suspension arms one at a time - any quick fix ideas? It's fine on flat roads - just uneven pot holed roads that make it knock.


I had exactly the same problem from the nearside front. Just, today, got it sorted by a local indy. Replaced both front balljoints, steering damper and idler arm. So far, so good....seems to have cured it. Two weeks before this I took it to the dealer and they checked it over and found no problem at all, no play in anything!!. They also failed to spot the steering damper was dry (all the oil had leaked away). Car feels and sounds better now. Indy charged £250 total. Not bad I thought
 

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