GL350 X166 2014 Bad Road Holding

[Greg369]

Hi I’ve just bought a 2014 x166 GL350d (67k miles) and am having a few issues with it which the car dealer is hopefully going to sort, firstly they changed One rear shock and the front discs for MOT, the car was a real handful on back roads and needed two hands on the wheel really pulling itself all over the show and grabbing at white lines, I noticed the other rear shock was leaking so they replaced that one too which has made the car a bit better but in my opinion it doesn’t ride well on B roads and still grabs the white lines or really moves about if you touch a puddle and i think I can feel the abs kicking in now and again while it’s moving about but I’m not on the brakes? Fairly steady driving 40-60mph.
any idea if this is normal for this big car? I can’t see it being such a big drop in road holding than say a Range Rover or X5?

Any help would be appreciated.

Cheers

Greg

 

[whitenemesis]

Isn't one meant to always have two hands on the steering wheel?
Have you had the suspension geometry checked?
What's the condition of the tyres, especially the fronts?

 

[Greg369]

Not had the geometry checked I did ask the garage but they just said oh they all handle like that they are wallowy, tyres have maybe 2mm left on them matching continental all round. I think I’ll get the geometry checked as a start

 

[Smart320]

I would change the tyres asap

 

[DSM10000]

2mm on the tyres and you wonder why the handling on a tall and heavy car is poor with tramlining on white lines.......

Has it not occurred to you that the tyres are absolutely worn out?

 

[Londonscottish]

tyres have maybe 2mm left on them

2mm! Get them changed ASAP!

 

[Greg369]

I’ll have to measure properly as 2mm was an estimate, still well above the tread depth marks in the tyre but point taken they want changing, any pointers on which I should be looking at? I’ve previously used uni royal rain sport and found them very good but will have to find out if that make them this big!

 

[Jigglyjohnson]

Legal li it is 1.6mm that's the bare minimum for the road so 2 mm on these big jeeps isn't alot. I would suggest seeing what the manufacturer standard is and get a good set on and then have it geom checked. Are the tyre pressure correct for the tyres at the moment as sounds as though you have under inflated tyres which will cause the vehicle to feel as though it's going everywhere. Is it running on air suspension or normal ??

 

[Greg369]

I’ve checked the tyre pressures and they are correct according to the book, yes it’s air suspension all round I wondered if you can check the front shocks? Apart from oil pissing out are there any other ways to check them?
Ideally I want to get it up on a ramp and try all the bushes to see any play

 

[V6GBJ]

I’ll have to measure properly as 2mm was an estimate, still well above the tread depth marks in the tyre but point taken they want changing, any pointers on which I should be looking at? I’ve previously used uni royal rain sport and found them very good but will have to find out if that make them this big!

I recently searched the forum and web for tyre recommendations for my GLE 350d. I wanted cross climate/all season and eventually decided on Michelin Cross Climates. Expensive but suit my needs and my low mileage means that I'll not be buying any more during my ownership. They will be fitted next week.
I also posted a thread called GLE350d W166 first impressions and made a couple of observations on steering. My tyres are not as stripped as yours so it will be interesting to see how the new ones feel.

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

I would suggest a full four-wheel suspension geometry check, that would be my first port of call. Sounds like you need new tyres so I’d get those fitted and then do the geometry.

What size are the tyres, and are they runflat? Very wide, very rigid, very low profile tyres tend to tramline and follow the contours of the road. Runflats will make it even worse.

 

[Wolfie1]

Certainly does sound like an alignment problem

 

[Greg369]

Tyres are very wide and low profile I’ve priced up some continental cross type tyres which I’ll get fitted in a few weeks or so I think.
the way the car feels in it bad driving characteristics is almost as though there is a very heavy weight on the roof and it gives a rocking side to side type motion moving you about left to right in the seat. The car does catch white lines and I put that down to the tyres width and the fact they are very worn.
car is going in next week to see if the air bag heights have gone out of calibration again which I’m sure is the cause of the main issue

 

[LTD]

When did you buy it ? I trust it was not from a Mercedes dealer ?

I hope you got a seriously good deal given what you are describing

 

[clubadria]

I have a much older X164.
When I first got it had to have both rear air bags replaced used Arnott for them, Dealer paid for one.
Car handled like a boat at sea, Terrible at even going over a pothole wobbled side to side.
Took the car to MB Automotive and let them try it, And found it needed a new rear shock absorber, So a while later when enough money had them done. Fitter said how different the car drove and handled.
The car did still want to pull to the left even after a 4 wheel alignment.
But had to get new tyres all round and this has improved steering, But not yet had any re-alignment.
The tyres previously fitted were Yokohama Adavn something.
New ones Yokohama cannot remember but A and B rating from Formula 1. Size are 275/50/20 113w.

I would find out what make shocks were fitted? If from Aerosus there parts are total rubbish. £350 of my money down the drain.
I'm assuming you can alter the ride comfort on the newer models. Normal, Comfort and Sport. They are the more expensive shock.

It is a shame that Mercedes quality is so poor on a car with 67'000 miles. Surely they should last longer than that.
Mine is a 57 with 118'000 miles.

For those that are unaware that the tread depth on commercial vehicles is 1mm, These tyres are from 285- 315.

Hope you get your car sorted soon.

Regards
David

 

[Greg369]

The car was bought from an independent and I paid for additional warranty so I’m trying my best to get them to sort all the issues!
There is a button to switch between comfort and sport, the sport mode does seem to make the issue a bit better but is a much harder ride, I’ll have a look at the brand on the shocker but I was told they had to come from Germany this could or course just be something they told me to give them extra time in the workshop.
car is booked in with them next week so I will update as to what they have found but in the meantime I will get it on some level ground and measure the ride height at each wheel and see how that looks.
Very frustrating when you just know something isn’t quite right and the place you bought it from say oh they all handle like that there isn’t anything we can look for.
Thanks for all the replies by the way.
Cheers

Greg

 

[Ifzal123]

I've just had new continentals fitted all round. Has made a huge difference in the vehicles handling. Geometry was fine . Old Pirelli tyres were down to 2mm. Defo change the tyres

 

[Greg369]

Just a bit of an update, I am planning on getting the tyres changed but the main issue is the suspension going out of calibration and feeling very top heavy which pushes you around the road. Had the car to merc twice through the dealer I purchased the car with and have has the rear ride height sensors changed (I think) as they were apparently siezed, still no luck and the car is booked to go back in.......becoming very frustrating as I can’t imagine these cars shove you from side to side in the seat driving on B roads giving you a sore neck!

 

[Greg369]

Just to clarify the top heavy feeling is apparently one corner adjusting air bag/strut height differently from the rest (out of calibration) giving the unstable feeling and bad road holding