Shock Absorbers Knocking

[djcheung]

Hi all,

Just wonder if anybody here has some ideas to my problem.

I had all shocks (MB) replaced on my 98' W210 last Friday.
All of them now seem to make a knocking noise when going through potholes.
I made the garage who replaced them to double check that all fixing are tight. They are all ok.

What could be wrong?

 

[grober]

Wrong grade/size/ or defective/inferior copies of shocks -double check the part nos and the numbers on the shocks themselves, OR worn antiroll bar bushes, broken springs. It seems suspicious if this has just started after they were replaced?? who replaced them and where were they sourced?

 

[djcheung]

Hi Grober,

All parts were sourced from MB dealer.
Antiroll bar bushers are ok and no broken springs.
The shocks were replaced by one of the local BMW/Merc specialist.

I think I will run it for a week and then go to the dealer and see what they suggest.

This is the first time I use this garage because it is only 3 miles ( friends recommendation as he has a W210 as well ) from my house whilst my normal garage is 40miles away.

 

[djcheung]

Hi all,

Took my car to my usual garage last Friday.
Even before they took the shock absorber, they could feel that there were loads of movement on all of them.
Closer examination revealed that there were an extra cylindrical metal tube inserted between the bushes. The tube stopped everything from tighten up properly.
These tubes probably came off the old shocks, but they are not required on the new ones.
I will try to get them to refund the labour for fitting it wrongly in the first place because I had to pay someone else the second time to put them right.

 

[normanr]

Hi djcheung

I get realy annoyed when we take our cars to a garage and come up against things like yours,there are a lot of problems on the forum regards bad mechanics it is our hard earned money they are taking.

I wonder if this could have been a safety fault and if you had had an accident because of there bad workmanship would they paid out for damage or injury etc..

It is obviouse they did not test drive the car before they let you have it back (bloody joke)

 

[djcheung]

I have taken my car to another two inds and they both said the fittings are done up tight properly. All other linkages and ok. That leaves the only problem would be faulty shock absorbers. How should I go about getting it sorted? I may have to get MB to test it first. It would be ok if they found the part is faulty then they should replace it. But if they find that the fitting is done incorrectly then it would be difficult to get the ind who replaced it to pay for the bill. I don't want to pay double. Help

 

[Parrot of Doom]

There should be little rubber moutings at the top of the shocks. They don't come with the shocks, they're separate parts.

Do they exist?

Oh, and in case you're not confident of your garage, heres a handy DIY guide on how to replace them yourself:

http://www.benzworld.org/forums/2145575-post10.html

You'll probably have to register to view the attached file.

 

[Dieselman]

Or keeping it in house.
http://www.mbclub.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=22808&highlight=shock+absorbers

 

[KLP 92]

May be worth a check that they fitted the front shocks on the front and rears on the rear!

Its happened by a MB Specialist on my W202, very similar problems, the car used to have a knocking noise at the back and generally a harder ride at the back.

Its uncommon for a new shock to be faulty, i would check this first. The mounts are the same on the fronts and backs, just a difference in length so can be fitted incorrectly by someone that lacks intelligence.