W124 suspension questions (sportsline)

[Donbronski]

I fitted some generic lowering springs (40mm drop) to my W124 saloon without changing the shocks. The ride height looks much better & i can approach corners a little faster, but there is still lots of rock side to side. So now i am looking into buying some firmer/stiffer shocks, if available?

Q. Where to get up-rated shocks for the W124?

Q. Are W124 Sportsline shocks firmer/stiffer than standerd W124 & will they fit the W124 Saloon?


Thanks in advance!

 

[grober]

Bilstein sportline should be fine. WebKat

 

[RBYCC]

I fitted some generic lowering springs (40mm drop) to my W124 saloon without changing the shocks. The ride height looks much better & i can approach corners a little faster, but there is still lots of rock side to side. So now i am looking into buying some firmer/stiffer shocks, if available?

Q. Where to get up-rated shocks for the W124?

Q. Are W124 Sportsline shocks firmer/stiffer than standerd W124 & will they fit the W124 Saloon?


Thanks in advance!

Lowering springs along with shocks such as the Bilsterin HD or Sports will provide handling improvement
You really will not see the total efffect until you replace your front and rear anti sway bars with the Sportline, late model Cab or limo upgrade.

The bars are what keep the car flat in cornering, not the springs and shocks

 

[Donbronski]

Anti sway bar, is that a roll bar?

 

[d w124]

That`s correct

 

[Niks]

Bilstein HD's arent designed for 40mm drops... avoid it!

 

[RBYCC]

Bilstein HD's arent designed for 40mm drops... avoid it!

Bilstein HD's are quite compatible with H&R sports.
I've been running this combo with front and rear Sportline sways for over two years.

The Bilstein HD's and Sports are identical with the exception of the location of the internal stop.
The Sport stop location provides less travel then the HD.

Modified Porsche suspensions commonly use this setup.

Primary reason that Bilstein recommends the Sport with lowering springs is a liability issue.
If the vehicle is lowered too much, the additional travel in the HD could allow the coil springs to become unseated.

I run the stock 3.07:1 ratio open rear in my C124.
No limited slip differential.
You can see in the below picture the suspension balance and weight transfer which allows traction or lack of traction evenly to both rear wheels...

 

[Niks]

have you got the B4 Gas OEM HDs?

 

[RBYCC]

have you got the B4 Gas OEM HDs?

There always seems to be much controversy when you mention HD's with lowering springs.

For my 1988 300CE coupe I used Bilstein HD # B36-1385-HD and V36-0361-HD shocks.
Springs are H&R Sport Springs # 29569 with stock spring pad/shims.

These springs will give about a 1.5" front and 1.3" rear drop.
Actual drop dependent on the spring pads/shims that your car has installed.
The factory pads/shims range from 8 to 23MM.

Below is a link of interest from a USA Porsche tuner which indicates shock/spring combinations.

Welcome to Rennsport Systems, Porsche Performance Products for the 21st Century

This is also captured from their website.
More concerned about spring rate then how much the car was lowered.

911 66-89 and 930 Turbo 76-89 :​

We have complete Bilstein Struts & Inserts as well as Rear Shocks for these applications. The shock valving varies appropriately:

Heavy Duty - This is suitable for stock and slightly improved spring rates. The ride quality is unchanged.
Sport - This is suitable for larger torsion bars and stiffer springs used more for sporting events and some types of racing.
Front Sport inserts will make the ride noticably stiffer than HD's. Rear applications do not impact the ride quality as much.

 

[Donbronski]

Ok, anyone know where i could pick up some tougher sway bars??

 

[RBYCC]

Ok, anyone know where i could pick up some tougher sway bars??

Sportline bars are still listed in the Merc EPC.

Front: 124-323-68-65 with 124-323-45-85 inner bushing and 124-323-51-85 outer bushing.

Rear: 124-326-19-65 with 124-326-01-81 bushing.

If I recall all of the Cabs use the same front part number as the Sportline.

There are heavier bars availabele ( E500, Limo, E60 ) but for everyday driving and minor speed events the Sportline is sufficient.

Make sure you install new bushings

 

[Donbronski]

Thanks RBYCC you have been very helpful, I'm gonna try locate me some thicker sway bars.

Take Care.

 

[bolide]

Shock absorbers won't do anything about body roll - they're there to damp the motion of the spring / car

It's spring rate, via the springs, tyres & antiroll bar (arb), that determine the amount of bodyroll

If you're running 15" rims with 195 or 205 tyres then the softest spring on the car is the tyre. Stiffening the arb will reduce the car roll relative to the wheels but the tyres will deflect more. Whether the combination will be effective will depend on the spring rate, tyre rate & arb rate

I would think that the simplest setup that works is a good standard one, followed by Sports Chassis (aka Sportline), then an AMG one or one of the Bilstein spring & damper kits

Modifying suspension is not something you can do in random steps with any hope of a good outcome. Just fitting lowering springs could give you the worst of all outcomes

Nick Froome