W204 coil springs, problems fitting

[KiwiPete]

Hi All. I had a broken front coil spring in my 57 C 200 W204. 157K miles on the clock.
I purchased replacements from AutoDoc.com on line. Took 1-1/2 weeks to arrive from Germany but they were a lot cheaper than other options.
Anyway, I have spent the weekend trying to fit the new springs into the old strut, without success. I can't get the springs to compress sufficiently. The wider windings and tapered ends mean the end coils won't compress without the screws getting in the way.
I have had to give up as it wasn't working and it just didn't feel safe. Has anyone managed to fit the these and if so how?

Options, I think, Spend £160 on a proper spring compressor - Clarke SSC1000G 1 Tonne Strut Spring Compressor | Clarke Tools Seems reasonable as garage wanted £300 to replace one spring - maybe sell on ebay after use,
buy the cheaper Vevor online option £98, but no safety cage
or admit defeat and go back to the local garage. Any advice welcome. Thanks

 

[Gazwould]

£300 labour for one spring

What garage was that , main stealer ?

 

[XJ600]

Take the struts to a garage that have the correct tool or a press, get them to change them , be a lot safer. Lot of energy in a compressed coil spring.

 

[horatio]

£300 labour for one spring

What garage was that , main stealer ?

I had both front struts assembled & fitted for 225 all in at WG!

Hopefully those springs will be the correct height, non MB can be hit & miss.

 

[Petrol Pete]

Find a local garage with a spring compressor and work out a price with them , 1 hour's labour perhaps ? TBH I think you might have trouble re selling the 'used only twice' spring compressor .

A business would probably want a VAT registered seller and private non local sale could give you headaches with postage cost .

 

[Trickythemerc]

Don't mess with those springs, if one gets loose under compression it could take your head off. Proper tooling for the job is required for safety and do the springs have the correct rating for your car. I have been down the after market spring route and would not go there again.

 

[Petrol Pete]

Hi All. I had a broken front coil spring in my 57 C 200 W204. 157K miles on the clock.
I purchased replacements from AutoDoc.com on line. Took 1-1/2 weeks to arrive from Germany but they were a lot cheaper than other options.
Anyway, I have spent the weekend trying to fit the new springs into the old strut, without success. I can't get the springs to compress sufficiently. The wider windings and tapered ends mean the end coils won't compress without the screws getting in the way.
I have had to give up as it wasn't working and it just didn't feel safe. Has anyone managed to fit the these and if so how?

Options, I think, Spend £160 on a proper spring compressor - Clarke SSC1000G 1 Tonne Strut Spring Compressor | Clarke Tools Seems reasonable as garage wanted £300 to replace one spring - maybe sell on ebay after use,
buy the cheaper Vevor online option £98, but no safety cage
or admit defeat and go back to the local garage. Any advice welcome. Thanks

View attachment 113487

Call Declan on 07786 130525 he has a spring compressor in his workshop.

 

[KiwiPete]

Hi Guys, thanks for all your advice, think I'll play it safe. Local garage said they would fit the springs to the strut. The replacements look the same length and size. Will let you know how we get on.

 

[KiwiPete]

Call Declan on 07786 130525 he has a spring compressor in his workshop.

Hi Pete, Is Declan local to Wiltshire?

 

[Petrol Pete]

Hi Pete, Is Declan local to Wiltshire?

15 minute drive from Corsham.

 

[Petrol Pete]

Kiwi, did you get this sorted ?

 

[KiwiPete]

Hi All,
Thanks for your comments and advice. Got both springs fitting and car riding well. I achieved this with two sets of compressor screws to step down the springs to the right compression. Key is to have a at least one set with a longer elbow (don't buy the cheap £20 sort).
I also rigged up a safety device of types where I looped a piece of webbing through a round hole drilled through the workbench and passed the loop around the the spring coil, pulling the webbing taught meant the spring couldn't fly loose. All over it was a bit of a hassle but very satisfying to achieve the end result. I also repainted the struts which was showing signs of corrosion so feel I got a better result than the garage would have delivered.

Interesting both springs were broken but at 160K Miles it is the first real thing to go wrong with the car that made it undrivable.

Presumably I now need to get the wheels aligned by a specialist.

I did buy on of these from Amazon, which didn't work for the W204 springs. The w204 springs are special in that they do have concentric circles and a steep pitch at the ends which is what makes this model difficult to work with. This tool is a pretty cool piece of kit though.


Feel free to reach out it anyone needs to borrow it.