W211 rattle from front… suspension?!

[Kompressor_Dude]

Looking for ideas as have searched the forum and tried lots of repairs already.

W211 ‘07 E200, 89k miles. Rattle type noise from the front going over bumps.

So far have replaced:
Upper control arms (and ball joints)
Lower control arms
Lower ball joints
Lower suspension arms
Shock ARB drop-links

It was all tired as was original so I don’t mind having gone over it all, however I spent this afternoon fitting the new shocks and now the noise is worse?!

I’ve disconnected the ARB and it continued so have ruled that out. No undertray on it. Happens under braking so not pad-rattle.

What could it be and why would new shocks and ARB links make it louder?

The shock mounts looked ok, can they be visually inspected? Levered for play? Hope not as I really don’t want to test my bravery with the spring-compressor again…

 

[W1ghty]

Looking for ideas as have searched the forum and tried lots of repairs already.

W211 ‘07 E200, 89k miles. Rattle type noise from the front going over bumps.

So far have replaced:
Upper control arms (and ball joints)
Lower control arms
Lower ball joints
Lower suspension arms
Shock ARB drop-links

It was all tired as was original so I don’t mind having gone over it all, however I spent this afternoon fitting the new shocks and now the noise is worse?!

I’ve disconnected the ARB and it continued so have ruled that out. No undertray on it. Happens under braking so not pad-rattle.

What could it be and why would new shocks and ARB links make it louder?

The shock mounts looked ok, can they be visually inspected? Levered for play? Hope not as I really don’t want to test my bravery with the spring-compressor again…

What about the upper ball joint that is on the end of the U shaped thingy in the top of the front wheel wells ?
This thing

Ball Joint fits MERCEDES E320 S211, W211 Upper 3.2 3.0D 3.2D 02 to 09 Suspension | eBay

3x Febi Nut, ball joint (28510). Type Ball Joint. 1x Febi Ball Joint (28508). 3x Febi Clamping Screw, ball joint (28509). KEY PARTS KBJ5573. These products are designed to be used as originally intended and not modified for purpose.

www.ebay.co.uk

 

[Kompressor_Dude]

Yep, brand new as came fitted with the upper control arms. All the kit is Lemforder, Febi or Sachs too.

 

[Smiley]

The brake disc dust plates can corrode around the rivets and then they rattle over bumps. Easy to check, just lean in under the car and see if the back plate is secure on the hub.

 

[alabbasi]

if it's a rattle, it's either ball joints or drop links. Depending on the brand, they could fail prematurely. Febi ain't what it used to be,

 

[Will]

The brake disc dust plates can corrode around the rivets and then they rattle over bumps. Easy to check, just lean in under the car and see if the back plate is secure on the hub.

This would be a noticeable tinny rattle though and you’d think potentially would have been noticed during all that recent work, but it’s what I thought of too!

 

[190]

Below is a MB service bulletin I managed to find about 3 possible causes of front suspension noise that I had on my W204. Obviously I don't know if it's applicable to your W211 but if it has the same type of passive variable damping then cause 2 the strut itself could be the source of the noise. It's not the easiest document to follow having a particular structure but I successfully used it to have the strut replaced under warranty and the noise was gone.


Front Strut / Shock Tower: By Symptom

Technical Service Bulletin # LI32-25_P-048381

Date: 091208

Suspension - Front Axle Dull Thumping Noise On Bumps

NOISES FROM VICINITY OF FRONT AXLE ON UNEVEN ROAD SURFACE

Topic number

LI32.25-P-048381

Version

1

Design group

32.25 Shock absorbers/damper struts/spring struts

Date

12-08-2009

Validity

Model 204 without code 483 (Vehicle dynamics package), without AMG; Model 204.0## #A 185017 up to * 195993 with head bearing

Reason for change

Topic extended to FA shock absorber / torsion bar linkage. / Supersedes DTB P-B-32.25/67

Reason for block

Complaint:

Dull thumping noises or metallic rattling from vicinity of front axle on slightly uneven road surface and/or repaired road surface.

Note:

Noises occur in lower speed range (20...approx. 70km/h).

Cause:

Several causes are possible:

1. Head bearings on front axle suspension struts are too stiff (Shore hardness).

Note:

Noises from the head bearing occur on more uneven surfaces and sound relatively dull.

This cause affects only a small, limited production batch! Pay attention to the VIN restriction for head bearings (EPC: "Bearing, suspension strut to
body") in Validity section! On vehicles outside the restriction range, the head bearing is not the cause of the noise and may therefore not be replaced.

2. Shock absorber

Note:

Noises from the shock absorber are audible on slightly uneven surfaces and sound rather more metallic.

3. Torsion bar linkage

Note:

Noises caused by a torsion bar linkage only occur in a very small number of cases on this model series.

 

[Kompressor_Dude]

Really appreciate the responses. I’ll optimistically wiggle the dust shields and see what I find but that bulletin suggests top mounts as well. It would explain why the noise got worse since new (stiffer) shocks have been fitted, and is on both sides.

I just swapped them over, but can see now that under the bump-stop there is a bearing and some other wearable parts.



Looks like I’ll be stripping it all down again… spring compressors at the ready!

 

[Adamski151]

if it's a rattle, it's either ball joints or drop links. Depending on the brand, they could fail prematurely. Febi ain't what it used to be,

I've been down this whole road on a previous W211 - not my present one - and I can only say, they are absolutely renowned for front suspension problems. Don't get me wrong - great cars, but my goodness they chew front suspension components, especailly on bad British roads.

My tip - (any maybe the only time to do this) use genuine MB ball joints. They are expensive and even hard to get sometimes, but my goodness they are twice as hard as the Chinese steel ones which are like putty. Useless.

 

[Adamski151]

I've been down this whole road on a previous W211 - not my present one - and I can only say, they are absolutely renowned for front suspension problems. Don't get me wrong - great cars, but my goodness they chew front suspension components, especailly on bad British roads.

My tip - (any maybe the only time to do this) use genuine MB ball joints. They are expensive and even hard to get sometimes, but my goodness they are twice as hard as the Chinese steel ones which are like putty. Useless.

And also, while I think about it, I've had so many springs go on various heavy engined Mercs over the years, that I now keep a correct colour-coded set in with the spare tire, and that has actually worked for me when I had one go bang in a car park once and Kwik-fit around the corner were able to instantly fit the part I already had. Sounds neurotic I know but with springs it's worth it.

 

[OneForTheRoad]

Really appreciate the responses. I’ll optimistically wiggle the dust shields and see what I find but that bulletin suggests top mounts as well. It would explain why the noise got worse since new (stiffer) shocks have been fitted, and is on both sides.

I just swapped them over, but can see now that under the bump-stop there is a bearing and some other wearable parts.

View attachment 166030

Looks like I’ll be stripping it all down again… spring compressors at the ready!

Good luck . Been there done this , on a w219 , after £500 I traded the car in.

 

[Kompressor_Dude]

I may have found it….

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This noise is coming from the steering. It’s not the U-Joint and not the inner or outer tie rod ends - so something in-between. I can’t test to see if it happens over bumps, short of ziptieing my GoPro under the car for a short drive.

OneForTheRoad, am sorting this ahead of a sale, so chopping it into a garage and letting them know what I’ve done and what’s still wrong is Plan B!

I’d rather private sale and cash buy tho, especially with all the work it’s had in the last two years (easy over £5000).

 

[OneForTheRoad]

I may have found it….

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This noise is coming from the steering. It’s not the U-Joint and not the inner or outer tie rod ends - so something in-between. I can’t test to see if it happens over bumps, short of ziptieing my GoPro under the car for a short drive.

OneForTheRoad, am sorting this ahead of a sale, so chopping it into a garage and letting them know what I’ve done and what’s still wrong is Plan B!

I’d rather private sale and cash buy tho, especially with all the work it’s had in the last two years (easy over £5000).

That's bad that is , mine only tapped when going over small bumps , bound and rebound , I eventually put it down to the shock absorbers.

 

[gusferlizi]

I may have found it….

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This noise is coming from the steering. It’s not the U-Joint and not the inner or outer tie rod ends - so something in-between. I can’t test to see if it happens over bumps, short of ziptieing my GoPro under the car for a short drive.

OneForTheRoad, am sorting this ahead of a sale, so chopping it into a garage and letting them know what I’ve done and what’s still wrong is Plan B!

I’d rather private sale and cash buy tho, especially with all the work it’s had in the last two years (easy over £5000).

I believe what you're hearing there is the variable steering column linkage