Spring Pads

[n/a]

I am ready to replace my shocks, and my rear end seems to sag a bit. It was suggested on this site that I change the spring pads. I have several questions:
1. My springs have NO color codes, how do I determine what size pads to order.
2. Someone suggested ordering 30mm pads, would this be a good choice?
3. The diagram I have shows these pads on the top of the rear coils, do the bottoms also have rubber pads, and vica-versa for the front shocks?
Thanks.

[jeffc280sl]

Make sure your springs are clean.  The paint marks look like they were made with a 1/2 in wide brush all in a row on the outer edge of a spring coil.  There hard to see especially if they are turned to the inside of the car.  Pads are tricky.  I'd check for color marks again.  Also check the pads on the compensating spring.  The rear springs have a thick (multiple thicknesses available) pad on top and a ver6y thin pad on the bottom.  The front springs have pads only on the top as I recall.  The compensating spring has pads on both ends.  Two or three sizes?

Jeff C.
1970 280SL 4-speed

[mdsalemi]

Take a good look at the BBB.

If your rear end is sagging (pardon the vernacular)shocks themselves probably won't correct that problem.  Your springs themselves might be worn, and the rubber pads might have broken down.  Things like this happen in 35+ years; all rubber and even springs should be considered wear items as our cars enter their 4th decade of service.

Since this involves the alignment settings of the rear suspension, I'd suggest you find a good mechanic with a proper alignment jig, and ensure they understand how the rear suspension is put together and how the spring pads affect the alignment.  On my car it was a hit and miss when we replaced the springs; we had to try several different pads until we got the alignment correct.  The BBB gives a good explanation of the pad sizes and how much they affect the alignment.

Michael Salemi
1969 280SL
Signal Red w/Black Leather
Restored

[rwmastel]

quote:Originally posted by mdsalemi

On my car it was a hit and miss when we replaced the springs; we had to try several different pads until we got the alignment correct.

Is it reasonable to order all available sizes of pads and return the ones that you don't need?  I'm not sure if you can return opened (and possibly installed) parts.

Rodd
Powell, Ohio, USA
1966 230SL, Euro, Auto, Leather, both  tops
1994 E420

[bpossel]

Per the BBB, there are 3 different thicknesses for the rear (8, 14, & 20 mm).  Unless your car was originally setup for a harder suspension, bad road conditions, the BBB narrows your choices down to 2 of the 3 thicknesses (14 & 20).

When I replaced my rear spring rubbers last fall (upper and lower), my spring colors were not visable either.  Based on the above, I selected the thicker rubber size.  At the time, I was only ordering parts through Buds Benz, and they only had 30mm pads (not sure where the 30 came from???).  I installed these and have been very happy.  Car seems to sit perfect (for me...), not too high, but mainly not sagging in the rear.

If you're going to do the work yourself, make sure to have a strong floor jack, and one that goes pretty high.  I recall having to really jack up the pass. side in order to clear the muffler, tail pipe area.  Drivers side was easy.

Note: I did not have my car re-aligned after I installed the new pads because I dont know who I can take it to and trust that it's done right....  Dont really notice any alignment issues...

Good Luck!

bpossel
Memphis, TN.
1971 280SL
1997 E320

[hands_aus]

I recently had my rear axle rebuilt only to have the left rear spring constantly creak and groan.
Turns out all the springs are after market with the rears being 20mm too long.
After the mechanic turned the LHS spring upside down the creaking disappeared.
The rear of the car is a bit high but I can live with it for a while.... at least until after I can afford to replace all the shocks.
A set of 4 Bilsteins US Dollars $443.00 incl freight to Australia, same set of 4 Bilsteins in Australia, Australian dollars $1856.00. Can anyone justify the price difference?

Bob Smith (Brisbane,Australia)
RHD,1967 early 250 SL, auto

[Cees Klumper]

Bob - how does the Australian $ compare to the US$, i.e. how much are the Billsteins in US$ if bought in Australia?

Cees ("Case") Klumper in Amsterdam
'69 white 280 SL automatic

[hands_aus]

Hey Cees,
At Mondays' exchange rate
AUD $1856.00  = USD $1431.00 plus or minus some cents


Bob Smith (Brisbane,Australia)
RHD,1967 early 250 SL, auto

[Naj ✝︎]

Anybody have part #s for these Bilsteins?

naj

65 230SL
68 280SL

[hands_aus]

Hey Naj,

front 113 320 00 30
rear  113 320 00 31

Bob Smith (Brisbane,Australia)
RHD,1967 early 250 SL, auto

[norton]

Rodd if you did order all available sizes of pads, maybe you could offer the left over's to the group on a exchange/buy deal, for others who end up with the wrong size