280SL Rear Shock Absorber

[thomas wright]

My Good Friends,

On a recent previous post I ask for assistance on diagnosing a noise from my rear left side wheel which turned out to be a damaged wheel bearing so all is quite for the time being.
While the work was being carried out it was noticed that the that the SA had an oil leak so I ordered a pair of Bilstein OE replacements. I feel I have the capacity to do this task and fit them myself but need advice on what procedure to follow that is safe and will give a satisfactory result.

Your advice will be most appreciated.


280SL 1969, 050 white,auto,leather trim,lhd.

[Cees Klumper]

Have not done this on my Pagoda yet, but my advice to you (and anyone reading this actually) is to get a Haynes manual to help you with basic jobs like this one. Usually, between the instructions in a manual and just applying common sense, I am able to get things done just fine. Sometimes I have to stop, ask on the forums with a specific question, before I can proceed, but that is the exception. The forums are excellent for the complicated stuff, like on our Pagodas, the warm up cycle thing.
This is how in the past week I was able to replace the cylinder heads on my '90 V6 Ford Bronco, and the rear brakes and  wheel bearings on my '71 Volkswagen 411. The manuals are usually my 'first stop' and normally that's sufficient.

[kampala]

This job is pretty logical — I think I did it without raising the car nor removing the wheels - not entirely sure as it was a few years ago.  The rear shocks are quite easy. I suggest you find the torque values and you may want to apply some penetrating fluid on the bolt/nut under the car (careful not to spray on brakes). 

As I recall you just bolt off and bolt on.  Check how the large cupped washers install on the top of the shock in the trunk — often you will see these installed wrong as it is counter intuitive.  The cupped washer faces up (the sides go up).

You might need to hold the tip of the shock with something as you tighten the top nut to keep the shock stem from turning as I recall. 

Also - for kicks, if your old shocks are bilsteins,  clean the bottom of the shock you remove and you might find a date stamped - mine were still original shocks.  Kind of surprised me.

[Pawel66]

I would also keep the old nuts.

[Benz Dr.]

 Put your car up on jack stands then pull the wheels off. Put a jack under your trailing arm at the axle tube to keep it from dropping when you remove the shock so it's fully supported. This step is very important or you can break a chunk out of the differential housing as the axle tube drops. This can be repaired but it's a lot of work because the whole axle needs to be removed and taken apart.

[thomas wright]

Thanks for all your tips particularly advice on supporting the trailing arm I hadn't thought of doing that.
I will spray penatrating oil on the bottom bolts a few days before I tackle the job which I hope will make life a little easier.

[ja17]

For the front shocks, you may need to compress them partially before installation. I use a hose clamp around the rubber boot to hold the shock compressed while installing it. Also slightly angle the base of the shock before installation. Once in place loosen the clamp and guide the top of the shock in place as it extends.