Sagging front Passenger end.

[mbLova]

I was reversing into a parking spot when I heard a huge pop from the front. I finished parking my car and went to check the tires. All the tires are fine and are holding air. However, the front passenger side is sagging(almost like I have the car dropped). I know my tie rods were starting to go bad, esp on the front passenger, but I think my shock is blown. I drove it in a circle in the parking lot and when I braked, that front end would just drop to the ground and the steering did seem a bit looser.
Any ideas? I'm thinking it's the shock.

[hvmercy]

could be many things.

You can start checking the spring perch where the
springs sit/attach to the top part of the suspension.

Good luck and hopefully it's not so serious.

[Logic]

yea what he said ^^^^^^^^^^^ :D

[mbLova]

Originally posted by Logic
yea what he said ^^^^^^^^^^^ :D

You guys are starting to scare me. What should I look for?
Possible damage count?($$$)

[mbLova]

Originally posted by mbLova
You guys are starting to scare me. What should I look for?
Possible damage count?($$$)

Got to check out the car. It's sitting so low that the tire is inside the wheel well and rubbing against the fender wall. The top part of the spring is pointed towards the front headlight... So i'm figuring thats not good.

[Pagz]

Originally posted by mbLova
Got to check out the car. It's sitting so low that the tire is inside the wheel well and rubbing against the fender wall. The top part of the spring is pointed towards the front headlight... So i'm figuring thats not good.

You figured correctly!

You will need to have the spring perch re-welded to the chassis,you are not the only one this has happened to and from what iv read this is usually caused but corrosion around the mount.

[97C28O]

Shouldnt your front springs be seated properly in the grooves of the LCA? That's how I placed my springs in..

For me, my rear end seems to sag, but it could just be the spring pads..

[mbLova]

Originally posted by 23K
You figured correctly!

You will need to have the spring perch re-welded to the chassis,you are not the only one this has happened to and from what iv read this is usually caused but corrosion around the mount.
DING DING DING. Seems that rust wore away at the metal and it just gave away. I highly dissapointed that this would happen in a 99 with 73k miles... Isn't there a factory warrenty for this type of stuff.

I'm going to shop around at diff body shops to see what they can do... But it seems that it may be costly.

[hvmercy]

Originally posted by mbLova
DING DING DING. Seems that rust wore away at the metal and it just gave away. I highly dissapointed that this would happen in a 99 with 73k miles... Isn't there a factory warrenty for this type of stuff.

I'm going to shop around at diff body shops to see what they can do... But it seems that it may be costly.

sorry to hear that.
Unfortunately, salt on the road is a major contributor to this kind of issues. Even non-MB models get rusted somewhere along that area and eventually affect the suspension components.

I know in Canada that is also the case. That's why I decided to bring my 202 back to California.

I hope it turns out well for you.

[xvvvz]

A guy on another forum who lives in Missouri just experienced the same problem. He checked and the replacement part is only $25ish at the stealership. The key thing and major cost will be finding a shop with a good welder who is skilled enough to do a good job. I would think most major stealerships by now have someone getting pretty good at this on w202s and w210s.

[mbLova]

Originally posted by xvvvz
A guy on another forum who lives in Missouri just experienced the same problem. He checked and the replacement part is only $25ish at the stealership. The key thing and major cost will be finding a shop with a good welder who is skilled enough to do a good job. I would think most major stealerships by now have someone getting pretty good at this on w202s and w210s.

It's quite interesting as I have not been able to find the part as "replaceable". I think I will have to rip the part off of a car from a junkyard. Although every bodyshop i have spoken too is saying that I need to the WHOLE front apron as they are not willing to weld the part onto a part of the car where the rust might have worn at the metal.

[xvvvz]

Interesting comment about people not wanting to weld on to the current mounting point if it is showing rust. I could see their point. You may have to go to the stealership to find someone who will do it for you (but not doubt for $$).

If your stealership's part guy isn't finding the part, ask for someone else because lots of people have bought the part. This is becoming a more common issue as these cars get older.

[benzonline]

This is sad....and this is another reason this is my last benz although I have not have this happen to me.

I hope it works out for you.

[xvvvz]

For anyone who is going to the stealership, tell the technician (or "service advisor" if you can't speak to a technician) to look up AR62.30-P-1600EA in the Mercedes WIS (workshop information system) while using your VIN to limit the document search to w202 cars. I believe this is the newer revision of the AR62.30-P-1600E document with the same title. He could also look up the term "replace front spring support" in the WIS documentation search function that searches title key words.

If you are going to buy the part and then go to an independent mechanic, ask the parts guy to print the AR62.30-P-1600EA document plus the following two others:

AR62.30-P-1600-01EA
AR62.30-P-1600-03EA

These three documents give enough specific information that any competent body shop should be able to fix things.

If your parts guy can't find the part, you might suggest he try the key words of: front, spring, support

Anyone here who goes and buys the part, please come back here and post the exact part number from your part receipt.

[mbLova]

Originally posted by xvvvz
For anyone who is going to the stealership, tell the technician (or "service advisor" if you can't speak to a technician) to look up AR62.30-P-1600EA in the Mercedes WIS (workshop information system) while using your VIN to limit the document search to w202 cars. I believe this is the newer revision of the AR62.30-P-1600E document with the same title. He could also look up the term "replace front spring support" in the WIS documentation search function that searches title key words.

If you are going to buy the part and then go to an independent mechanic, ask the parts guy to print the AR62.30-P-1600EA document plus the following two others:

AR62.30-P-1600-01EA
AR62.30-P-1600-03EA

These three documents give enough specific information that any competent body shop should be able to fix things.

If your parts guy can't find the part, you might suggest he try the key words of: front, spring, support

Anyone here who goes and buys the part, please come back here and post the exact part number from your part receipt.

Will def check that out with the SA. Although he didn't seem too helpful in terms of MBUSA covering the repair. He said he's never heard of spring perch issues on MB. I asked him to do research on the w210 as it is notoriously known for this.
It's quite sad to see the car having an issue like this with 73,xxx miles.

[mbLova]

Originally posted by mbLova
Will def check that out with the SA. Although he didn't seem too helpful in terms of MBUSA covering the repair. He said he's never heard of spring perch issues on MB. I asked him to do research on the w210 as it is notoriously known for this.
It's quite sad to see the car having an issue like this with 73,xxx miles.

Got word late tuesday evening that MBUSA has authorized work on the Vehicle and are replacing both spring perches. I will upload pictures later this evening.
I Haven't even been in yet to visit the SA. The only word I got was that it was going to cost the dealership approx 3k.

[xvvvz]

Be cautious going into this. That is great they may help you out after this long. I hope they pay for it all but from what I have seen on other forums MB usually agrees to pay half. If the dealer is prepping you with $3k for a price point, that leaves you paying $1500. Considering a guy on one of the other forums this week just paid something like $40 for all the parts he needed from MB and then got a body shop to reweld it back in for a total price of around $200 (just one perch), a partial reimbursement through the stealership may not be that great of a deal.

[mbLova]

Originally posted by xvvvz
Be cautious going into this. That is great they may help you out after this long. I hope they pay for it all but from what I have seen on other forums MB usually agrees to pay half. If the dealer is prepping you with $3k for a price point, that leaves you paying $1500. Considering a guy on one of the other forums this week just paid something like $40 for all the parts he needed from MB and then got a body shop to reweld it back in for a total price of around $200 (just one perch), a partial reimbursement through the stealership may not be that great of a deal.
I was. But wouldn't they have to ask me for permission B4 performing the work(aka sending it to their bodyshop)?
He called me and said, "we are going to go ahead and send it to the bodyshop".... so I am assuming that MBUSA is re-reimbursing the stealership.

[xvvvz]

Sorry, I have no idea about particulars like that. You know more about what has been said/promised than anyone :) When in doubt, call back and confirm things! That is just good business.

[xvvvz]

Just to be clear, I posted the other person's story just so you go in with your eye's wide open. For your particular situation, maybe the stealership will end up being the best deal for you (especially if they are going to cover all costs!). If you don't like to go out and get estimates from body shops, be responsible for getting parts, etc., that may not be the route you want. Some people feel better getting work done at the stealers because it sometime is easier to go back and get it corrected if there is a problem or they don't feel confident enough to work with/guide a non-MB body shop. I would not want to pay $1500 or $3000 for this work if I could get it done competently for a lot less.

[mbLova]

Originally posted by xvvvz
Just to be clear, I posted the other person's story just so you go in with your eye's wide open. For your particular situation, maybe the stealership will end up being the best deal for you (especially if they are going to cover all costs!). If you don't like to go out and get estimates from body shops, be responsible for getting parts, etc., that may not be the route you want. Some people feel better getting work done at the stealers because it sometime is easier to go back and get it corrected if there is a problem or they don't feel confident enough to work with/guide a non-MB body shop. I would not want to pay $1500 or $3000 for this work if I could get it done competently for a lot less.
I agree with you 100%. I was getting quotes from bodyshops ranging from 1200 to 5500 USD.

[mbLova]

Just picked up the car. It has 73,734 miles on it. I think the threshold for MBUSA was around 71k miles. I am thankful for MBUSA paying the cost of the repairs.
The first pictures are of the rusted passenger side, and as you can tell, the last ones are the job completed. They did both sides, as they were both rusted.

http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o14/MBlova/MercedesSpringPerch009.jpg
http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o14/MBlova/MercedesSpringPerch010.jpg
http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o14/MBlova/MercedesSpringPerch011.jpg
http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o14/MBlova/MercedesSpringPerch012.jpg
http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o14/MBlova/MercedesSpringPerch013.jpg
http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o14/MBlova/MercedesSpringPerch014.jpg
http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o14/MBlova/MercedesSpringPerch015.jpg
http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o14/MBlova/MercedesSpringPerch016.jpg

New Part.

http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o14/MBlova/MercedesSpringPerchNew001.jpg
http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o14/MBlova/MercedesSpringPerchNew002.jpg
http://i116.photobucket.com/albums/o14/MBlova/MercedesSpringPerchNew003.jpg

[xvvvz]

Sweet. Glad you got it fixed. So did they pay for everything?

[mbLova]

Originally posted by xvvvz
Sweet. Glad you got it fixed. So did they pay for everything?
Yessir.

[benzonline]

Wow nice! I think this is the first time I seen MB pay for this job usually its nothing or at best, half like mentioned.

Did your car see salt/snow before? I wonder if there is a way to see if there is rust in terms of inspecting these perches? My mech said they are good but judging by the pics how would one know.

Any symptoms?

[mbLova]

Originally posted by benzonline
Wow nice! I think this is the first time I seen MB pay for this job usually its nothing or at best, half like mentioned.

Did your car see salt/snow before? I wonder if there is a way to see if there is rust in terms of inspecting these perches? My mech said they are good but judging by the pics how would one know.

Any symptoms?
The best thing you can do is jack up the car, take the wheel off, and inspect the spring perches yourself. Don't peel away the rust coating, but look for rust that has occurred underneath the coating. When these fail, they rip right off. Not slowly. I would inspect both sides JUST to get an idea for yourself, of what the situation looks like.

[PaulX608]

This happened to mine about a year and a half ago. I'm pretty sure I posted a thread about it on here. The part was cheap, I got it at the dealer. Paid a guy at a small local body shop $200 to replace it. The hardest part was trying to get the car on the rollback with the right front collapsed.

Edit: I found my thread from last year. Here's a link. (http://www.club202.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=15298)