R129 Suspension Clonk !

[mrporsche]

Afternoon,

1993 car, that clonks over rough surfaces, and there is a shudder under breaking.

It passed an MOT on friday and i did point out that i thought the front ball joints might have gone. I watched him get aggressive with the pry bar but he could not find any suspension issues.

The garage owner suggested that the shocks sometimes fail internally and this can be difficult to spot on an MOT ?

The tops mounts are old but he had a look at those and other than take it all apart couldnt see anything obvious.

Whilst i am no expert it does to sit a little low at the front.

Any thoughts ?

Thanks

Edited by mrporsche on Tuesday 15th December 17:22

[jimdollar]

I had a broken front spring on my 1993 but he surely would have noticed that if it was the case. Apparently it is very difficult to test the balljoints because of the pressure the springs put on them. Before this car I had a 1991 300SL-24 and one of the metal clamps on top of the strut mount had come a bit loose so
it might be worth checking those.

[Old Merc]

Roll bar bushes often have play, very easy to replace. I would suggest you have the car checked out by an old Mercedes Indy who is well experienced with these R129`s.
When I first had my 97 R129 I was never happy with the feel and handling, so I asked my local Merc` man to sort it. New front springs, lower ball joints, steering idler,steering damper, and the all important adjustment of the suspension and steering geometry. It drove like a different car, well worth the expense.

[PositronicRay]

Mine used to through the mot each Yr with knackered ball joints, I only realised when I changed the shocks.

[Old Merc]

PositronicRay said:

Mine used to through the mot each Yr with knackered ball joints, I only realised when I changed the shocks.

The way to check them. Jack up the car, get a mate with a big six foot bar under the tyre, and lift it up and down. If you lie under the car you can see movement in the ball and socket.