Rear Shocks 460 LWB

Hello Stewart,

When it comes to the drag link (link between the steering drop arm and front wheel, or the bar in front of the front axle) that is a dealer item only and the whole bar comes as one piece; it is not repairable as such.  Start by adding pennies to the 'piggy'.   Costs circa, £120.00.

The rear shock absorbers, is a question of price comparison between your local suppliers.  You may choose from Gas filled or Fluid filled dampers. 

I am sure forum readers would be contributing, especially those who have had experiences of them.

Regards,

Mercedes show three standard shock absorbers, part number A 003 326 61 00 , A 003 326 88 00,
A 003 326 03 00.  A shock absorber for heavy duty springs is shown as part number A 042 004 326 04 00.

URL address:  http://www.mister-auto.co.uk/en/search_s_refoem_0033260300.html  shows on their site, an equivalent shock absorber of the first part number, of £80.29 less 42% discount, plus £5.95 p&p.

The second part number is listed at £88.09 plus £5.95 p&p.  The third part number is listed at £88.09 plus above listed p&p.

A KYB shock absorber is at £75.17, less 42% discount, plus p&p.

There is another site:  http://www.monroeshop.co.uk/default.phpmake=&year=2012&search=0033260300&Car.x=19&Car.y=20
pricing from this site was not possible, better to ring them.

There were other sites but the prices were close to £100 per damper and one other listed £189.

Regards,

I have not been able to differentiate from either gas or oil filled, they seem to perform just as well.

Looking at the MOT point of view; an oil filled damper gives the tester, as any evidence of leakage, a point for failure, where as gas leakage can not be detected, except for the weakness in dampening action. 

Given, the same amount of leakage in both, the tester cannot distinguish dampening weakness unless it is drastic.  The only thing alerting him would be a hint of visible leak.  Testing in this country has not included shock absorber testing equipment in which case some degradation could be graphically seen. 

As you want to just Road use the vehicle, it shouldn't matter in either choice, I reckon.

This has given me another topic to write about for the forum, I shall be researching into this further.

Regards,

Gas shockers are close to oil filled shockers with a gas charge above atmospheric pressure. Nitrogen I think? (Did the factory tour at Monroe after a job interview).

Gas shocker;
1. Will stop the oil foaming so will not overheat so quickly = good
2. Will extend the rod from the main body if you leave them on their own with a fair bit of force
3. This rod extension will effectively make your springs a little bit stiffer (self levellings ones can make it stiff enough to level a car; not a G option)
4. Hence the "better" solution

Then you get into mono shocks and dual tube shocks etc.. mono are cheaper to make. Not something that a live axled vehicle would allow you to feel so ignore it. Dual have 2 tubes and the gas lives in the annulus between the tubes so probably leaks quicker. Duals can longer strokes for same body length. Control is a wash .. mono tubes have bigger pistons so easy to valve/control but then dual tubes have less gas pressure so a "purer" shocker without confusing gas load jacking up suspension.
http://www.tein.co.jp/e/special/ni_toryu/index.html
http://www.rx7club.com/showthread.php?t=798034
http://www.ek9.org/forum/suspension/4741-mono-tube-twin-tube-suspension-info-tein.html

They all leak oil one day but 4-5 years down the road if not used incorrectly.. 

I would just go with quality make .. KYB and Monroe are both fair. Bilstein nice but stiff, Koni nice but softer, better ride. AVO a simple riding, rebuildable item. Tein are fine, bit better than KYB. Gaz are ex-AVO but better valving. Spax are nasty but from same school as AVO. Ohlins are the Rolls-Royce solution.. if you can afford them. On another car I have had, Tokico, Koni, AVO and now on GAZ... Konis had plushish ride but valving did not suit 100% extra power.. AVO and Gaz had bi-directional adjustability which is what I needed; Adjustable Konis are only compression adjustable. Of course most of these are not available in G sizes.. but AVO, Gaz etc are hand made rebuildable items so anything is possible given a sample.
No comment on Fox as 4x4 only but seem to be spending adverts/PR and popular with big boys toys in USA; all noise can be misleading!

From my notes;
“Scorpion Racing in London supply shock absorbers & springs for G Wagens. they have standard, uprated & adjustable shocks, & they will build springs to your requirements. The best way is to send the original spring, along with the measurements they ask for, along with any difference in required ride height. I had a set made & the on road ride is just as good (no discernable increase in body roll), but it has a much smoother ride off road. their telephone number is 07000 332272” BJ

I've just had a brief look underneath. The perished rubber ends are on the bar at the front of the car that is connetced to the steering box. What's this called and are the ends available or do I have to buy the whole rod?

Thanks. The minimum I need is the rubber boots on the end. Mechanics dont think that dirt has got in yet. How do I check it for play to be sure? Will I see it movement at the joint when an assistant turns the steering wheel from side to side?
I dont want to buy the whole thing unless I need to.
The main symptoms that lead me to think it needs parts are:
Vibration at around 70mph which smooths out around 85-90. I will get all wheels balanced as the rears dont have any weights attached but used to.
Pulls to the right when braking hard from 80mph. This could be worn shocks which are pretty rusty all round, wheel bearings or the drag link ends. What is the other bar with track rod tye ends called?
Anything else I've missed that could cause pulling?
Steering seems  a bit loose so I'm think UJ's or the rod ends.
Body roll seems ok for a 4x4.
 
Stupid question perhaps, but the 4 wheel drive  'GA' high ratio can be used on a normal road right?
I should probably open seperate threads but too excited for now.(even with a flat battery)!

Vibration .. there is a guide but prop shafts is next after wheels
Rubber boots for the steering joints are available on their own from motor factors.. again Rakesh did a bit on it on here. If you pry and push them around you will feel wear but that is what they do for MOT's so suspect they are fine.
Pulling under braking is most likely front calipers piston that is siezed one side.. push them back into housing and pump them back out a few times .. then on dirt road see if both rear wheels lock up on hand brake when going slow.. say 10-15mph.. that will tell you if it is rear brakes that are unbalanced.
Transfer box is high ratio 2 wheel drive .. you go back for 4wd high, then across for 4wd low.  Offically 4wd is not to be used on road and hard surfaces as there is no middle differential but I do use it in 4WD in icey/snowy conditions but then I flick back to 2wd every 4-5 miles when in a smooth settled bit of straight road; this allows the transmission to "unwind" and you can do it on the fly with no clutch. So no 4wd on hard surfaces is easy rule.