2003 SL High speed Vibration

sgooduk

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SL500/2004/5.0
Hi Guys,

Well I have had all the engine mounts changed and a service done at Star in Reading. A+++ Service highly recommend...

(They said the mounts were the worst worn they had ever removed!!, one was totally in half!!)

Can really tell a difference when driving round town, it is much quieter and also doesn't rumble in the cab when you fire it up. However I am still getting quite severe resonance/vibration at high speed.. This also seem to be effected by road surface and moves from one side of the car to the other under cornering??? Starts at about 80mph!! Obviously only tried this on the runway :)

Any ideas???

Bad tyres??

Thanks

Scott
 

Top Cat 500

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SL500 1999 : GLA220 AMG 2014 4matic
I presume you have checked wheel balance, and wheel bearings. Wheel balance vibration usually goes away again at higher speed, but of course you haven't had the opportunity to test this out.:)

I presume there is a propshaft bearing like the R129 - it could well be that, esp if the engine mounts were in a bad way.
 

Gkinghorn

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E350 CDI Cabriolet - 2011
buckled wheel? lots of pothole damage these days on cars..that would only come into play at higher speeds too i think.. beyond that wheel/tyre balancing is worth doing...
 

Pathfinder

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CLC 220 CDi Sport Diesel Year 2008
Rear wheel balance ?
 

fozzymandeus

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2003 SL350
How old are your tyres? My SL has a tendency to make tyres go out of shape (with uneven tyre wear radially on the tyre rather than cross-sectionally as you would expect with misaligned suspension) and this causes road noise and vibration.
 
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sgooduk

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SL500/2004/5.0
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All sorted

Hi guys,

Vibration all sorted now, exchanged my corroded alloys for a freshly re-furbed set today....

One of my rear wheels was quite badly buckled, along with both fronts being slightly buckled.

4 true wheels = Zero vibration and super smooth motorway drive :)

So to summarise, car under gone the following since i bought it...

Full detail clean
Full interior restoration, drivers seat bolster, steering wheel, gear knob, Passenger seat re-coloured repaired as original.
Full service, filters, oil, wipers etc..
Full set of engine mounts/Tranny mount
Gearbox oil and filter.
New alloys/restoration (exchange)
Discs and pads all round
Fixed centre console lid catch.
Suppressed Fag lighter(charger interference)
ABC Oil Flush Clean/ Fliter Change + Magnetic filter added.
Fixed Banging baffle in fuel tank.

Only thing left to do is.....

Prop shaft couplings (have parts). Not urgent now as thought this maybe the cause of vibration, however they are visibly worn.
Spark Plugs
Black Vinyl cover the side bits next to rear window.
Strip headlights and clean inside lenses..
Get the front bumper re-sprayed - stone chips
Inside rear arches need painting (treated them with anti corrosion stuff but need painting before winter....
Get tiny bit of root sprayed on one corner - slight corrosion, annoying more than anything....

Once I done all that, I will be happy with it :)

Stands me at about 9.5k without spraying.

So Next debate :) Spark plugs... Thinking NGK Laser Iridium or Iridium IX??

Any ideas???
 
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sgooduk

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SL500/2004/5.0
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buckled wheel? lots of pothole damage these days on cars..that would only come into play at higher speeds too i think.. beyond that wheel/tyre balancing is worth doing...

Thanks mate you were bang on :)
 

Gkinghorn

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E350 CDI Cabriolet - 2011
Glad it was a simple fix and nothing more sinister ...


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orb the Impaler

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2012 SLK 250 CDi AMG | Volvo V70 2.5T AWD | MV Agusta F4 | 1999 YZF-R1
That's a crazy amount of stuff to have to do on such a car at only 10 years old. Mine was similar.

Compare this to the 2004 Volvo V70 (2.5 turbo, AWD) that I've just bought. 80K on the clock, absolutlely perfect unmarked condition, not a spot of rust, perfect black leather, satnav, tv - every option. Every single gadget and gizmo works. Compare and contrast with similar era Benzes.
 

PieterH

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W203 CDI 220
I have a very similar problem on my W203 CDI 220. I put a set of Dunlop tyres on it and after 26 000km's the rear tyres has flat spots. I get a lot of vibration through the steering at 120kph so had them balanced again. Problem is still there. This type of wear usually means that the rear shocks are worn but I pressed down on the car on each corner and there is no bouncing up and down and I also saw no leaks on the shocks either. Is it just a question of poor quality tyres. My previous set of tyres gave me 60 000km before they were worn. Any sugestions, the car has done 150 000 trouble free km's.
 

television

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2002 SL500, 216 CL500, all fully loaded
I do not think the the shocks can have any bearing on this
 
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