Anyone found their W212 E250 CGI Avantgarde suspension too hard?

[Dingo L]

After driving a Toyota SUV for 14 years, l recently got a 2011 W212 E250 CGI Avantgarde and after a few weeks drive l found the suspension a bit hard and less comfortable as l expect.
Anyone here have the same thought?

 

[js190d]

Hi, i am guessing the your Toyota was probably riding on 60-80 profile tyres so it is no surprise the Mercedes seems less comfortable on road. Maybe search ebay for some 16 inch wheels with higher profile tyres

 

[John Laidlaw]

Most SUV’s will be more supple than a saloon/estate - as above or as a quick fix check your tyre pressure aren’t at the top end

 

[Blobcat]

17" wheels and tyres would be more comfortable with non-runflats

 

[malcolm E53 AMG]

^ as above change to 17” wheels they should be easy enough to find on EBay. The tyres on your 18in wheels will soften up a bit in summer as the temperature rises

 

[sonic]

I run 17" winter & 18" summer wheels on my 212, much smother on the 17"
My wife had a 171 SLK with 18" wheels absolutely rock hard ride. Her previous 171 SLK was on
16" wheels a lovely ride.

 

[LostKiwi]

The Avantgarde spec is also more sports biased I believe.

 

[malcolm E53 AMG]

The 2011-12 E class range consisted of:

SE - for comfort, with 16in alloy wheels
Avantgarde - lowered 15mm with 17in alloy wheels
Sport - lowered 15mm with ‘direct control suspension’ (marketing speak for thicker roll bars and stiffer dampers/springs) with 18in alloy wheels
AMG - lowered and tuned suspension by AMG with 19in wheels

Of course there will be variations on some of the above which would be mainly payable options on wheel sizes and styles. The options list at that time was very flexible indeed ie. you could order an Avantgarde spec luxury nappa interior with the exterior Sports pack and suspension and so on - this has been dropped today in favour of ‘packages’ due mainly to cost savings and to nudge up the bottom line

 

[Dingo L]

Thank you for all the advices.
Actually l already changed to 16" wheels and lowered tyre pressure to 32psi, and recently got all the springs change to Elegance ( 485 Comfort ) specs..... I just feel the ride a bit hard.....
Some friends suggest me switching back to Japanese SUV to get back the 'soft ride'...

Is there anything l can do if l want to keep my car?

I was told the shock absorbers of Elegance and Avantgarde are of same 'hardness' that means changing shocks to Elegance specs doesn't improve the ride quality much. You guys agree with that?

 

[Headhurts]

May be of no help but I have an S212 E350 which has sports suspension, I find it pretty much spot on.

A much less skittish ride than my previous car an E300 Hybrid SE, hardly any noticeable difference in ride but much better handling.

It’s a matter of getting used to it or if that’s a no changing to a car with much softer suspension.

Robin


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[LostKiwi]

Thank you for all the advices.
Actually l already changed to 16" wheels and lowered tyre pressure to 32psi, and recently got all the springs change to Elegance ( 485 Comfort ) specs..... I just feel the ride a bit hard.....
Some friends suggest me switching back to Japanese SUV to get back the 'soft ride'...

Is there anything l can do if l want to keep my car?

I was told the shock absorbers of Elegance and Avantgarde are of same 'hardness' that means changing shocks to Elegance specs doesn't improve the ride quality much. You guys agree with that?

Looking at this site:
http://mb-teilekatalog.info/view_Su...&catalog=D21&model=212202&group=32&subgrp=154

It suggests the Avantgarde dampers are different to the 'Comfort' chassis.

Note you will need to look up your specific car to see if this is true for yours.
To find your specific vehicle you need the first six numbers of the VIN number
(E.g WDB230475 you would note down as 230.475 - yours will be 212.xyz) then find the appropriate model under E class.

 

[malcolm E53 AMG]

Mercedes have done wonders with the suspension on the latest model W213 introduced March 2016 it might be worth testing one of those in SE spec they are great cars, my son has the 220d AMG line version and I can’t believe how well it rides on 20in wheels so the 17in wheels on the SE must be like a magic carpet

 

[Dingo L]

Looking at this site:
http://mb-teilekatalog.info/view_Su...&catalog=D21&model=212202&group=32&subgrp=154

It suggests the Avantgarde dampers are different to the 'Comfort' chassis.

Thank you.
I also did some research on W212 shocks, to fit E250 rear shocks, a2123200630 for Comfort, and a2123204630 for Avantgarde. After consulting with an experienced MB technician, he said the only difference between them is the travel distance, where the Comfort shock moves longer to fit the longer Comfort spring.

So is it true?

 

[Dingo L]

Mercedes have done wonders with the suspension on the latest model W213 introduced March 2016 it might be worth testing one of those in SE spec they are great cars, my son has the 220d AMG line version and I can’t believe how well it rides on 20in wheels so the 17in wheels on the SE must be like a magic carpet

Thank you.

I heard about that as well, will find one to check out the ride quality.