creaking noise when braking/turning

[SilverSaloon]

this gives you is a good idea of whats needed http://www.peachparts.com/Wikka/W124BallJoint

hi

thanks for that - looks quite complicated compared to the steps the Turnipspock describes.....

Once i'm back from my trip i'm going to take a look and see how i feel about trying it myself. failing that i think i'll get the mercedes specialist that i would like to do the crankshaft oil seal to do them.... decisions decisions.

any idea on how much realistically i should expect to pay for both Left & Right ball joints to be replaced by a garage?

 

[Number_Cruncher]

>>how much realistically

It should be about an hour's labour for each side - less if the garage has the special press tools.

The big reason why I tend to dissuade DIY people on internet fora from attempting this job is that while the ball joint is disconnected, the spring is still pushing down on the wishbone. There's a huge amount of energy stored in the spring. Unless you can use a proper spring compressor, or support the wishbone in a completely safe way, you run the real risk of causing yourself serious injury. The pile of blocks shown on the peachparts site is not an ideal example of how to do it safely.

There are plenty of jobs on a W124 which you can realistically attempt in a DIY manner, but, there are jobs where, IMO, the risk just isn't worth the saving. Especially in this case, you would probably need to buy some tools to pull the new joint in, making the saving even more marginal.

 

[SilverSaloon]

There are plenty of jobs on a W124 which you can realistically attempt in a DIY manner, but, there are jobs where, IMO, the risk just isn't worth the saving. Especially in this case, you would probably need to buy some tools to pull the new joint in, making the saving even more marginal.

I think what i'll do is book it into the merc specialist and get the crankshaft oil seal done and the ball joints done. Both jobs would be good jobs done and bring the car back to "fault free" again (as far as i know!!)

 

[SilverSaloon]

hi

i've been quoted £190 to have 1 ball joint replaced.

do you reckon this is a reasonable price? this is a merc dealer by the way

i'm having problems getting a small garage to do this as many appear to think the creaking is acceptable and i should leave it until it gets worse, which worries me about how much they know about working on the car.....

cheers

derek

 

[Number_Cruncher]

>>i've been quoted £190 to have 1 ball joint replaced.

Sounds a bit steep to me.

Why not go to an independant garage, asking them to replace the ball joint - don't even mention the creaking, - if you take the new joint, a new nut and bolt, and tell them the pinch bolt torque is 125Nm, that they need to align the pip on the ball joint with the pip on the wishbone, you can't be more clear or prescriptive. In this way, the garage aren't taking any responsibility for fixing any fault, just the work of replacing the joint.

 

[SilverSaloon]

>>i've been quoted £190 to have 1 ball joint replaced.

Sounds a bit steep to me.

Why not go to an independant garage, asking them to replace the ball joint - don't even mention the creaking, - if you take the new joint, a new nut and bolt, and tell them the pinch bolt torque is 125Nm, that they need to align the pip on the ball joint with the pip on the wishbone, you can't be more clear or prescriptive. In this way, the garage aren't taking any responsibility for fixing any fault, just the work of replacing the joint.

unfortunatly there are no merc specialists that are convienently close to me. the couple of garages i did go to just said the creaking wasnt too bad and that the ball joint looked ok and should be fine, so i am a bit concerned whether they would do a good job.

the price has turned out to be £163.00 for 1 ball joint replacement at the merc dealer. they phoned back with an exact price.

i've decided to just pay that and get it done. its been creaking for almost 2 months now so i'm pushing my luck a bit. i'd still like to have a go myself but the R107 is taking up space in the garage so would be a hassle. maybe next time!!

cheers

derek

 

[Number_Cruncher]

Glad that you've made a decision.

Edit: You should also notice improved steering feel when you get the seized ball joint replaced!

>>the couple of garages i did go to just said the creaking wasnt too bad and that the ball joint looked ok and should be fine, so i am a bit concerned whether they would do a good job.

In fairness to most general garages, the majority of cars they see don't have the W124 suspension layout with the spring heavily loading the lower wishbone. So, they can be excused for not recognising the seriousness of the situation - it doesn't necessarily mean that they couldn't actually do the job reasonably well.

As I've written before, my car went through its MOT with a ball joint on the verge of failure - most MOT testers don't know what to look for either!

 

[SilverSaloon]

the garage i took the car to would probably charge atleast £100 by the time i've paid for the parts aswell. so £60 odd extra for convienence and peace of mind is worth it.

 

[Number_Cruncher]

>>so £60 odd extra for convienence and peace of mind is worth it.

Quite so.

 

[television]

Glad that you've made a decision.

Edit: You should also notice improved steering feel when you get the seized ball joint replaced!

>>the couple of garages i did go to just said the creaking wasnt too bad and that the ball joint looked ok and should be fine, so i am a bit concerned whether they would do a good job.

In fairness to most general garages, the majority of cars they see don't have the W124 suspension layout with the spring heavily loading the lower wishbone. So, they can be excused for not recognising the seriousness of the situation - it doesn't necessarily mean that they couldn't actually do the job reasonably well.

As I've written before, my car went through its MOT with a ball joint on the verge of failure - most MOT testers don't know what to look for either!

You would think that in this day and age they would have charts showing these parts and the checking of them,,they have a time out chart for ABS lamps.

So they check them for free play, what would they look for when on the point of seizing through rust internally

 

[Number_Cruncher]

>>So they check them for free play,

It is even in this check that many get it wrong. If you simply try to rock the wheel, the normal check for most cars/suspensions, the preload from the spring pushing down on the wishbone prevents any play being felt. The check has to be done under the car, using a lever with its tip on the inner rim of the wheel, and the bend in the lever just under the wishbone end, and the joint checked for lift. It is (or at least was last time I looked!) written in the MOT manual to look for suspensions of this type, and test accordingly, but, it relies on the MOT tester being awake rather than on auto-pilot!

>>what would they look for when on the point of seizing through rust internally

Yes, I agree, it's very difficult to pick this up with the MOT procedures - you would need to drop a track rod end off to feel the roughness/sticking - which, of course, is beyond the remit of the MOT.

 

[television]

Fair comment and thank you

 

[roofless]

did you ask for a price for the crankshaft oil seal

 

[SilverSaloon]

did you ask for a price for the crankshaft oil seal

no - i may ask when i take it there, but its not leaking that much and i'm just living with it at the moment. on a side note, after a full oil change it doesnt seem to be leaking as much anymore. not sure why.....

i cant see them being cheap to do the job though! an indi quoted me £150 for the job

 

[SilverSaloon]

Update - passenger side balljoint replaced (apparnetly it was pretty bad) and now the creak is gone!! driver's side balljoint is still very good as its been replaced fairly recently.

wallet lighter though

 

[television]

That is some good news.

They never wear out on a V70, neither do they roll bar parts, and mine is coming up to 80k, my MB is showing wear at 39 K

 

[Bolide]

Update - passenger side balljoint replaced (apparnetly it was pretty bad) and now the creak is gone!!

The things I most commonly replace on E300 Diesels are balljoints, ARB Bushes and engine mounts. Unless your engine mounts have been replaced I would suggest they're next

Replacing them makes the car much nicer to drive

Nick Froome
www.w124.co.uk

 

[SilverSaloon]

The things I most commonly replace on E300 Diesels are balljoints, ARB Bushes and engine mounts. Unless your engine mounts have been replaced I would suggest they're next

Replacing them makes the car much nicer to drive

Nick Froome
www.w124.co.uk

Hi Nick

i got the merc dealer to take a quick look over the area for other worn bits....

they said the engine mounts were ok but starting to show wear. they said there is life left in them. do you know whats involved in replacing them?

they said the steering collar kit could be replaced soon

and the polybelt damper is knackered.

 

[Number_Cruncher]

>>they said the steering collar kit could be replaced soon

What do they mean by this?

 

[television]

To replace the engine mounts you just need to jack the engine and unbolt and replace, put a piece of wood over the jack to spread the load on the sump.

http://www.detali.ru/cat/oem_mb2.as...GM=717.433&CT=F&cat=44R&SID=24&SGR=015&SGN=02