Problem with OE Suspension Spring 20 to 25 mm shorter?

Submariner1

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Ordered a set of front Springs from Autodoc, Make Bilstein reduced from £68 to £19 clearance stuff.
In the OE section it had my genuine Mercedes replacement PartNo.
Note I only bought these As I had to get OE Top Bearing Shock Mounting plate and Block. My bump stop in this was disintegrating and there are no more MB parts . So I thought if I get both Bilstein Parts they should fit.
Note these Springs said “Reinforced Version” but unlike other springs there was no me tion of Auto, Sunroof, or Air con. ( mine has auto and air con. ) So I assumed this would be OK.

Looking at them side by side and trying to hold the totally cracked part together it looks like the Bilstein is 20 to 25 mm shorter.
They have the same number of coils and end at the right place for alignment with the dents in the spring retainers top and bottom.

Q1. Will this definitely lower the car 20-25mm ? Or could this make, be a higher spring toughness? And therefore not compress as easily?

Q.2 Does it matter? Note its on A shopping trolley A Class.

Q 3. Thankfully MB can get these at £55 each but delayed from Germany. Should I just go this route? Or should I see if Autodoc say they are definitely compatible (after rechecking) and Try it to see if this side actually sits much lower? Any views?
NB the money saving aspect is not a biggy for me, the time wasted and or safety, like grounding the car on a speed bump is more important.

Q 4. Could my spring be bent? I.e. the unbroken part of the spring sort of jumped over the sheared off end and spayed outward, trapping the broken end in the spring retainer cup,

Q5. Is there a legal limit for the height of road speed bumps? So if I try them I can check the car has not been lowered too much.

Sadly without a ramp I cant take of the other side and compare both springs.

Horrendous trying to deal with Autodoc, one has to use a-chat service that has bombed out 8 times, meaning you have to reload all the data like order number, vin number , car details - and you can’t just cut and paste because this semi auto system fires questions at you. If you are too slow replying it restarts the whole procedure - ****ing horrendous!
 

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Submariner1

Submariner1

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Update:
Apparently despite having the right MB OE codes on the Website their Tech Dept say - these Spring are not suitable.
and thankfully they have arranged a return shipping label and a refund!

Fortunately MB still make them, 5 days from Germany - went that route.
 

rayhennig

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Update:
Apparently despite having the right MB OE codes on the Website their Tech Dept say - these Spring are not suitable.
and thankfully they have arranged a return shipping label and a refund!

Fortunately MB still make them, 5 days from Germany - went that route.
Let that be a lesson to us all.

Find the correct MB part and do not take the word of the aftermarket websites.

RayH
 

peterws1957

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Update:
Apparently despite having the right MB OE codes on the Website their Tech Dept say - these Spring are not suitable.
and thankfully they have arranged a return shipping label and a refund!

Fortunately MB still make them, 5 days from Germany - went that route.
Glad you got it sorted. The service from Autodoc seems very hit and miss.
 

malcolm E53 AMG

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Yes, I had a situation with new front springs supplied by MB that were wrong sometimes you can’t win, glad you’ve got it sorted
 

M80

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Since MB springs like going ping, I understand the desire for a better quality aftermarket.
 

Snake Charmer

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Is the old spring an original Mercedes part?
 

rayhennig

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The service from Autodoc seems very hit and miss.
I order from them regularly and have had no problems. But I ALWAYS verify the part number from its MB equivalent. There is really no reason not to.

R
 

peterws1957

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I order from them regularly and have had no problems. But I ALWAYS verify the part number from its MB equivalent. There is really no reason not to.

R
My mate is the same - never has a problem.
 
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