W210 Rear subframe removal

[robs-mbz]

Has anyone ever removed the rear subframe on a W210? I've been wanting to replace the two brake pipes that run above it for a while now but this mornining I've noticed some sufrace rust there too, in my never ending quest to make the car 100% rust free I want to remove the whole subframe and make a pukka job of it. Aside from the weight of the thing, is there anything I should be aware of?
I'm not afraid of a bit of hard work, last weekend I stripped the complete front suspension to replace the two baked bean cans that Mercedes use as upper spring perches! Suprisingly, the Genuine Merc. replacements were only £12.00 + VAT each. I spot welded them back as per the origionals but then added a continuous seam weld all the way round. Two coats of red oxide, two coats of black smootherite and a good soaking in Waxoyl means they should be there forever!

 

[Parrot of Doom]

How were your lower control arm bushings when you did that job?

 

[eric242340]

How were your lower control arm bushings when you did that job?

He obviously loves his car, what is wrong with that:?

 

[robs-mbz]

All the bushes were fine, the only component I found with any wear was the nearside track rod end, as it is such a simple job to replace I decided to leave it for another day.
The biggest problem I had was removing those nasty front springs!
I devised a safe way of removing them, go to your local engineering supplies company and buy a metre of 16mm screwed rod and a couple of nuts and flat washers, you will also need a couple of steel plates about 10 or 12mm thick with a hole in the middle big enough for the screwed rod to pass through and long enough to bridge the holes in the spring perch and wisbone where the spring fits. Then simply cut a length of screwed rod long enough to pass up through the center of the spring with about 8 inches surplus protruding through the bottom, fit the plates top and bottom together with a nut and washer each end, tighten the nuts just enough to take up a bit of tension. The spring is now safely "sandwiched" between the spring perch and the lower wishbone. Remove the Shock absorber and the anti-roll bar link from the wishbone, split the bottom ball joint on the front of the wishbone and remove the two large pivot bolts on the rear of the wish bone. Now you can slowly un-screw the nut on the bottom of the screwed rod down the 8 inches of rod that you left protruding through the bottom of the wish bone, the spring will gradually de-compress until you can remove the screwed rod, hey presto, you have the lower wishbone and the spring sitting on the garage floor!
Replacement is a simple reversal of this procedure although you may well work up a sweat winding the nut up 8 inches of screwed rod against the spring tension!

I never once felt in danger of the spring flying from under the inner wing.

Wish I had taken some photo's now as it proberbly sounds more complicated than it really is!