After doing lots of research on this and other MB forums, I finally decided to lower my ML350 with H&R springs. It was either those or the Eibach ones and the consensus seemed to be most people went with H&R for the lower drop. The car dropped about 1.5 inches on the front and 2.0 inches on the back immediately after install. It'll probably settle in a little lower than that over the next couple weeks (had it done on Friday).
Having driven the car about 200 miles since install, here are my thoughts. The look has improved substantially, so much so that the constant razzing I've been getting from my friends about buying a "soccer mom" car have stopped completely. Paired with a set of 20" wheels, the car looks sporty and aggressive. The handling is much improved and I can take corners hard and fast. The ride, however, has gotten much worse. The springs do not pair well with the stock shocks and the ride is bouncy with an occasional clunk when driving over bumps at low speeds.
At this point, I'm not sure whether I'm going to keep the setup. The car looks SO much better than before and, since that was the whole point, I accomplished what I set out to do. However, the ride will take some getting used to. I was prepared for it to be rougher than stock, but the amount of bounce was unexpected. The only way to correct that would be swap out the shocks as well which will run at least another $2k. I'll see how I feel in a couple weeks but, for those of you thinking of lowering your car, be sure you're ready to give up the cushy ride you have now.
Davicon - Results were exactly as I expected as stated in the Eibach thread here. IMHO the key to making your setup workable is finding the right new shocks (not just a new set of soft OEM shocks that are matched to OEM springs). Maybe somebody has recommendations on good aftermarket shocks for the ML.
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S.
2006 ML350 white/ash
2008 C300 Sport mars red/black
2004 986S seal gray metallic/black/black
I just ordered the Eibach springs. Sounds like I'm in for a rough ride...but compared to the 4" lowered Lightning I was driving I'm hoping it won't be THAT bad!
I'm actually really worried about alignment issues...but the mod bug bit me so......
I just ordered the Eibach springs. Sounds like I'm in for a rough ride...but compared to the 4" lowered Lightning I was driving I'm hoping it won't be THAT bad!
I'm actually really worried about alignment issues...but the mod bug bit me so......
See the recent Eibach thread is this W164 section of forum. There was something about wearing out inside of tires in 10K miles (22" staggered wheels).
K--thanks! I read through all the springs posts. Looks like different people got different results, but it seems like new shocks may be needed to complete the package. I just can't find anyone that carries the Bilsteins I need here in the US!
Guess I'll have the springs installed and then see how it feels. Keeping my fingers crossed!!
K--thanks! I read through all the springs posts. Looks like different people got different results, but it seems like new shocks may be needed to complete the package. I just can't find anyone that carries the Bilsteins I need here in the US!
Guess I'll have the springs installed and then see how it feels. Keeping my fingers crossed!!
Let us know if you are the first to have positive results without significant downgrades in ride quality and tire wear, plus clunking noises.
MB-SV, haven't gotten around to taking pics yet. Will post some as soon as I get the chance.
red00lght, don't mean to scare you off about the springs. Having never lowered a car before (my last one was a stock E350), it may just be that I'm not used to that type of ride. I looked into options on aftermarket shocks and the Bilsteins that were mentioned in another thread aren't available here in the US. Brabus does offer a whole spring and shock setup but it will run you $3k. Guess it comes down to how much you're willing to spend.
Thanks--yes, I'm worried I just blew a few hundred bucks on something I'm not going to like but it won't be the first time!!
There are several Mercedes shops (not dealers) down here that do alot of custom work in Miami so I'm hoping they have some solutions....will keep ya posted!
I'm sure there will be issues, but trying to solve them is a challenge I enjoy.
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