[banflu]

Guys
this is kinda serious!

I finally found that there is (or is that was?) an agent for Jamex springs. I went there and asked him for Merc springs and we went to look on the shelves. Everywhere was full of dust!
The only springs we found for a Merc were part no. 2250 and there was a very faint label saying W124.
he has a clearance sale and he said he will give them to me for only $112 instead of $224. which is pretty good.
Do you think they will fit? Should I take them and check, or is it a bad idea?

Please help!

 

[BF_JC230]

that throws up a red flag for me...a w126 seems like it would be closer, at least we share the same front spindle and rear trailing arm...among other parts....the w124 has a completely differnet suspension system....

anyone else???
jake

 

[banflu]

i know i know []
but these are the only springs he has and i wil surely not find a better price anywhere!

pls if anyone has any idea about this..
or else i will jack my car up and measure mine and compare them.. then tell him to try them on and if they work i will pay him..

 

[Sivonen]

W115 and W126 springs fit for sure, it's tested.
W108, W116 maybe?

W124 are different -> dont fit. Sorry.


btw, I'm going to have W126 strenghtened rear springs to my 123. Hard enough, i assume.. [)]

 

[banflu]

thats bad news []

may i ask what is different about them? is it the actual physical dimensions? or the spring rates and whats not?
if the dimensions are different i will measure mine and go check and make sure if they are different or not. because the part number 2250 that what written on them does not make sense, i cannot find this part no. anywhere..

 

[banflu]

ok a minor update.

today i went to a local mechanic who works on Mercs only. he confirmed that 124 springs will definately not work since w123 springs are much longer.

he saw my car and i asked him why all W123s i am seeing on the road are all lower! he immediately said "because they are diesel and yours is petrol!"
i told him about my dad ordering the special suspension for countires with poor roads, and he said that i "most probably" had heavy duty springs, probably the same version as the ones used on diesel W123s. he offered me a set of "standard" (petrol) springs at about 60USD. he assured me that it will sit lower.

i also checked out a couple of local tuning shops and no one stocks W123 springs. the only springs i can order are H&R and he quoted me a whooping 464USD!!

i will probably get the standard springs with 1-nub bushings if i do not find any lowering springs here in malta.

 

[ilikemercedes]

No problems, if w126 springs work on a w123 then buy w126 lowering springs. What would be the problem?? They're easy to get.

 

[banflu]

not in malta though. the only "off the shelf" springs i found for an MB are these W124 jamex ones. which were cheap quite surprisingly. i think this shop is closing down soon cause all products were heavily discounted.

i can get jamex ones for the w123 from the UK pretty cheap, but i will probably have to pay the same amount for shipping. and i have already spent too much money on this car [xx(]

i have about 2-3 weeks to think about this, until it comes back from the painjob.. then i will see what to do. up till now i'm thinking of getting those standard springs. i just hope it will "get loww" [8D]
i remember "black mercedes"' car, he's one of the Thai members if you remember him.. his car is literally Slammed on 17s.. I had asked him how he lowered it and he said standard shocks&springs with 1 nub bushings... so there is still hope [8D]

 

[lancer]

What if you just cut the springs that you have now? I have a mechanic here in Chicago that will pull my springs, cut them, and reinstall them for $240 USC. This is the way they formerly lowered cars in the 50's, when cash was very tight. You can lower your car however much you dare, but remember, you'll need new springs if you want to bring it back up, so do not cut off too much. Match this with a set of HD Bilsteins, and your good to go.

 

[banflu]

i was actually thinking along these lines today.

reason being.. i was thinking about those standard "petrol" springs the mechanic told me about, with the 1 nub bushings. he said that it will get lower because the spring coils is a tiny bit thinner than my "diesel" ones. so this must mean they are softer than mine, that is why it will go lower.
but this is not ideal since if i lower it i would want it a bit stiffer to avoid bottoming out.

this is where i thought about cutting mine. but i am araid about this. i dont know why i dont like the sound of it.
has anyone ever heat-treated their springs? its quite common here in Malta. I even have a friend of mine who bought OMP -40mm springs for his pug106, he was not happy and heated them to make them even lower! but i am afraid this will destroy the whole design of the spring and totally destroy the ride.
or not? does anyone have any experience with this? cutting or heating?

Patrick

 

[lancer]

I'll try to explain it the way the mechanic explained it to me. By cutting a small part of the spring off, you do not damage the strenght of the spring, you only lose the height. This will give you the lower ride height you desire, without giving you a mushy spring and a bad (and unsafe) ride.

By heating the springs, you actually weaken them. But once they are heated, you must compress them to lower them in height. Unfortunately, it is possible to compress them unevenly, and that throws off everything on your suspension. Your car might not even sit straight. But if it does sit straight, you may "feel" a difference when you turn one way more then another.

Now, it is possible to screw up your measurements and cut off too much of the spring also. But you have a better chance of doing a "boo-boo" by heating your springs.

This summer, when I have more time, I'll probably have my springs cut (since I cannot find a good lowering kit), but not alot. I'll drop my front end a bit more then the back to have a "raked" look. Plus, I often take people with me so then the car will sit level. Now, when I have 4 people in the car, the back end sits lower than the front (and I HATE that!!!). I'll also then make the switch to the HD Bilsteins shocks. I was afraid of running the HD shocks, but after talking with GaryL and his lowered wagon, I'm going to use them.

Hope this helps and Good Luck [8D]
Lancer

 

[banflu]

this is interesting. so cutting them is actually better than heating them.

i searched a bit just now and theres some ppl who agree with this. they say if you cut them with an angle grinder and NOT with a torch, with the least amount of heat possible, they will actually get stiffer because of the same thickness and less number of coils.
then there are those who say that cutting your springs is the worst even thing you could do to your car []

oh and another thing. how do you go about cuttign them? i mean if i want to lower it 60mm (mine is reaaalllyy high, much more than normal), do i just cut 60mm of spring? or more? or less...

i also dont like the idea of leaving the "cut" end as it is. you know what i mean, it will not have the straight end anymore.

 

[banflu]

oh, btw, i already have the HD Bilsteins. I love them!! Together with the 16" rims I now have much less roll than before, and the ride doesnt bother me anymore. before it was too squishy and floaty, i felt like i was on a cushion all the time! [] now it feels good [] i dont regret getting the HDs one single bit!!
even the shopowner (bilstein importer) advised me not to.. he said that the only HDs he ever sold was to some taxi-drivers who wanted HDs for just the back ones, because of te heavy loads. I had to wait a month to order the fronts. he said it will be too stiff! but its not (for me), its great really []

 

[jrehm]

DO NOT heat springs! Not good for the spring, your car or your safety. I'm not really a fan of cutting springs either, but if you have to pick one over the other, cutting is the lesser of the evils.

 

[countyjudge]

untill you go over a big bump and the spring leaves it's pearch.........then you'll be in the weeds...low

 

[lancer]

...are you saying the spring has a greater chance of "popping out" because it has been cut?

 

[Sivonen]

There's no big secrets about heating the springs. Just lift the car up, heat a spring from other end, and drop the car down. That's it: one lowering spring is ready. Just remember to heat the same lenght of each spring of course, to get the car straight. And dont burn your car.

If you compare heated and cut spring of same lenght, the heated one is stiffer, because there's less travel in the spring.

 

[ilikemercedes]

^that goes against everything I've been told, but then again alot of the stuff I've been told has been wrong...[]

 

[banflu]

ilikemercedes - 3/21/2005 4:43 PM

^that goes against everything I've been told, but then again alot of the stuff I've been told has been wrong...[]

LoL go easy on yourself mate [] actually what you said makes lot of sense.

i am waiting for another quote for the H&Rs today. but i know they will just be too expensive. shame springs are so heavy, the jamex ones will cost me double their value to get them to malta.. otherwise i would have got them already.

 

[BF_JC230]

if it makes you feel any better i paid more to ship my springs from the England to New York that i did to buy them....oh hurt dog...but what are you going to do?
jake