Mercedes SLK World banner
Status
Not open for further replies.

suspension upgrades for AMG55?

4K views 7 replies 5 participants last post by  Nikken 
#1 ·
I am coming over from a C6Z06 corvette and I have noticed the 55 has a worse ride in spite of softer handling. The car has only 25k miles so I think the shocks and springs should be fine and the Z had runflats so I don't think it should be the tires. For those that have have upgraded did you start with shocks, springs or sway bars? The pavement in my part of the world is rough so I want to avoid too much road shock where I can. Thanks for any responses.
 
#2 ·
My suspension is stock and I have a great ride! what size tires do you have, what brand, what air pressure you running?
 
#4 ·
Hey Jeff. Rears are new Nitto Motivos 255-35 running 35psi and fronts are stock size Falken FK452s also at 35 PSI. I guess a great ride depends on what you are comparing it to. My Z06 was closer to a track car than the SLK but I also ran stock type runflats which are noisier and basically inferior to similar conventional tires. I was expecting the MB to be somewhat better than the Vette but I would say the feedback from the tires was closer to my old 02 Viper on Pilots. I might not notice the difference if I lived where you are, but frost damage means our roads here are under constant repair so I can't avoid seams and potholes as much as I would prefer. She sticks fine on my favorite driving roads but shakes a bit too much on the bumps. The car only has about 27k miles so I am not as concerned with wear as with this suspension setup never being built with our northern roads in mind. I am already thinking of a different tire to go on the front (not Nitto) with a higher ride quality rating. If that doesn't help maybe front struts but she actually handles nicely for the size of rubber and I don't want to mess with the ride height.
 
#5 ·
Hi All
Has your car been lowered already?? Or is it still a factory setup

Cheers

Andy
She is stock height and I would like to keep it that way, although a half inch might not kill me. I suspect suspension tweaks have come a little way since this car was new so I will sift through the suspension threads and see who is feeling the same pain. :|
 
#6 ·
I would lower the front to the mb specification in the door of 32 cold to start and see how that feels
 
#7 ·
Well your tires are junk. A set of Michelin Pilot Sport A/S 3 will give the car a much better feel going down the road.

The SLK body structure is fairly good, but the car is still a convertible. The RHT does little to stiffen the convertible tub. Given that, you'll get some cowl shake over rough roads, and you do want to be careful on bad roads with pothole - that is slow down.

I have driven many Benzes over the years, and they all feel pretty much the same including the SLK. The only exception is the ride isn't quite up to that of other models. The 55 has a 0.5" drop in front, and to make up for the reduced suspension travel uses a stiffer or higher rate spring. This reduces ground clearance and contributes to a rougher ride (compared to the standard suspension). Also the 18" wheels aggravate things and transmit more road noise into the cabin. Oh the sacrifices we make for beauty!>:D

There has been an opinion among some people including myself that the quality of the front struts is mediocre. It isn't the valving of the shocks (contained within the struts) but rather they wear rather rapidly and contribute to an improperly damped ride. In other words, the ride becomes somewhat jittery over bad roads. A set of Bilstein B8s would be an excellent upgrade.
 
#8 ·
you will never grab a z06 tail with a 171 55, no way forget about it

the 171 body is not designed to be a sporty frame, and the v8 makes things even worse (have a look on the fifth gear test on youtube)

I'm working hard on my slk to get some decent handling, my advice is to start stiffening the frame by adding front and rear strut bar, then try coilovers and subframe bars.

there isn't much available for the r171, but ultraracing provide some

 
Status
Not open for further replies.
You have insufficient privileges to reply here.
Top