R129 SL Suspension(?) Vibration

[niva441]

Hello All

After having used the 320SL for a couple of weeks early last month and was pleased with the initial experience, so in anticipation of better weather I've removed the hard top. I'm not sure if it is coincidental with removing the roof, but a vibration is now apparent in the car.

It is mostly apparent on the passengers side and much less noticeable for the driver, it occurs at high cruising speeds. However once it starts it continues until the car drops well below 60 mph.

All the wheels have been balance and that made a slight improvement, but the problem is still significant.

I'd appreciate any suggestions.

Thanks

Todd

[r129sl]

These cars are very, very sensitive to wheel balance. My experience is, like almost everything else in this useless country, getting wheels properly balanced is almost impossible. You need to find a really good outfit: most places just don't do it right.

Next is tyres: I have found that running Michelin tyres vastly improves the refinement of these cars, in particular the PS2. Not only are Michelins generally more "round", for some reason they run with less harshness and vibration than all the competition. Make sure your pressures are right.

The next things that need frequent replacement are the front anti-roll bar bushes, but I doubt these would cause the vibration you complain off.

Finally, you may wish to check the propshaft couplings for wear and for even tightness of the bolts running through them.

An outside bet would be engine mounts.

Of course, if the car is not getting much use, the tyres could be flat-spotting.

Edited by r129sl on Monday 5th April 19:13