Quote:
Originally Posted by sfclk
MarcusF, do the alignment ranges account for the driver's weight? caster not adjustable?
i remember reading that some cars were designed to sit higher at the driver's corner to compensate for the driver's weight.
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No, the range of alignment specs only account for ride height. You can see in the prior photos, MB techs tried to get the specs as close as possible from side to side. I don't believe the factory does any compensation for driver weight by the springs. Unless I'm mistaken, left and right springs are the same. Left and right side springs, have the same part number and they are the same height - I've personally measured them. The same applies for the pads. My OE pads were the same from side to side. If I am mistaken, and those springs are side specific, my CLK55 springs (which appearred indentical from side to side) only had a one in four chance of being installed properly.
I've never seen a new Mercedes-Benz that sat higher on the driver's side. When changing them, if the spring doesn't seat properly in the pad, the ride height at that corner will be higher. When you pull your pads, you'll notice they are deformed. They do that over time. Rather than trying to fit the new spring in the old deformed pad, some people buy new pads with their new springs.
On a W208, caster is indirectly adjustable by using multiple camber bolt kits. This is another good reason for using a shop that has $50K+ in alignment equipment - adjust the camber to change the caster without getting the camber out of spec. Here's a picture of the camber bolt.
