Mercedes Benz E320 Ball Joints

Morning All

Hi All.
Just got a fail on the NCT front suspension Ball Joints worn, both sides.
Also a "Repeat Side Slip Test" failure (whatever that is)
Its a diesel on an 07 plate.
Any one have an idea what I'm looking at cost wise to get these replaced / repaired. (To help reduce the shock on Monday morning when i start phoning around)
Cheers All

Bigus

German auto components greenhills road 01 4264444and service point greenhills road to fit them.

Morning All

Thanks Bigus.
I'll try them Monday. Guess you know them?
Cheers

homingbird

Not a big job changing track rod ends. All you have to do is get it tracked at a tyre centre then.

Bigus

Yeah I know them both, but I'm not connected. Service point lads are enjoyable to deal with and good at what they do. They had a couple of newer s class and cls there for the same job last week

Bigus

homingbird wrote: »

Not a big job changing track rod ends. All you have to do is get it tracked at a tyre centre then.

Those Mercs have mutiple ball joints and need 4 arms replaced usually.

Morning All

Thanks all.
Whos going to hazard a guess at the cost?
Guess it makes sense that once the strip for one is done to replace them all?
Is the Side Slip Test to do with the shocks or is it somthing else?
Again, thanks for the advice all.
Cheers

L-M

Slip slide is suspension related already. Not somethinf extra you have to worry about.

George Dalton

Morning All wrote: »

Thanks all.
Whos going to hazard a guess at the cost?
Guess it makes sense that once the strip for one is done to replace them all?
Is the Side Slip Test to do with the shocks or is it somthing else?
Again, thanks for the advice all.
Cheers

There isn't much point in guessing really. But since you asked here is my guess: The most common failure on them is the balljoint that presses into the lower arm. This is easy to replace once you have the right tools and is also pretty cheap, circa €30 ex VAT for a good quality replacement such as Lemforder or TRW. Cheaper options (Delphi, QH, etc) are also available but are best avoided in my experience.

The side slip test is basically a test of the tracking. After the balljoints are replaced the tracking will be affected so as part of the job the tracking should be checked and adjusted as necessary after the new balljoints are fitted. The NCT retest consists of a visual inspection of the balljoints plus a repeat of the side slip test to ensure the job was done correctly.

Morning All

Thanks George.
As an esti-guess then.
4 (2 aside) joints at €30 plus VAT = €160 ish
Labour (indi garage cash) 4 Hours at €60 ish = €240
Total €400 - €500 to cover the unexpected????
Thougts??
Cheers

Just checking, is there 1 or 2 joints per side?

George Dalton

There are 3 balljoints on each side, two lower and one upper.

Only one of the lower balljoints can be replaced separately as it is pressed into the hub carrier, the second one is part of one of the suspension arm so costs more to replace. Luckily the one that can be replaced on its own is also the one that wears out most often.

To replace both of these balljoints and check/adjust tracking should take no more than 1.5 hours, less if you are used to them.

So you would be looking at roughly €150 fitted for the pair, assuming that is what is wrong of course!

Morning All

Thanks all.
Just going by thr NCT Report here: I did see though through the window that the lad doing the test got a second guy across to check whilst the car was on the ramp. He did also go through it with me but by then the car is back in the car park so unable to "touch" the actual fault.
Finger crossed. I'll post the quotes and outcome next week.
Cheers all