Despite the careful craftsmanship of Mercedes vehicles, your strut components will eventually wear down from use over time and need replacing. Sometimes you will not even notice the gradual changes in your Mercedes’ driving performance until you start to hear odd sounds coming from the struts.
The Importance of Struts
The struts are one of the main components of your suspension system and help your vehicle stay balanced and flat to the road. The struts incorporate many suspension assembly parts that include a coil spring and a shock absorber.
The struts are like the bones of your suspension system, and their main job is to support the weight of the vehicle and ensure a smooth ride. Worn out struts bottom out your suspension, as they can cave in towards the ground, causing assembly parts to contact one another.
Struts in need of repair will often negatively affect your car’s steering, alignment, tire wear, and even prevent your vehicle from braking correctly.
When to Replace Struts on your Mercedes
The manufacturer recommends replacing your struts every 50,000 to 100,000 miles, depending on your driving conditions and habits. Along with your struts, the other components of your suspension will also need to be checked for wear and tear every 40,0000 miles.
Ensuring preventative maintenance is done on all of the parts associated with your suspension will keep your Mercedes in working order. You can prevent future problems by having the struts conveniently changed as part of your vehicle’s routine maintenance.
Noises in the Suspension and Wheels
When a car’s struts are worn and do not hold your vehicle up from the road as intended, they will make contact with other metal parts. Metal-on-metal will sound like knocking coming from the front and/or rear wheels.
You may also find extra noise coming from your vehicle when going over bumps if your car is bouncing around too much from your worn-out struts.
These are common signs of struts that need replacement:
- Hydraulic fluid is leaking from one or more of your vehicle’s struts. This is a sign that the seals have broken and your vital strut fluids are leaking out.
- When you push down on the hood of your vehicle, it bounces several times before settling back into position. This is a sign that your struts are bottoming out and have lost the ability to support the weight of your vehicle properly.
- There is uneven tire wear, showing high and low wear patterns on your tires. Your ride may feel If you find that your tires are excessively bouncing after hitting a slight bump, your struts are not firmly holding your car’s suspension in place.
- You are having steering and/or braking problems. You may end up finding that the front or back end will dip down or tilt-up slightly, impeding your vehicle’s ability to stop efficiently.
- Your vehicle “tips” to one side as it turns. When making a sharp turn, you may feel like your vehicle tips more to one side than usual, over-tilts, or feels wobbly as you corner. This can feel like you are no longer in control of the vehicle.
- A feeling of instability at high speeds. You may feel like your vehicle is constantly bouncing on the road imperfections. This may be a noticeable difference in your normally-smooth ride. You may even have to keep both hands on the wheel and may need to constantly correct the steering to keep it straight within your lane.
Turning Wrenches Repairs Struts
At Turning Wrenches European Auto Repair in Louisville, KY, we specialize in 
premier European vehicles. All of our services and repairs come with a 3-year/36,000-mile warranty so that you can focus on enjoying your luxury vehicle worry-free.
By specializing in Audi, BMW, MINI, and Mercedes since 2013, we are able to provide the best and most affordable dealership-alternative services for your benefit. Our team of certified technicians will assist you with maintenance and repairs for your struts and get you back on the road in no time.
If you’re looking for reliable and trustworthy vehicle repairs and maintenance, please contact us today with any questions or to talk to one of our friendly technicians. We look forward to earning your trust for your vehicle’s longevity, performance, and maintenance needs.
* Mercedes-Benz Car image credit goes to: y_carfan.