Steering drive (Mercedes-Benz S-Class W116)

All self-locking nuts are used only once and must be replaced after each disassembly. The ball joint pins are pressed out using a suitable puller. The removal and installation of individual steering gear components is described below.

Bipod

Place the front of the car on stands.

Loosen the two self-locking nuts securing the ball joints of the steering rod and transverse steering rod.

Using a puller, press the ball pins out of the knuckle.

Remove the steering knuckle from the steering gear shaft.

During installation, perform the following tasks:

Check the condition of the protective caps on the ball joints. If the protective caps were damaged when the joint was removed, then only they need to be replaced; if the damage is old, it is necessary to replace the ball joints as a whole.

Clean the splines on the inner surface of the pitman arm and on the steering gear shaft. They must be completely free of grease and oil residue. Lubricate the steering gear shaft "Loctite 270".

Install the bipod on the shaft so that the notch on the steering gear shaft matches the cut on the bipod.

Clean the ball joints from any remaining grease, insert them into the conical holes of the knuckle and tighten the fastening nuts to a torque of 35 Nm. When turning the joints, hold them with a hex key inserted into the joint head.

Tighten the bipod mounting nut and tighten to the specified tightening torque.



Finally check the front wheel alignment (section 13.9).

Pendulum lever

Place the front of the car on stands.

Loosen the two self-locking nuts securing the ball joints of the steering rod and transverse steering rod.

Article was borrowed from the website MercedesMan.ru

Using a puller, press out the ball joint pin of the transverse steering rod from the pendulum arm, and then the joint pin of the steering rod.

Unscrew the heat shield from the pendulum arm bracket.

Loosen the pendulum arm axle mounting nut, remove the sealing ring and remove the axle together with the pendulum arm and the dust cap located below. Sometimes there is a washer above the cap, which also needs to be removed. If desired, you can replace the rubber bushings of the pendulum arm support. To do this, lift the support seal and use a screw puller to remove the bushing from the support. Then use a puller to press out the two supports.

Lubricate the outer surfaces of the new supports and press them into the housing. Install the dust cap. Install the axle together with the pendulum lever and washer into the supports. The head of the axle bolt should be directed towards the pendulum lever. Install the sealing washer, screw in a new self-locking nut and tighten to a torque of 120 Nm.

When installing new parts, measure the height of the ball joint of the transverse steering rod and the pendulum arm, the difference should not exceed 3 mm. For adjustment, install the upper washer as mentioned above.

All further work should be performed in reverse order. Installation of ball joints is described in the last section.

Steering rod

Loosen the self-locking nuts securing the ball joints of the tie rod.

Using a puller, press out the ball pins from both ends of the tie rod. When removing two tie rods, mark them to avoid mixing them up when installing.

Check the condition of the protective caps as described above.

Installation is performed in the reverse order. Tighten new self-locking nuts and tighten to 35 Nm. Check and, if necessary, adjust the front wheel alignment (section 13.9.1).

Transverse steering rod

Replacing the transverse steering rod, i.e. the rod connecting the steering arm and the pendulum arm, is similar to working with the steering rods described above.

Replacing dust caps

The dust caps are secured to the ball joint with a wire ring and a plastic ring. Before installing a new cap, fill its internal cavity with the recommended grease. The new caps must be in the correct position when installed.