In past part comparisons, febi Bilstein has always been tested as a secondary target, either as a substandard product or as a mere foil. In order to change this atmosphere that is always unfavorable to febi, I have specially arranged a post that may change this.
The steering damper is easily a damper connect the drag link and subframe. Its function is to filter vibrations from the frame for the steering wheel and provide damping for the steering. Its original part number was A1404630132, which was then modified to A1404630332, and most recently, the final version of the part was A1404630332 64. You can still find this part from many manufacturers under the part number A1404630332, but it has been discontinued from Mercedes’ aftermarket system.
Let me start by saying that I had a bad experience with this part. Maybe it was the summer of 2015, I was driving with the windows open, and as I passed the rails in front of the store, I heard a tinkling sound like a bell. This caught my attention, I tried it a few more times, and they kept coming, so I called the mechanic and we checked on the lift to see what was making the noise. We soon discovered that the sound came from the steering damper. When experiencing severe vibration, the piston rod will hit the outer tube and make a clanking sound. This can be understood because although the steering damper is a shock absorber, its direction of movement is completely different from that of regular absorbers. The piston rod is very flexible and it can hit the out tube up and down not far away.
The damper on the car at the time was from febi Bilstein, and although it moved normally, I strongly requested a replacement. This was a pre-internet era, our parts resources were limited, and the alternatives we got were still febi. After installing a new copy, the ringing was even more noticeable. I can only pray that I don’t pass these places in the crowd, imagine what people are thinking when you drive a top of the range Mercedes and it makes that noise! Someone will definitely laugh at you for not taking good care of your car. Thankfully Mercedes has arranged for us drivers to have great sound insulation and we are the only ones who don’t know we’re making a fool of ourselves.
So this time I insisted on ordering a genuine MB part, which I thought would make a noticeable difference. Compared to the US market, Genuine here is very expensive because Mercedes only provides air freight, so the price of these heavier parts will increase significantly. It seemed like $60 would be a reasonable price in the US, but I spent over $116 and the parts arrived 2 weeks later.
I had also previously ordered a febi copy for a 1996 S 600 in the shop, that car belonged to my partner and he had a series of very interesting statements. When I asked him whether he would use Genuine or LEMFÖRDER, he replied “You shouldn’t save money on the chassis” and at that time the super expensive genuine drag link was ordered for him. When I told him that the Geniune steering damper was 3 times more expensive than febi, he replied “What could go wrong with a damper?” So at this moment we have a febi steering damper in the shop waiting to be installed on his chassis.
The first thing I did when I received the Genuine damper at home was to test it to see if it would make a clanking sound, and unfortunately, it made a very good clanking sound! Then I looked over the pile of stickers and looked at the text on the tube. I felt like I was being teased again. It said STABILUS. The last time I experienced this was on an R 129 in the shop, the owner insisted that genuine parts had to be used, which I did and got a Made in Romania STABILUS that cost over $140 but cost $20 on eBay. I took the photo and sent it to a lot of people laughing, luckily it wasn’t me!
Okay, nothing funny now. Then I did two things, immediately ordered STBILUS and febi for my partner. I’d like to see some kind of difference, although in my gut that probably won’t happen. When I received the other two I was surprised to find that they were almost identical, both STBILUS without any trace of febi.
I desperately searched for any differences in detail, including all the rubber bushings and welds. Unfortunately STABILUS doesn’t differentiate between OEM parts like LEMFÖRDER, all details are the same except the Genuine one has the Mercedes part number printed on the tube. I tried feeling the damping with my hands and they were the same, with an annoying dinging sound. The mechanics around me often say: Mercedes-Benz never harms the poor. Febi’s price is $34.
Febi offers the huge red box, which is more generous than both the actual manufacturer of the part and Genuine, which costs several times the premium. Although the part number on the box is 27572, there is no febi related information on the tube. As usual febi boxes do not have valid origin information, you can thank STABILUS for telling the truth, here is the bright side, the origin of many febi parts is an unsolved mystery. What can be confirmed is that febi is only responsible for producing the box for this part.
In this case I would of course choose febi, it’s the same price as STABILUS and comes with an extra box. Genuine is my last choice because removing the 4 tags above would take a lot of extra time! It’s time to clear up febi’s name, a part that you can buy with confidence, until one day they silently switch manufacturers… At the end a video attached to show the pleasant jingle sound, you don’t even need to add too much load to the damper, one hand is enough to make it sing happily. Warm reminder, the sound will be crisper on the sub frame, as my hands act as a silencer here.
The solution to this problem is to add a cushion pad on the inside of the outer tube, which can be rubber. The rubber will shorten the distance between the piston rod and the outer tube. When the piston rod hits the rubber rather than the metal outer tube, the sound will be greatly reduced. Caution should be taken to keep the cushion smooth as it should not add resistance to the damper’s movement.
Please note that all parts are brand new and purchased in recent times (2023), they represent the current status of these manufacturers only and do not imply anything about the past or distant future.