woozy handling 245

You didn't mention front shocks. The original 240 turbo shock often failed in a wa that made the front suspension hard as a rock. It'll be obvious when changing the shocks, but front springs often break up near the top. Also I've seen lots of very poorly done alignments that make cars just feel like crap.

A good shop should be able to tell you if your steering is going out. It sounds like that to me - everything's vague and has play in it.

Q: does it track in a straight line, but respond to changes very poorly?

Another possible problem might be the bushings/bearings. If you can push on the side of the car and you hear a small "thack" sort of sound from the wheels(ie - excessive movement), there's your problem.

Lastly, you may look into a better swaybar while you are at it.

My 1975 164E with 270K on it and my 1990 240 with 230K on it both drove straight as an arrow, so yes it is possible with some undated parts.

Are the rear suspension bushings all in good shape? Unevenly worn torque rod bushings will make a 240 wander all over. The car should be an excellent ride with all the suspension in good shape, 20 years old or not, 240's are well designed and handle very nicely.

The mechanic only replaced the worn bushings on the front and rear, I'm not sure which ones. It sure handles like it has worn bushings, I wish that he had just replaced all of the bushings like I asked, but he wanted to save me some money. I'm also going to look carefully for a busted spring.

Keep in mind also the situation in the thread with subject, "Poor quality bushings, or bad track rod?" Poor bushings can be worse than old quality bushings.

Try an alignment. 1/16 of an inch tow in. Tow out on a 240 will make it wander.

Also check that your steering box isn't worn or loose--I had problems in one car that went from wandering to jumping every time it hit a bump; the mechanics swore the front end was tight. Then one of them turned the steering wheel shaft in the engine compartment and saw the steering gearbox twisting...

Gary

In my experience a tow-in is usually $40-$50.

:-)

I think you're referring to toe-in.

Gary

Why would anyone only replace some of the bushings? The bushing kit is cheaper than the labor to install it, at least if you order it online rather than going to the dealer. I always replace all the bushings, with the occasional exception of the small ones at the front of the trailing arms as I've never seen them worn.