123 300TD Wagon SLS to standard shock conversion ??

I am considering changing my 85 wagon from sls to spring and shock. What springs and shocks do I need to order? Are there any other recommendations you might have ? Thank you.

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Transmission / Suspension Specific Aid

Chassis Model Number

W123

Limitations

You can do the conversion but keep in mind the rear will bottom out if you carry any heavy load in back. You end up losing most of the reason to own a wagon. There are no straight bolt in shocks. Any you use will need modification on upper end.

Had one

I used to have a 300TD that had been converted, and I still have one using SLS, so I can give you a comparison, although the non-SLS wagon had bad rubber in the rear differential mount, and probably bad subframe mounts. The SLS wagon has a new differential mount, but I haven't gotten to the subframe mounts yet. No sag problems on it though.

Anyway, the non-SLS wagon had three basic problems:
1. Too much bounce especially when loaded
2. Very low ride height when loaded
3. Didn't feel solid in corners

Without SLS, you have to pick some level of shock absorption. There's a "heavy" bilstein shock available which apparently fits, available online for around $80 each. Mine had weaker shocks, quite inadequate for the wagon. Hitting a bump would make the back leap pretty good, and maybe bounce once before stabilizing. With a heavy load, freeway speed, and a big bump, this could get pretty annoying. This was worst from a quick smooth rise followed by a flat section, like the last bit of asphalt before a bridge. I really disliked those when the non-SLS wagon was full of stuff. SLS completely fixes the issue.

My SLS wagon could use a pump reseal one of these days, so it sags quite a lot after a couple days of no use, especially if I put a heavy load in it. But, as soon as it's running, ride height is correct. The non-SLS wagon always looked like a sedan with a dead cow in the trunk when loaded, and kinda drove like one too. This also made the suspension bottom out easy, which is part of what made the bounce problem bad.

Lastly, cornering. The SLS wagon feels solid. I drive it through corners as fast as I can without my wife complaining even with the whole car stuffed to the ceiling with vacation stuff, a toddler, etc. The non-SLS wagon felt weird in corners. It's a little hard to describe exactly, but I think it was mostly because the back of the car just wouldn't stay still, which varies the pressure on the front of the car and makes it feel like you're trying to write your name while somebody shakes your chair. I never pushed the non-SLS wagon fast in corners, because I never felt comfortable doing so, but the SLS wagon feels right at home in a tight turn.

None of this is particularly scientific, and I have to admit the SLS wagon was in a lot better shape overall, so something else might have made part of the difference. Still, unless the SLS is terribly expensive to replace and there's no way your wagon is worth it, I can't say I'd recommend the switch. I'd probably have kept my non-SLS 300TD if it hadn't been for the rust issues, but the SLS was definitely a major factor when I bought a different 300TD.