The brief
The B180 had gone choppy: a bouncy ride that wouldn't settle after bumps, vague handling with extra sway in corners, the front tyres wearing unevenly, and some noise off the front. He brought it in. That's worn front shock absorbers, the struts on the front of these. The strut damps the spring, it stops the car carrying on bouncing after a bump and keeps the tyre pressed on the road through corners and over rough surfaces. As it wears, the damping fades, so the body floats and bounces, it sways more, and the tyre skips along instead of staying planted, which is the uneven wear, and a tired strut or perished top mount makes the noise. Shocks fade gradually so you get used to it, but it's a ride and a grip issue, so worn ones need changing.
The diagnosis
On the lift each front strut got a bounce-and-inspect. Both were past it, weak damping, weeping, the body carrying on after a push instead of settling in one. The rears were still doing their job, but a worn strut makes the matching corner's tyre work loose, hence the wear pattern. When the pair on an axle have gone together, you do them as a set, a fresh strut next to a tired one gives you a car that handles differently side to side, so the call was both fronts.
The work
Both front struts were unbolted and removed, and a new genuine Mercedes-spec pair fitted, with the top mounts checked and renewed as needed, every fastener torqued to the manual figures. With both sides back together, the front geometry was checked and set so the new struts weren't fighting a misaligned corner. A road test confirmed the ride had settled, no float, no excess sway, the front planted again.
The outcome
A composed ride that settles in one motion, flat and stable through corners, the noise gone, and the front tyres back to wearing evenly. The B180 went home riding properly again. Worn shocks only get softer and they take tyre life and grip down with them, so doing the pair as a set reset the front end rather than leaving one side lagging the other.