CLS55 Airmatic Air Suspension Explosion Sound

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Jan 6, 2019 | 02:53 PM
  #1  
Hello all,

Yesterday while parking my CLS55 in the driveway I heard a very loud explosion (thought it's a firework), I stepped out of the car and saw my passenger front is completely sagged/dropped. I assume the air shock exploded.
My MB shop replaced that shock on Friday with an Arnott, so maybe they put in a bad one or something went bad in the installation?

It gets much worse thought. 15min after I parked the car, I heard ANOTHER explosion outside, stepped out and the entire car was dropped - all 4 corners!


failed airmatic air suspension


I parked the car thinking maybe I can still move it, but there's no way, I will have to get a flatbed to the shop.
Did this ever happen to anyone? Specifically couldn't find in the search people that experienced a loud explosion, most threads just say air leak or shock failure.
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Jan 7, 2019 | 09:15 AM
  #2  
Quote: Hello all,

Yesterday while parking my CLS55 in the driveway I heard a very loud explosion (thought it's a firework), I stepped out of the car and saw my passenger front is completely sagged/dropped. I assume the air shock exploded.
My MB shop replaced that shock on Friday with an Arnott, so maybe they put in a bad one or something went bad in the installation?

It gets much worse thought. 15min after I parked the car, I heard ANOTHER explosion outside, stepped out and the entire car was dropped - all 4 corners!


failed airmatic air suspension


I parked the car thinking maybe I can still move it, but there's no way, I will have to get a flatbed to the shop.
Did this ever happen to anyone? Specifically couldn't find in the search people that experienced a loud explosion, most threads just say air leak or shock failure.
Wow man that is crazy, haven't heard of that before... But if all four have gone bad post MB shop installation I would have it returned to them and blame them for some issue they caused and see how much they assist you
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Jan 7, 2019 | 10:06 AM
  #3  
Quote: Wow man that is crazy, haven't heard of that before... But if all four have gone bad post MB shop installation I would have it returned to them and blame them for some issue they caused and see how much they assist you
Called a flatbed tow this morning and dropped off the CLS at the shop. It's weird, I'm pretty sure two shocks blew up... I'll update hopefully in a few hours.
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Jan 7, 2019 | 10:03 PM
  #4  
Alright then, quick update. The front and rear passenger side shocks both blew up. They are both the original ones. My front driver’s is a new Arnott I installed on Friday and it’s fine.

I decided to change all three original ones to Arnott, not only the two that failed. That way they all match and all under warranty. Expensive but worth the piece of mind. I hope the compressor and distribution block are good.

This has been an extremely expensive week since I got the car, I back logged years of maintenance. Replaced leaking valve cover gaskets, new OEM Mercedes battery, new spark plugs, front upper/lower ball joints, transmission fluid/filter service, oil change, engine and transmission mounts, air filters, and now the shocks...
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Jun 21, 2019 | 02:03 PM
  #5  
Quote:
Alright then, quick update. The front and rear passenger side shocks both blew up. They are both the original ones. My front driver’s is a new Arnott I installed on Friday and it’s fine.

I decided to change all three original ones to Arnott, not only the two that failed. That way they all match and all under warranty. Expensive but worth the piece of mind. I hope the compressor and distribution block are good.

This has been an extremely expensive week since I got the car, I back logged years of maintenance. Replaced leaking valve cover gaskets, new OEM Mercedes battery, new spark plugs, front upper/lower ball joints, transmission fluid/filter service, oil change, engine and transmission mounts, air filters, and now the shocks...
So, do you know what is the reason why they were exploded?
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