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The rear end on the drivers side just started dropping when the car is parked all day or over night. After driving it its back up to normal height. I've read a little about ithe airmatic suspension but I'm not Ewen sure this car had that (2nd owner) Attached are pics of the drivers side sunk down and the passenger side, normal height.
Questions:
-What's Causing this?
-Whats the fix?
-DIY or mechanic?
-Expensive?
Thanks for any help
Drivers side rear end sunk down Passenger rear end normal height
If it comes back to the proper height after some time driving, you have airmatic. Run your VIN through www.lastvin.com to see what else is on your car.
DIY? Yes. Easy? Not necessarily, but it has been done by a LOT of members here with no issue.
Pay someone? If you've got the money they've got the time...
Converting to a standard spring/shock is a well known solution to the unreliability of the airmatic system. A search is your friend.
Sounds like a leaking rear airbag? If you stay with the rear air suspension, FCP Euro sells a kit and has a DIY video. Or like someone said above you could convert to a spring/shock setup.
If it comes back to the proper height after some time driving, you have airmatic. Run your VIN through www.lastvin.com to see what else is on your car.
DIY? Yes. Easy? Not necessarily, but it has been done by a LOT of members here with no issue.
Pay someone? If you've got the money they've got the time...
Converting to a standard spring/shock is a well known solution to the unreliability of the airmatic system. A search is your friend.
I did run the VIN through lastvin.com and I can't find anything on the report that shows the suspension type but I could be blind and looking right at it. I've attached a pdf of the report if anyone would be kind enough to give it a quick look and see if I missed it. I also attached a list of MB codes I found in case that helps anyone else with anything (maybe this is common knowledge, I don't know)
Originally Posted by tjts1
Or the OP had rear self leveling instead of airmatic since it's a V6 wagon.
I did read that the wagons had the self leveling system rather than the airmatic but I also saw conflicting opinions on that with no hard data on how to tell. Self-leveling sounds easier to fix?
Originally Posted by Red Ryder
Sounds like a leaking rear airbag? If you stay with the rear air suspension, FCP Euro sells a kit and has a DIY video. Or like someone said above you could convert to a spring/shock setup.
I think I found the kit and video which I'll watch at home later to see if this is something I can do, but again, I don't even know if it is self-leveling or airmatic. Is there any way to know for sure?
Airmatic has a button to raise or lower the suspension near the gearshift. If it doesn't have that button, you don't have an airmatic system, but you may have rear self leveling. The way your car is acting, you don't have coils.
Without code 489, you're likely in for a much cheaper repair than those with.
Almost every E350 I've looked at has had the rear leveling (so springs/shocks up front and airbags in rear w/air compressor at front of car with airlines running to the rear bags). Very few if any have had full Airmatic system, indicated as stated above by a couple buttons just behind the gear shift lever integrated into the wood trim piece. E500's seem to have full Airmatic.
What about the leveling sensor, could that be a lone culprit for a scenario like this, or not? Just thinking out loud here...
Sounds like a leaking rear airbag? If you stay with the rear air suspension, FCP Euro sells a kit and has a DIY video. Or like someone said above you could convert to a spring/shock setup.
The video is actually quite good, and it doesn't look that hard, but I don't have a lift so the access it looks like I'd need isn't doable. I can't imagine doing that on my back so I''ll have to take it somewhere.
I'll report back here what happens but one last QUESTION:
Is this an urgent issue that should be fixed right away? Any harm it letting it go for a while?
Is this an urgent issue that should be fixed right away? Any harm it letting it go for a while?
The continual up and down could stress out the rear and possibly front suspension bushings due to over torsion. But at this point, the damage is probably done. Watch for excess wear on the inside of your tires.
The video is actually quite good, and it doesn't look that hard, but I don't have a lift so the access it looks like I'd need isn't doable. I can't imagine doing that on my back so I''ll have to take it somewhere.
I'll report back here what happens but one last QUESTION:
Is this an urgent issue that should be fixed right away? Any harm it letting it go for a while?
Is it urgent to replace? Depends on you, it is a "time" vs "$$". The car is not leveled every time for free, the air compressor works harder since it is not an incremental amount of air needed, but a full fill of an airbag. It will overheat until it goes , then it will become urgent plus the airbag anyways, i.e. $$.
It's not urgent in terms of it being safe to drive the car, but it is on the more pressing side in terms of not stressing the other components it works with, such as the compressor, etc. That all said since it must be done sooner or later, I'd make it sooner to hopefully avoid the added cost of having to replace the compressor as well.
I bought my S211 a year ago. When I went through the papers that came with it, I found a receipt from a shop that had diagnosed the rear suspension as it had sanked overnight. They didn't find anything, and that 4,5 months that I drove my car, I didn't notice any issues with it. But when the electrics died and it sat few weeks at the dealer, rear had sinked. When I got it back home and started to diagnose what all is died, I manage to energize the suspension control unit and the compressor started, and the rear reached the correct height, and stopped the compressor. And then the control unit died. I noticed that after a week, right rear started to go down, and eventually in 2-3 weeks, rear was completely down.
Then I wanted to get it towed to my workplace so I could more easily fix it. Took me some time to figure how I can raise the rear as it would've been impossible to get it to flatbed without damaging the rear floor area and bumper. I took off the control unit connector, and with multimeter I was able to find compressor relay and both strut solenoids. The I just jumped them and got the rear raise. It's been three months, and it has not sinked a bit! I did, however, lift it higher than the normal ride hight, so maybe there is a leak on the airbag and now that it's higher, leak does not occur.
This is a 2009 E350 WAGON with self-leveling rear airbags. Is this treated the same way as a full Airmatic suspension? I ask because I read people talking about raising or lowering the car voluntarily which I cannot do.
juanmor40 I did look at that link and they had very detailed instructions. Thank you. I also watched a video at the end of that which is much more simple, almost too simple, and here is the link to that video.
But it was an R class I believe, so may not apply. But if it's that simple I will attempt it myself. Anyone have experience on a w211 wagon replacing a rear airbag?
Footnote: I am kind of a newbie. I have been inspired to do more on this car based on everything I've read here thanks to you guys. Never really done much car work Other than oil changes, spark plugs, air filters, etc., but I have done a fair amount of outboard motor work on my boats and some basic inboard diesel maintenance and repair. Why cars have always Intimidated me, I don't know. I guess part of it is simply the access to the under portions of the car.
I imagine the only difference in suspension between full Airmatic cars and those with just rear leveling is that for Airmatic the front is airbags too with additional airlines running to them. But I could be wrong.
It seems like if you jack up the rear end high enough, and have jack stands to hold it there, sitting on the ground and working in that area would allow you to do the job as opposed to laying down. But yes a lift makes everything easier! I bet there are many people on here who have done it without a lift, though. I would think you'd find several threads if you search.
The most involving job I've done on a car is change the front axles. I did swap my Accord coupe from 3.0L 4spd auto to 3.2L 6spd manual but I was kind of the assistant on that job haha. Anyway unless you're getting into wiring (which you wouldn't be for this job), just remember cars are all nuts and bolts.
Last edited by Red Ryder; Jan 17, 2022 at 09:53 AM.
I imagine the only difference in suspension between full Airmatic cars and those with just rear leveling is that for Airmatic the front is airbags too. But I could be wrong.
SLS is a completely different system from airmatic. The only component they share is the airpump behind the front bumper.
It appears I need to replace them in pairs which is fine, but any advice on how to deflate the good side when I go to replace that one? I don't have STAR Diagnosis tool so that's out. Can't I just poke a hole in the bag and let it deflate it since it's going in the trash anyway?
Trouble getting air spring out, Any help is appreciated
So I started the job of replacing the rear air springs on my 2009 e350 4matic wagon and I've run into a bit of trouble in getting the air spring out of the driver side. I followed the FCP euro vid, the Arnott vid and the service manual instructions. All bolts necessary are out, the electrical connection is off but not the air connector. It's loose but I can't get a spin on the nut so I'm going to buy the special MB slotted socket for that and that's fine. I was hopeful that if I could dismount the air spring and rotate it slightly, I could access the nut, but the problem is I can't get the air spring out. It's really stiff and doesn't compress like in the videos, not even close. The back end of the car was way down so I assumed the bag was completely blown and empty, but not so? I touched the pins with wires and a 9v battery and I did hear the solenoid and some air escaping but it's still stiff.
How could air still be in there if the back end was virtually on the ground (appears the other side is leaking now)? I did have to start the car and move it into the garage to work, but it was 30 seconds, and it didn't appear to pump up in that time. Any suggestion?
I can plainly see a hole in the outer bellows, but that's not the structure that's holding the air, is it? Isn't that just a protective cover? I press on that and its soft, but to vertically compress the entire unit is very difficult if not impossible. I want this thing out.
If you are throwing the old ones out, drill the top of the spring where the connector sits so it deflates.
saw it in one of the YouTube videos
Or wait for other's advice
I have no problem drilling it it's trash anyway. Any advice on precisely where to drill it? Picture? I couldn't find a you tube video on it. I'm ready to get the Sawz-all out.
So I started the job of replacing the rear air springs on my 2009 e350 4matic wagon and I've run into a bit of trouble in getting the air spring out of the driver side. I followed the FCP euro vid, the Arnott vid and the service manual instructions. All bolts necessary are out, the electrical connection is off but not the air connector. It's loose but I can't get a spin on the nut so I'm going to buy the special MB slotted socket for that and that's fine. I was hopeful that if I could dismount the air spring and rotate it slightly, I could access the nut, but the problem is I can't get the air spring out. It's really stiff and doesn't compress like in the videos, not even close. The back end of the car was way down so I assumed the bag was completely blown and empty, but not so? I touched the pins with wires and a 9v battery and I did hear the solenoid and some air escaping but it's still stiff.
How could air still be in there if the back end was virtually on the ground (appears the other side is leaking now)? I did have to start the car and move it into the garage to work, but it was 30 seconds, and it didn't appear to pump up in that time. Any suggestion?
I can plainly see a hole in the outer bellows, but that's not the structure that's holding the air, is it? Isn't that just a protective cover? I press on that and its soft, but to vertically compress the entire unit is very difficult if not impossible. I want this thing out.
Even with 10-15 psi in the bag, it wouldn't lift the car, but it makes it very hard if not impossible to compress by hand. It would be like trying to compress about 350 pounds at 15 psi.
The special tool is a 10mm deep socket with a slit cut in it. I bought one at Princess Auto (canadian Harbor Freight) and used a grinder with a cutoff wheel to slit the socket. Works just fine. I had a grinder though. Cost about $2.
One of my friends cuts semi deflated bags with a utility knife. Cut the bag on the side that's away from you, wear gloves, at least a denim coat, and eye protection. Keep your head and neck above the wheel arch.
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, then it will become urgent plus the airbag anyways, i.e. $$.
