Airmatic no longer showing up on scan tools
Thread Starter
Super Member
Joined: May 2015
Posts: 600
Likes: 45
From: Minneapolis, MN/Breckenridge, CO
2010 E550 4Matic Sport P2
Airmatic no longer showing up on scan tools
I have been fighting the airmatic system on my e550. I pulled code C155664 (compressed air sensor for system has a malfunction, signal implausible)
and C153113 - The right front damping valve unit has a malfunction, there is an open circuit.
The passenger side of the vehicle sits 1.5 inches give or take higher, lowest point being drivers rear, highest being passenger front.
Now that I'm trying to diagnose it, I have tried scanning the car with both the Maxisys Autel which previously retrieved those codes as well as a snap on modis ultra. Neither tool will even register there is an Airmatic system in the car. I tried the key on, gas pedal, key off, release reset on the car and got nothing. I tried pulling the Airmatic relay while the car was running and got a malfunction warning on the screen… car raises and lowers when button is pushed but I can't get the system to register on a diagnostic computer. I have also had the battery disconnected for a few hours which did nothing.
I am at my whits end with this. Love the car and I hope to work out this suspension bug so I can start to fully enjoy it and it doesn't look lopsided.
Are there any other methods of reseting the computer so hopefully this system will pop back up again? Or is is likely a failed component? I wish I could just throw parts at it but considering the prices of the components in question it isn't viable. Without diagnostics, it's also impossible to isolate.
Thank you in advance.
and C153113 - The right front damping valve unit has a malfunction, there is an open circuit.
The passenger side of the vehicle sits 1.5 inches give or take higher, lowest point being drivers rear, highest being passenger front.
Now that I'm trying to diagnose it, I have tried scanning the car with both the Maxisys Autel which previously retrieved those codes as well as a snap on modis ultra. Neither tool will even register there is an Airmatic system in the car. I tried the key on, gas pedal, key off, release reset on the car and got nothing. I tried pulling the Airmatic relay while the car was running and got a malfunction warning on the screen… car raises and lowers when button is pushed but I can't get the system to register on a diagnostic computer. I have also had the battery disconnected for a few hours which did nothing.
I am at my whits end with this. Love the car and I hope to work out this suspension bug so I can start to fully enjoy it and it doesn't look lopsided.
Are there any other methods of reseting the computer so hopefully this system will pop back up again? Or is is likely a failed component? I wish I could just throw parts at it but considering the prices of the components in question it isn't viable. Without diagnostics, it's also impossible to isolate.
Thank you in advance.
Thread Starter
Super Member
Joined: May 2015
Posts: 600
Likes: 45
From: Minneapolis, MN/Breckenridge, CO
2010 E550 4Matic Sport P2
If anyone has an idea to try before the star option let me know. I have a fully equipped shop I have access to after hour.... only thing missing is STAR
Thread Starter
Super Member
Joined: May 2015
Posts: 600
Likes: 45
From: Minneapolis, MN/Breckenridge, CO
2010 E550 4Matic Sport P2
Alright…. I was able to get the car on a STAR diagnostic tool. Airmatic did not show up on that when we scanned the car as a 212.. However he was able to "backdoor" so to speak through 211 and get into the Airmatic system. The height was showing 25+mm lower on the right front from the rest of the car which was ironic as that is the corner that sat the highest. We were able to level the car out while at the shop but after driving on the freeway, the issue has returned a bit. (waste of $$$.$$ and he did not seem to have any suggestion as to what was actually the culprit). He had lowered the rear a bit in star when we thought the front would both level and drop (but got the too low error and had to bring it back up above where I believe the factory wheel gap would even be). It's a touch less pronounced at this point, but the issue is not resolved. If that voltage didn't seem to be off on the front corner I would be less likely to presume anything significant was going on and proceed with my other plans for the car.
I honestly feel that I could have accomplished more if he would have just given me the STAR computer for an hour or two and had this forum to access!!!
I honestly feel that I could have accomplished more if he would have just given me the STAR computer for an hour or two and had this forum to access!!!
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Oct 2010
Posts: 5,141
Likes: 1,293
From: Southern US
2010 E550, 273 Engine: 2012 S550, 278 Engine
Alright…. I was able to get the car on a STAR diagnostic tool. Airmatic did not show up on that when we scanned the car as a 212.. However he was able to "backdoor" so to speak through 211 and get into the Airmatic system. The height was showing 25+mm lower on the right front from the rest of the car which was ironic as that is the corner that sat the highest. We were able to level the car out while at the shop but after driving on the freeway, the issue has returned a bit. (waste of $$$.$$ and he did not seem to have any suggestion as to what was actually the culprit). He had lowered the rear a bit in star when we thought the front would both level and drop (but got the too low error and had to bring it back up above where I believe the factory wheel gap would even be). It's a touch less pronounced at this point, but the issue is not resolved. If that voltage didn't seem to be off on the front corner I would be less likely to presume anything significant was going on and proceed with my other plans for the car.
I honestly feel that I could have accomplished more if he would have just given me the STAR computer for an hour or two and had this forum to access!!!
I honestly feel that I could have accomplished more if he would have just given me the STAR computer for an hour or two and had this forum to access!!!
For me it looks you have a height sensor issue on the right front, i.e. it is reading 25 mm low so the system pumps the car up by that amount, which then is actually high in the real world.
When you was able to level the car was there some sort of "zeroing" done, i.e. did the star tool set new zero points for the height sensors?
Thread Starter
Super Member
Joined: May 2015
Posts: 600
Likes: 45
From: Minneapolis, MN/Breckenridge, CO
2010 E550 4Matic Sport P2
For me it looks you have a height sensor issue on the right front, i.e. it is reading 25 mm low so the system pumps the car up by that amount, which then is actually high in the real world.
When you was able to level the car was there some sort of "zeroing" done, i.e. did the star tool set new zero points for the height sensors?
When you was able to level the car was there some sort of "zeroing" done, i.e. did the star tool set new zero points for the height sensors?
After he leveled it, he did lock it in somehow, although it did not fully "take" (the back now sits lower proportionally than the front as we had initially just dropped the whole thing and I thought we could avoid lowering links but alas the amount of drop proved too much on the front and when we brought up the rear he didn't match it.
The height sensors are not too expensive. I'm going to check over those components and hope one of them is the solution!
Maxisys claims the newest software release/update is able to make these adjustments. I may end up going over to the shop and ensuring that I didn't miss something on the tool and it is the latest software.
