refresher

Hello All-

I just replaced air springs on my 2008 gl450 for the SECOND TIME..
I am wondering if anyone of you used or heard of "Suncore conversion kits for airmatic"?

http://www.suncoreindustries.com/Mer...ersion-kit.php

I love my GL but the airmatic issue is putting me off..So, I still want to keep my GL but see if I can switch to coil springs if found it to be a reliable alternative..

Please advise

Thanks
Gary

joshd2012

That is interesting, but I would be interested to know what the kit includes. Outside of find the right shocks that fit, what else will they provide? I doubt there is anything unique about about them. Might be with asking what else is included because you might be able to piece together a set cheaper.

metromania

check www.strutmarters.com for air to coil spring conversion kits.

martinb

Refresher:

Did you end up changing the airsprings out with Suncore's conventional spring conversion?

Martin

lkchris

It would be hard to say, as the website is defunct.

I suspect he--like everyone else--had a button on his dash to raise/lower ground clearance. Guess that goes away without airmatic, wouldn't you think?

martinb

Greetings lkchris:

I am not sure about the "defunct" part, because Suncore's website is still up. The page's link has maybe changed. I actually talked to Suncore, Strutmasters, and Arnott today about spring conversion kits for my '09 GL450.

Suncore's kit is much cheaper, while Strutmasters is $1000 higher but shipped with Eibach springs and a module that takes care of the raised LED on the dash. Arnott sells limited lifetime airsprings (which I have on the front now) but no spring conversion for the GL450 as of yet.

I am hoping to find somebody here that has installed a conventional spring conversion from either Suncore or Strutmaster. I would like to know their experience with it.

Martin

ReGULT51

Following up on this thread to see if anyone has converted their GL Airmatic to coilover and what their experience has been.

SndsoftheSbrbs

The idea of a Mercedes-Benz without an air suspension is mind-boggling. I do not see why you would purchase one without it.

BlownV8

Lots of MB's running on standard shocks and struts not to mention hydraulic suspensions. Though I would not want to do this on my GL, I get the want for something more reliable. My Airmatic has not been, to date, all that expensive to maintain. The ABC on my SL is very expensive to maintain. I'd rip it out if there was a good solution for the V12 and had another issue with ABC. As I understand, a solution is close and all that needs to be done is to build a proper front away bar that will work.

Tony353

I did the conversion to both my 00 s430 and 08 gl450 through strutmasters.com and you would be surprised that the ride quality is still great. I drove down to north carolina to the stut masters facility for my first conversion with them for the s430 and the guys there know their stuff. They will ship to you amd no need to take the trip. I took the trip because i have 20" rims on the s430 and wanted the ride hight to certain specifics and not factory like they would have sent in the mail. They did the specific measurements at no extra cost. I dont work for them, just a very happy customer.

eric_in_sd

A 6,000# vehicle ought to have good ride quality, regardless of spring type. It would be slightly quieter and smoother over small bumps with air springs.

The rear springs in the GL are good for load leveling, especially with towing. Front springs are not so useful, and are mainly there for ride quality. If you don't have variations in rear axle load, then not much point for the leveling.

Boosting ride height for off road is useful, if you go off road.

For ordinary driving, without varying loads? I'd put coil springs in.

Dave in Nevada

I use my GL350 for towing.The air suspension levels it out so no load equalizer hitch needed. Consider that before you change it over.

Vitiated

fireman1073

where are you getting airbags for 125?

Max Blast

Arnott A-2596 Air Spring for $159 ea. on Amazon prime right now...Can vouch for the 30 minutes a side. It's DIY.

amedeogoga

Hey Max, Please Help me out, you seem to be so knowledgeable... I own a 2012 GL 450…I’m experiencing problems with my Suspension…

Two weeks ago, the car was laying so Low in the Front, I thought it was a Lamborghini…then other days it would NOT drop at all…

I took it to my regular mechanic, ( NOT a Benz Dealer ), he checked front, and said there’s NO Leak, and that his computer is only indicating some communication problem, faulty wiring…

I was thinking to change the front AirBags suspension, but Mechanic said that they are still good, NO LEAKS

Has anyone else Experienced anything like this???

Let me know how to fix this Problem, ASAP !!!

Please help, thanks so very much in Advance !!!

eric_in_sd

There is no way to fix your problem. You have to sell your GL. However, because of the problem, no one will pay you any money for it. Since you are such a nice guy, though, I will tow it away for free.

Max Blast

I think he offered it to me in a roundabout way first. Dibs.

SndsoftheSbrbs

I think you need to your vehicle to someone trained to work on Mercedes-Benz vehicles or to the dealership. There is no way for us to diagnose this problem over the internet.

eric_in_sd

First one to get a flatbed to his house wins.

Lee Reed

I did the suncore kit on my '07 GL450. I'd bought and DIY'ed a new compressor, which didn't fix my problem with varying heights at the corners. In hindsight it was the distribution block (I forget the technical term for it.) I decided to never deal with the problem again and convert to coils. I paid a total of $375 labor to do swap out all 4 corners to coils. Turns out 3 of 4 airbags had been replaced over the life of my truck, which I'd bought in 2015 with 66k miles. Now we are back to smooth riding with coils and no more airbag worries. In hindsight, I should've made sure to get the extended warranty when I bought this SUV.

eric_in_sd

If you are not going off road, towing, or carrying loads, by all means coil springs will make your life easier in the long run.

If you aren't doing those three, you might question why you own a big SUV in the first place. That's water under the bridge for anyone here, though.

massimobenz

Hi .... thinking of doing the same thing. I'm sick of the issues and want to avoid long term maintenance. How's the ride so far? Do you notice any difference. Is the ride the same?

Lee Reed

It's frustrating when the original poster doesn't reply, so here I am! The rear springs I bought off Ebay and they were from the ML. I worried that the heavier GL would sag or be harsh, but there's been ZERO issues with ride quality on the rear. I paid a mobile mechanic just under $200 as I recall, to swap out the rear airbags for the coil springs...it wasn't a DIY in my eyes.

As for the fronts, I paid a different mechanic, a few months earlier, about $170 to swap out the fronts. I'm less happy with the front coil struts from Suncore, because they are harsher on bumps, and I think the front sits lower than ideal. I'm still happy overall. I just wish I could easily switch off the Airmatic malfunction message that reappears at every startup.

Occasionally I miss the functionality, but I have no real regrets at swapping over. I'm still under 100k miles on my 2007, so it could have a long, long life. I -may- look into whether there's a way to adjust the front ride height, but it doesn't keep me up nights, worrying about it. In a little while, I'll post some photos. Wow, my id was quick sending me the pics. I guess it's not as low in the front as I realized. Anyway, every Sunday morning it's filled with 7 people headed to church, and zero complaints on ride quality. I plan to remove and sell the newish airmatic compressor. That'll be a weight savings.

massimobenz

Thanks for the feedback! I have a lot deciding to do .......................