My 2008 GL320 with 130,000 miles has not had airmatic problems before this. Now the back end is raised to max level and won't lower. When I hit the switch on the dash to lower it I can hear the relays engaging but it doesn't lower. Icarsoft shows no faults. Tried disconnecting battery for about 15 minutes, no change. Seems like most of the problems come from the airmatic not raising the car, lucky me my car thinks it's a 68 Chevelle that a teenager has put air shocks on. Anyone else had to deal with this ? Any ideas ? Thanks, Will

 

Most likely the compressor has failed. I have changed out all.my air suspension parts and icarsoft has never shown a code throughout. Dont rely on getting a code from this system.

Have you had the "malfunction" message on the dash?

 

What happened to result in the rear being raised but not the front? Recall the sequence of steps.

 

Did it ever work properly and what did you change?

also, please call out the steps and faults occurring.

 

System always worked properly. Haven't changed anything yet but this morning the front shocks are all the way down, like two blown airbags down. Not sure what the likelihood is that the two fronts gave up the ghost at the same time but I hoe to do some poking around under there this weekend. Thanks guys, Will

 

Yes the malfunction display does show on the dash. I'm wondering aloud could a bad compressor cause too much air being lost up front and not enough in back ? I can't remember the last time the ride height setting was changed. Thanks, Will

 

No

You mentioned that this morning fronts are down. Were they ever up?

if so you have one or more blown front airbags, or a faulty valve block that is sticking open to both front wheels, but that’s less likely. Like I said, if it’s possible to raise the front struts, get the whole car into the raised position and then spray soapy, water or leak detector spray onto the fronts to at least verify that the bags are whole and not holed. If the car comes up on all fours struts and then sinks in the front overnight, you have a hole in one or more of those bags.

by the way, when were they replaced last?

 

Yeah dude, provide more information, as I suggested earlier. Think very hard about the sequence of steps. If you do a test, write down what was done and what results were found, start to finish.

Otherwise, it is like a clip from Just Rolled In: C/S does not steer straight (visual image of front wheels pointing in two different directions). If all you give is "does not steer straight", there is little to go on.

 

No steps involved, wife drove home previous evening with no problem. Came out in the morning the back end was up and the fronts were all the way down ( as in zero p.s.i. down ). I believe I can hear the compressor working but front end is just doing nothing. I don't think the front airbags have ever been replaced. It just seems strange that they would both blow out completely with nothing leading up to complete failure. I'll be working in my driveway ( I live in Alaska and outdoor temps are not making this a fun prospect. Tomorrow I'll go out and disconnect one of the lines to the airbags and kick the compressor on to make sure I'm getting some air. The more I think about it it's more than likely some way overdue airbags. Thanks guys, Will

 

Of course, there are steps involved. When you press the raise button, does the car inflate on all four corners? That’s one step and you can do it to troubleshoot your saying, your wife drove it around, which would lead me to believe that at some point, the fronts do inflate, and then you say you find it facedown in the morning which means that there’s a leak in those front bags. Your compressor is probably tired from trying to inflate those two leaky bags which is why it’s taking so long to inflate, if it does it at all. Don’t start disconnecting airlines until you do the basic failure mode checks that are described above here.


how long have you had the car? Have you ever replace the rear bags? We know you haven’t replace the front bags. But these are wear items and need to be replaced on a regular basis so it’s not hard to believe that they’ve given up the ghost.
.

 

Yeah, I guess I left that step out. I did try to raise the car by the dash switch and only the rears went up. The rears were replaced about 5 years ago. More than likely that the two fronts just plain old gave up. Just wish the fronts were as easy to replace as the rear bags were ! Thanks again for all the been there done that, Will

 

Take two new front struts, two new rear airbags, keep a new compressor at the ready and call us in the morning.