I have been having some rough ride problems lately.
Today, as I went over a speed bump i noticed that the "Airmatic, car too low, stop the car" warning came up in red for about 3 seconds. I stopped the car looked around outside and noticed that the left front and rear front were lower than the other side. Started the car back up, struts started to fill again, the car raised but the height difference stayed the same, left side lower. I hit the raise button inside, display came on "car raising" and could feel the car raising, after the raise stopped I noticed the car was higher as it should be but the left side was about 1" lower than the right side and the "car raising" display stayed on. pushed the button again the display went of and the car lowered but still an inch difference between the left and the right side. I had the strut kit installed by the dealer, air compressor replaced at the same time and the rear struts have been replaced about 3 years ago.
I hear no leaks and the air pump comes on and off with raise button.
"car too low" warning comes on and off if I go over bumps.
Can anyone help me diagnose this one?
Thanks!

 

That's your problem right there

i have ABC, so can't be of more help

 

i am amused, thanks for confirming the problem.
At least you know what you have in your car.

Ps. there is no need to "Quote" in this case, it just takes unnecessary space.

 

Hi,

You mention new air compressor which is great. You also mention strut kit. Assuming that was the repair at the top of the front struts?

If so, I'd bet money it is the lower/boot end of the strut(s). Take off passenger front wheel, visually check the rubber boot area at bottom of strut. Keep car up on stand with e brake on and start her up. Let the system fill the struts with air and see if you can hear or feel air escaping near the bottom of the strut?

Arnott has better than OEM entire struts for reasonable price and lifetime warranty. Indy can install them for not too much and you never have to worry about struts again. Your car is a 2004, so this is possible that the struts (OEM) give way at the bottom rubber boot.

 

I did what you instructed, although I have listened very carefully for any indication of air leaks and did the soap and water spray at many locations, after a 2 day break, I started hearing some hissing from the left front side.
Raised the left side (as I was raising the front left, I could hear more hissing with every pump of the floor jack) and took the wheel off and saw that the bottom of the boot completely off from the lower seal and I was able to move the boot up and down but it would not stay where it is suppose to.
I also noticed a tear at the mid point of the boot ribs. Then I put the wheel back on, lowered the car and noticed that the left front side was very low. Check under to see if the boot went back to where is is suppose to be and saw that it was sealed. I started the car, it raised somewhat and started hissing, with the car on I put my hand around the bottom of the boot and could feel the air coming out from the sides and the bottom of the lower seal and from where the rip is on the boot.
I did research on the Arnott struts and they seem to be a great alternative to the stock struts.
There is also a boot kit 2203300085 available, Do you think that should be my first option ($31.00) versus spending $399.00? Does the kit contain the lower seal (it seems to be from looking at the EPC pictures of the boot kit).
Thanks very much!

 

I'm sorry to say this, but your best alternative is to get new struts for BOTH fronts. total of 2 each. There is a core charge that you get refunded when you have them replaced and mail back (takes about a week to get your money back).

My expereince with boot kits is they are not worth the trouble. They don't always solve the issue and the new struts are designed differently so they have a more solid connection between the aluminmum/metal and the rubber. Plus the rubber is much thicker than original part. Lifetime warranty means no more worries.

Good luck. Glad to know that the issue has been isolated. I'm pissed that you had to go thru all that other work first though.

Thanks,

 

ajkennedy is correct. Your leak may be from a blown air chamber that contains air pressure, inside the strut boot. Its blowing could cause the damage you see to the boot. You don't see the air chamber. Personally, I think Arnott's is the best solution (its air chamber material is at least twice the thickness of that in the OE Bilstein strut).

See post #25 at http://www.benzworld.org/forums/w220...oxy-fix-3.html for a cutaway diagram of the strut; the air chamber is labeled "i". The post is in a good discussion thread about re-sealing an upper strut leak, but your damage is well beyond that remedy.

 

dude, is there anything you don't know???

What color are the battery terminals on my 2004 S55? I don't know if it's the original battery, an OEM replacement, or a third-party, but for some scary reason, I bet you do...

Oh wait... are you going to ask me which battery? I DON'T KNOW!!!

 

Thanks ajkennedy and Skylaw!
I am leaning towards the Arnott option with both the front struts even though the wis manuals says that they don't need to be changed together if only one is bad. I am guessing the other one might fail soon due to the age.
Do you guys think that since I will replace the struts, is it a good idea to replace the ball joint the strut sits on and perhaps the whole lower arm with the ball joint?
I have emailed Arnott this afternoon but so far have not gotten an answer yet for the few questions I had about the struts, I am hoping that they will reply tomorrow.
I am hoping that the front strut replacement will cure the rear left being low as well.
ajkenndy, I had the other work done at a different time (3 years ago) so it doesn't hurt as much, thanks for your concern.

Again, thanks so much guys! I will report once I have them installed. I might even do a DIY for them with pictures if Arnott will honor the lifetime warranty.

 

xexpo,

I have the same problem. i have had both the front air struts changed with arnott ones. they were changed at different times since they both didnt go bad at the same time. the right one went bad about 1 1/2 years after the left one. I read a post were something might need to be reprogramed. something along the lines of the level sensor or adjuster. hope this helps you.

My left side sits lower then the right but everything seems to be working properly. its just a bit lower.

 

call them tomorrow, today was a holiday

 

Tusabes,
Yes, I realized that after the post but Adam Arnott did reply by 8:30pm on Monday and answered the few questions I had. I'd say excellent service. I will call them today as well. Thanks!

Angelglo,
Installation will be my next task. Where did you have yours installed?
I will consider taking it to the dealer, although seen a video installation and seems to be pretty easy if you have the right tools. Thanks!

 

xexpo, i did the R&R myself. It is a fairly simple install that you can do youself. if you need more instruction, you might be able to find it on line but if you dont, i will do a short write up for you

 

Thanks Angelglo!
Do you guys think that since I will replace the struts, is it a good idea to replace the ball joint the strut sits on and perhaps the whole lower arm with the ball joint?

Here are some pictures, comments welcome.
http://picasaweb.google.com/xexpo721/2000S430#

 

depending on how many miles your benz have on your ball joints, i would have them replace. not to terrabliy difficult but the tool in the below link is a must to separate the ball joints. look at the rubber areas on your suspension. if they looked cracked, you should replace them.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Merce...motiveQ5fTools

 

Hi,

Glad you have a plan. Few comments:

First of all the stealership will NOT install parts you provide like this. Just look for an independent/local shop that has mercedes benz experience/ex techs employed in a shop that has been around at least 10 years. I have replaced these struts 8 times on my Rovers and it isn't hard to do, but it does take time.

Second, there is no "adjustment" required after just replacing the struts.

Third, you do NOT have to remove the ball joint to do the replacement. There is a video on the forum of a German fellow who does the replacment without removing anything.

Best of Luck. Glad you aren't giving up on the air ride that makes these cars worth it.

 

I did order 2 front Arnott struts, should be coming to me tomorrow. I also ordered lower control arm (transverse control arm)with the updated bushing and the ball joint on the steering knuckle, both Lemforder brand.

According to RMEuropean, they are the OEM. Does anyone think otherwise? Do they make the control arms for Mercedes Benz? I am thinking of getting the lower front arms (strut arms)as well. Some say that TRW brand is also OEM. There is also the Febi brand at AutohousAZ for $125.00.
Does anyone have experience with these brands?

I will replace the Arnott struts first to fix the initial problem first since replacing the lower control arm isn't that difficult to replace (according to some posts here). The steering knuckle ball joint replacement will take time and proper tools.

Since, I have 133k miles on the car, it is good to have the control arms in hand for future use. I will just see how the car rides after the strut replacement.

AJKennedy, I have seen that video of the strut replacement. Thats why I am confident that I can do it myself.

 

You might a have a problem compressing the strut without the STAR. Basically it has some air in it already and it will be hard to make it fit, at least thats what they say on the W211 boards. I just got the Arnotts, everything rides great.

 

you wont have a problem compressing the strut

 

I received the Arnotts and I will be working on the car this weekend.

I noticed that the Atnotts are about 1-1/2" taller than original strut.

Das Geld, is there a way to compress them without the Star, how did you do it?
It does seem very stiff to be compressed by hand.

 

is the air fitting screwed in on top?? take it off

 

Just finished replacing both struts that I purchased from Arnott!

The struts were delivered to me within 3 days, well packed and with a return slip for the cores to get the $100 refund per strut. Struts came with everything except the bottom set screws, had to use the old set screws and the threads on one of the struts were slightly damaged.

Thanks to one member mentioning the set screw could easily be cross threaded due to fine threads on the set screw and the threaded hole being aluminum on the strut. I caught the problem early and was able to thread it the right way. So, please pay extra attention at the start of the set screw installation.

I give Arnott 9.96 out of 10.00 and the value is exceptional!

My car drives as it should now. Thanks to all who contributed and if anyone has any questions, I'll be happy to answer them. Strut replacement was very educational for me. The video made by Bilstein was a great help but there are some holes in it.

I will comment more about the experience and share some knowledge and pictures in coming days.

 

If money was no object to replace the struts, which ones would you replace with? The new OEM struts from Mercedes, or Arrnot's. The reason for this question is I have a 2000 S500 that has the same problems as as everybody here has mentioned. The front two struts will fall all the way down overnite.

I have read ALOT of the threads here and have done some trouble shooting. There are no leaks on the top of the struts, so I pulled the right front tire off, and removed fender cover, sprayed soapy water on the pump, manifold, and all the lines. I did not see any leaks. I did notice that when I was jacking the car up that I heard air hissing from around the strut area, but could not see any air bubbles from the soapy water.

So I decided to take it to a local mechanic that works mainly on Mercedes. He noticed that the car had recently been in a front end accident. I told him that it had about 3 months ago (about the time this problem started). He told me that the struts were probably damaged in the accident. So my insuarance company would pay for the repair. Lets say they do.

So my question again is: If ins. company will pay, which ones would you replace with. The OEM from Mercedes, or, Arrnot's.

I am new to this site, this is my first post. So thanks for any and all advice.

 

Get the insurance to give you the $1300 for the OEM(1 Side) and buy Arnott's with that money.

 

Personally, I would use Arnott's new. They are built better than the OEM Bilsteins.