Airmatic: Car raises, instantly drops - 1 Month out of warranty
06-29-2013, 09:03 PM
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Airmatic: Car raises, instantly drops - 1 Month out of warranty
As if my earlier problem with the entire transmission needing to be replaced wasn't enough, now I see that the front of the car is only inches from the ground....the back still seems about right.
As soon as I turn the car on, i get ye old "Vehicle Rising" message, and it lifts to about normal height, but then I hear a faint hissing sound as if the air is escaping, it lowers a bit, then rises again.....It would keep doing this until it kills the compressor I imagine. If I turn the car off, it drops to the ground in under a minute.
I was thinking either a hose popped or a valve got stuck open, but I do hope it's not one of the air shocks....or worse. Anyone have something similar happen that could offer some insight?
As soon as I turn the car on, i get ye old "Vehicle Rising" message, and it lifts to about normal height, but then I hear a faint hissing sound as if the air is escaping, it lowers a bit, then rises again.....It would keep doing this until it kills the compressor I imagine. If I turn the car off, it drops to the ground in under a minute.
I was thinking either a hose popped or a valve got stuck open, but I do hope it's not one of the air shocks....or worse. Anyone have something similar happen that could offer some insight?
07-02-2013, 09:57 PM
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Upon closer inspection, it is only the right front side that is droopy......Likely the air shock, no? Would be nice if only a hose leak would cause the issue, but having just crossed 100,000 miles, they are probably due. I've already had the compressor and relay replaced under warranty last year.
I'd have an easier time diagnosing and repairing issues if I knew where to turn for service manual data, seems to be a dearth of information and activity for W221 considering the typical owner is not an elbow-greasing DIY enthusiast versus more actively upgraded and modded (and plentiful) cars like Civics and Lancers...You could practically build one from spare parts with the wealth of information out there!
If it turns out to be the air shock I am probably headed the Arnott route, I already did it once before on a Lincoln Town Car some years back and was very satisfied. Obviously this would be a more complex job, but without all the rust that made the Town Car 10x more PITA, I'll bet it'll be easier in the end.
I'd have an easier time diagnosing and repairing issues if I knew where to turn for service manual data, seems to be a dearth of information and activity for W221 considering the typical owner is not an elbow-greasing DIY enthusiast versus more actively upgraded and modded (and plentiful) cars like Civics and Lancers...You could practically build one from spare parts with the wealth of information out there!
If it turns out to be the air shock I am probably headed the Arnott route, I already did it once before on a Lincoln Town Car some years back and was very satisfied. Obviously this would be a more complex job, but without all the rust that made the Town Car 10x more PITA, I'll bet it'll be easier in the end.
07-02-2013, 11:30 PM
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Wth is wrong with the w221 transmissions, my sister's s550 needed a totally new transmission at 20k miles and now after 30k miles more it needs another new transmission. Arnott is the way to go in replacing the air struts, they are more heavy duty over oem and half the costs. Hope you fix the problem.
