S430AMG

Hi All,

We have a 2008 S550 4Matic and we recently got a Malfunction Warning on the Dash that later turned into Stop Too Low. When we pulled over, right side (passenger side corner) was dropped all the way. We raised the car, shut it off and back on and it was ok until we reached highway speeds again. We kept the car raised ^ and it didn't seem to drop all the way. Upon parking the front right and rear certainly drop a bit but not all the way.

Upon scan we got 5285 code.

2 things we noticed that might have contributed leading up to the event:
- 2-3 days ago the temps dropped below freezing for a day or 2
- Light came on about 5 min upon hitting a pretty big bump on the highway

So we have a W220 S430 with Airmatic and have done a quite significant amount of research on this issue. Seems like W220 is very similar but I've noticed there is a wealth more information on W220 vs W221.

I already checked the front 2 struts for leaks, no leaks detected. Up next, we are going to take off the passenger side wheel well and start checking the Air Valve block for leaks. I will change the Airmatic Air filter while I'm in there.We think it's the valve block itself but that's just a shot in the dark at this point. We think that there is clearly a leak in the system as the suspension does raise and hold air for some time but looses it over time.

I'm just wondering if anyone has any tips when it comes to troubleshooting. We will probably start off by checking the fuse as well. Is there a way to check the actual relay?

Our goal is to troubleshoot and get to the bottom of the issue before we start throwing money at the problem....any help woudl be appreciated.

Thanks In Advance!

M-a-x-G

Being new to my S350 w221, and having a rear right wheel 50mm lower than it should be, I would look for a leak, and not the fuse or a relay as you seem to be able to raise the car, the other side holds, hence, the compressor, fuse, relay seem to be working. But this is where my wisdom ends Good luck with it.

konigstiger

The fault is caused by either a weak air compressor or a leak in the system. First see attachment to check for system leaks. If all seems fine next consider compressor rebuild or replacement since you hinted at freezing temperatures dryer granules may be wet see here for DIY (w211 but same principle applies): https://mbworld.org/forums/e-class-w...e-rebuild.html

S430AMG

Very interesting! Thanks for the replies and the info.

Today we checked the relay/fuse and of course that wasn't it. Upon spraying the top passenger strut we noticed a tiny leak. So we did the epoxy fix up top.

Then we took the wheel off and inspected the shock as well as the wheel well off and took a look at the airmatic systems.
- Bottom of the shock rubber cover was off. I glued it back on.
- we changed the air filter and the hose that goes from the filter to the compressor as it had bunch of cracks in it. I simply used a high pressure fuel line vs actual part (3/8")

Tomorrow we will put the car down and see what happens. I'm leaving the wheel well cover off so I can spray the Valve Block while there is pressure in the system.

More news to come.

PS. I have a feeling it's probably not the compressor as we were only getting one corner down vs entire car. But hey, you never know.

Donnymac

FYI I have replaced, at different times both front struts one time. Each time the conditions were like you described....major tilt and drop.

The car is a 2012 221 w 4matic and 95,600 mi. Aftermarket warranty( from local credit union) covered the repairs by MB dealer. Replacement struts were remans. No issues post repairs.

Good luck.

S430AMG

Yep, it is the shock.

Upon raising the car and removing the passanger size wheel well we found few issues.
1. bottom of the shock plastic cover was popped up. Top plastic cover was also stretched (about baseball size).
2. Hose that goes from Air Filter to Compressor had all kinds of holes in it.

For #1, we decided to epoxy the cover to the bottom and do the top Epoxy fix just for ****s and giggles. This somewhat backfired as upon lowering and starting the car we heard a big pop. That stretch gave, which means the shock was leaking.
For #2, we simply bought some 3/8" tubing and installed it with new clamps, old ones no longer fit due to bigger diameter of the new tube. We also replaced the filter....which as of today was worthless.

New shock is about $650 or so. My step father decided to to just go with the Strutmasters Spring/shock kit and put the Air suspension issues behind him all together. As we have gotten to know the system we decided it was too complex and way too many components to break at 105k miles. Cost of the the conversion is about $999 + alignment.

Another reason he decided to go this route is because he mostly rides in sport mode so comfort was a none issue. Based on everything I've read it's hard to tell the difference between air and normal set up anyways.....

I will be replacing all 4 corners on Saturday. Will keep you guys posted.

In process of trying to find out all of the torque specs for rear suspension. Already found the Front.

I'm also wondering how to go about releasing the air from the shocks prior to removal (or if it's even necessary, seems like all of the Arnott videos tell you to do it but they don't tell you how).

PS. Assuming all this goes well, I will probably go the same route if my S430 Airmatic ever acts up.....so far so good.

ambitioussteve

I have same issue 50mm lower only Right Rear on my 2007 S550 W221. I get "airmatic arrow up malfunction" once a week. What was the issue with yours? What all did you do? What finally fixed it??Thank you very very much!

M-a-x-G

Hi Steve; I am sorry to say: I have no solution... just left it for the time being.

I have plans to see the dealership at a 100,000 km to get a A,B,C service. and more so to get the gearbox oil changed. They will come back with all the other "issues" I might have; e.g. I know the brakes are down, but have already replacements... as I will be doing whatever I can myself.

newtoforum2016

HI. M-a-x-g, what happen with the Airmatics ????

konigstiger

https://mbworld.org/forums/s-class-w...ml#post7304301

M-a-x-G

All OK. Had a B service at the dealership; they checked the whole car; no issues found.
The AirMatic did work; it simply looked odd when the car was parked. It seems it levels itself?! Noticed this when jacking the car up on one side; after letting it down, it levels itself.
It is parked on a non-level surface at my place... maybe the car was new to me; and not much experience with it.
I am no longer pursuing this issue.

newtoforum2016

HI, Konigstiger and M-A-X-G I was getting code 5285 on my S550 (08),replace air compressor and cleared code. Next day code came back,so I replace left front strut. The left front was a little low. Ones remove I could see it was bad.Cleared code and now all is good....

PillDrive

I just replaced my front left strut this past weekend. Had no issue at all and then on my way out of my sub division the front left dropped and i got the error. Went back home and ran tests with my xentry. Bad strut. The weird thing was, as i pumped the strut up it started leaking (a lot so you could hear it) but as i pressed on once it got over 6.5 bar it stopped leaking. I guess the tear/hole was rubbing against something inside. I was lucky and Oreilly's was able to get me a Arnott strut in 4 hrs. Put it in and all is good. Car has 87K miles. Seems like a lot of the struts fail around that mileage.