I also don't see the point. You want to re-do the entire suspension system with an inferior setup to avoid potentially having to work on the suspension?

 

That's one way to look at the situation. The other is they are trying to upgrade the car to a more dependable suspension. It's not convenient or safe to have the car's suspension fail on the road at night, out of town, or in a high traffic area. I for one have had my share of ABC Iissues and can definitely see the need for a more dependable suspension.

The SL'S would keep their value much better Iif they were more dependable. I've never had a more problematic car than one equipped with ABC. Sure, if you only drive a few thousand miles a year, it's not too bad. However, if you drive 20k to 30k miles a year, an ABC equipped Mercedes is not a car you want to have.

 

FWIW I have air suspension on my C215. I have removed all of the factory ABC, and am running a W220 front sway bar. The sway bar in conjunction with adjustable dampening (set slightly on the stiffer side) means that my car is set to handle on a level similar to that of factory ABC. I now also drive my car anywhere not worrying about the inevitable suspension failure which has happened many times before.

All in all I am very satisfied!

 

I guess that's where we don't see things the same. I've been around air bag systems for as long as I can remember and to call them more reliable than a Mercedes ABC is a joke. Bags blow out all the time, valves go bad, lines leak... If you wanted reliable yould do a fixed setup like a coilover, but even a lot of that stuff is junk too when you start accumulating miles.

 

I would rather have a shock and spring setup for the conversion too but I can tell you with 1000% certainty that Airmatic is much more reliable than ABC. I can't comment on aftermarket airbag systems but stock to stock Airmatic is much better than ABC for reliability.

 

Someone should be try that coil over set they have on ebay for the r230. There's alot of thing I don't mind testing out first and letting people know but I'm kinda nervous to be the guinea pig for suspension work lol, but here's the link to the kit

http://www.ebay.com/itm/02-08-Mercedes-R230-SL55-AMG-Complete-OEM-Coilover-Conversion-KIT-ABC-to-Coils-/191278933160?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item2c891ce4a8&vxp=mtr

 

The only thing it lacks is being adjustable. To me, that's a huge issue not being able to adjust the height of the suspension.

 

Oh you're right target there. I thought you were referring to aftermarket air bag stuff like was used on the SL in this thread. The Mercedes Airmatic stuff is really good in comparison.

 

Take the amg badge off for me if you like :-).... and for your info it has a ton of amg parts on it brakes included .
The air ride has been on the car almost 9 months and running strong. No issues at all. ABC is problematic and hard on your wallet that's all. The system we made HAS THE CAR DRIVING JUST AS SWEET :-)
No more expensive repairs , no more busted lips on inclines , totally adjustable and bad as looking parked. It actually rides smoother then the factory system. Car is getting a black series kit on it next month. I can protect the kit with totally adjustability in the ride height . ABC at best will give you a inch maybe 2 tops. I have 6 inches maybe a tad more of adjustability. Would I do this to my track ...no but a street cruiser or occasional spirited driving ... yes I would. I had custom sway bars made to help with the body roll it already has when it had ABC . These aren't track cars by anymeans. We kept the stock struts so it's not much different then ABC . Been up to 150 mpg no issues. I don't do that on a regular basis anyway. I just wanted to get out of the 30 plus repair bills. And fear of traveling to far from home.
Before I offered a kit to the rest of the gang in the forum I really wanted to test things out for months not weeks like most people. also I have filed patents for the system as far as the adapters needed to keep the stock struts. By the first of the year I will have a package put together that everyone can buy if interested. I know the benz purist will not get this but if you are a modder or have a expensive kit on your car. this will be up your alley. the cost of one abc repair can pay for this setup easily . also you wont need that expensive tandem pump. you can go to a w220 power steering pump. which is a ton less expensive. also if you can recoup a lot of your money selling the parts to your abc system. I made a little over 1800 just selling all my stuff minus the struts

 

Man this guy is nuts lol...He wants your old system as a core that silly. So essentially your paying like 5k-6k for coils . Wow to much
but the kit does look nice

 

 

awesome stance and ride
I second the driving with no worries

 

the air management is the same as this . tons of fun and adjustability.
good video to watch if you aren't familiar with air ride and think it will not perform as good as abc.
the key to this set up mine is we kept the stock struts. just modified them to accept the bag

 

Was at our Irvine Cars & Coffee the other week, and below is a link to their hydrolic suspension system using coil shocks. Kind of pricy, $6k for the front shock system. Looked pretty impressive on their model as well as the Lambo they brought, with nice ride height increase (about 6"). Looking at their website, seems they are into some mean racing machines.

I am actually trying to find a good system for my red Pantera GT5S, so it is interesting to see all the different discussions about this stuff.

Link to their TKO hydrolic shocks:
http://www.tkomotorsports.com/cars-boats/Product-Videos

 

So, you got the kit available yet? interested. Need ASAP. Thanks in advance.

 

Almost 6 year old last reply.