marc777

I have just been told that my 2004 E55 AMG with 52000 miles needs 4 new shocks and a new steering rack as a result of leaks.

I have looked on the forum for similar experiences and would welcome anyone's advice. Seems a shame on a 52000 mile car, especially given the unti cost for the parts. A UK dealer is looking at around $1,300 for each front shock, £66 for the rears and $1,300 for the steering rack - over $5,000 for the parts.

Perhaps its just the way it is with having one of these beasts............

Cheers

Marc (UK)

CynCarvin32

The shocks can leak and thats not unheard of but for all 4 to fail is odd. Second the rear shocks are still likely 1k quid so for 66 quid you are not getting new shocks. Seals maybe. The rack? well I think thats fine as the 2004 rack is slow and boring. Ask for the 2005 and on rack out of the CLS55 and get the new mounting bushings for the rack. The car will drive a whole lot better. My 2004 was such a boring car to drive with the slow and ultra numb rack. The 2005 cars were much better but still not a bmw.

marc777

Thats good advice about he rack thank you.

I mistyped the rear shock - they are $600 each +/-

Marc

alphanumeric

are you the original owner? what could of caused this? previous owner driving over speed bumps at full speed? on a daily basis...

Yacht Master

Can you explain the leak on the front struts? If the car can roll and has no red warrning in the MFD you are good to go.

CynCarvin32

The strusts are just gas filled shocks and they leak with time. Its not abnormal for one to leak but all 4 is a bit much.

I replaced all 4 on my car and it was night and day. They wear and make the car feel old and heavy.

If he has the cash resources he should go ahead with the repairs. The car will feel much better.

The MFD will show an issue with a blow air spring but not a worn shock.

CynCarvin32

That makes sense.

I also forgot to get the latest version of the air strut. They were also revised for 2005 and again in 2006 I think. If you can get E63 struts you can use those as well. The valving got better as production went on. You will notice the car is more controlled and less bouncy in later production cars. The 03 cars were skittish and had bump stops that were known to break off and damage the struts.

If you are really feeling risky go find a E55 on Mobile.de that has the rare AMG Nurburgring suspension package. Those shocks are 40% stiffer or so and that would make the car quite fun to drive. Sourcing parts could be an issue though. On the same note you could buy struts off a E63 performance package or a CLS performance package as well.

shardul

iTrader: (1)

If all 4 are leaking which I find very hard to believe, there must be a leak in the tubes that connect to the main airmatic pump.

Yacht Master

I would just question how they can see a leak on a front AirMatic strut. It is a sealed unit and the one external/internal seal it has is in the "AirMatic chamber". So the strut would have to be collapsed (slammed) and air bellows perforated to see any leak. OP snap some pics of the leak, or is the leak just the rack?

CynCarvin32

While one unit the front strut has a AIR spring and a normal gas filled strut. Its not all done via air. I think the confusion lies in the fact that it is one piece where the rear as a "air bag" and then a separate strut.

If he has a1 failed rear and 1 failed front I would do all 4 just because struts lose 50% of their ability to control body motion by 50k miles. They are not totally worn but you feel a huge change if you replace them.

So the front strut could be leaking the gas from the shock and the air spring is just fine. For lack of a better example consider it a MacPherson front strut with a air spring instead of conventional coil spring. The strut part is still a normal strut with some adjustment ability to adapt to the air spring having 3 stiffness settings.

Yacht Master

From my point of view unless the struts have collapsed they are still serviceable (granted they may not be 100%) but here is the problem, the poster is going to spend $5K on parts maybe $2500. labor on these repairs and that represents almost 25% of the value of the car. Unless he has an extended warranty, it is a sad day....

I have spent some time on the AirMatic issues here is some of that information.

https://mbworld.org/forums/w211-amg/...there-any.html

marc777

I have one at the front leaking and one at the rear - but as CynCarvin says, all 4 have to be replaced.

The leaks mean that the car is likely to fail the annual MOT test which is basically the roadworthy test here in the UK (it would fail with a bulb out let alone leaking shocks) and so needs to be done.

Interestingly, add up the shocks; steering rack; possibly brake rotors due and pads soon; the D service etc, its easy to rack up a bill which is quite a % of the value of the car. Shame parts are so expensive but I guess that drives up the original purchase price - would be nice for them to last a bit longer.

In all other respects the car is stunning









Marc

CynCarvin32

Other option sell the car and have it not be registerable in the UK and go spend 70k quid on a newer E63. Thats hardly fun as well.

I had my car's work done under warranty so I agree warranty is the way it should be done. Sadly this is the price you pay for this car.

I personally cant stand a car with worn shocks. I just had my SL55 done under warranty (6 months apart for the front and read shocks via warranty) and next time (out of warranty) the car goes up for sale as its not logical to replace shocks that are worn on a car that costs 25k. The shocks are 8k installed at least.

The shocks CAN be re-built but then he has no car for say 2-3 weeks while they are repaired. If they have to go back to bilstein in the US then its even worse.

TopEndS62

do all 2005s have the cls rack? or did it start from a specific build date?