So I was sitting in my house this past Saturday and I heard a very loud whoosh and a long hiss from the garage. I went out to see what it was, thinking my air compressor purged itself or one of the bikes in the garage blew a tire. I finally realized my car was slammed to the ground, front wheels completely tucked under the fenders, rears lower than normal.
First thought, that looks awesome! Second thought, this is gong to suck!
The car was parked and off when this happened so I never saw any indications on the dash, never got the "car too low" light, no symptoms driving it a couple hours earlier. Just sitting there in the garage and then pop, whoosh, drop.

Started the car to see if it would raise, it did slightly and then it started blowing air from somewhere in the front left side of the car, sorta squealing like letting air out of a balloon.
Turned the car off and it immediately dropped all the way down again. Since the escaping air sounded like it was coming from the front left side I thought its either a blown front air bag or the pump went bad. I checked the pump relay, swapped it with another relay, no change. Checked the 40a fuse, good, no change.

Not super familiar with the Airmatic system other than using its features and enjoying its benefits.
I have some questions to assist in the troubleshooting of this issue.
If one air bag blows, does it affect the entire system? Would the entire system lose air and all four corners go down if just one bag blows?
If the pump goes bad does it purge the entire system and drop the car?

I don't have STAR and as it stands, no way to get the car out of the garage and down the driveway to get it onto a truck and get it sent somewhere to get it diagnosed.
If it's not a simple fix, is there a way to jack it up and hold the suspension up to get it towed?

I know there are lots of Airmatic threads out there with similar issues but any further help or guidance anyone here can provide would be much appreciated.

 

 

very helpful and informative response -- why dont you sell him some sweat pants

 

All I know is if all 4 go down at once and it won't raise then it's the compressor (compressor makes noise when it's on, located right in front of driver wheel

If only one goes out it's thatlocal strut, especially if it makes noise

Another thing to consider is the... valve block? I forgot what it's called but there's an aluminium block that does some important job that can go bad.

I'm positive you can move the car around while it's dropped like that (I did it in my yard when my compressor went not too long ago)

I'd recommend this: get a wabco compressor (from arnott, I got mine on amazon for a bit cheaper) and replace that (it's good maintenance anyway). I don't know about the blowing hissing part you mentioned but if the car is down on all fours it typically means compressor.... again hard to tell without star. Start the car and hit the raise button, you should hear the compressor try to engage, if all you hear is a clunk then nothing it means it **** the bed.

It's really simple to DIY in your yard I promise. It will come with a relay you will replace in the ECU compartment under hood on driver side. If that doesn't do it then call up AAA and ask them to send for a flat bed truck. You can move the car around when it's slammed it's not that serious, just don't drive it down a road.

Let me know if you need help with the install of the compressor, PM me.

 

Onespeed55,
Sounds like a ruptured air spring, ruptured air line, or defective valve block. Pull the left front tire and fender liner and inspect the valve block and lines.

If you are going to move the car, you have to raise the front of the car and put blocks between the upper control arm and upper shock/spring mount. Mercedes makes rubber blocks especially for this but the cost is ridiculous. You could cut a piece of wood to fit but only use it to get the car to a flat-bed truck, do not attempt to drive with it! Needless to say, this could be hazardous to your arms while installing the blocks so be smart and careful if you do so.

PM me your email address and I'll send you the info you need on your suspension. It's difficult to troubleshoot unless you understand it. In your case, you do not need Star at this point.

 

 

Thanks for the compliment, tlambert, much appreciated.

For the OP, the photo attached shows you where towing blocks are placed. Also, looking over the tech docs, another possibility is the vent/fill valve in the compressor is stuck in a partially open position. I still lean towards an air spring as primary culprit, followed by a bad air line, then valve block or compressor assembly. If you replace the air spring, I recommend you go with a pair of Arnotts; I'm happy with mine after 38,000 miles and two years.

 

 

I hate to hear about issues like this, I just hope that I don't experience this anytime soon.

 

Thanks to everyone for the info, even W204_racing, although I'd bet 99% of MB owners don't have STAR.

I pulled the wheel and checked everything out, visually checks out OK, but that doesn't mean much. I don't hear the pump coming on when I start the car so its either seized or not getting power. Relay and fuse are not the issue, so I'd bet its seized. But why is the question. I could get a pump and replace it but if its something else and the problem remains I could end up damaging a new pump trying to run a faulty system. I'd rather not throw parts at it until I have a better idea of the actual failure. Without STAR I guess I just need to get it somewhere to get it checked out. I know this could get expensive pretty quick but I'm thinking I may just bite the bullet and replace everything with new parts and call it good. I'd rather go though this once and have peace of mind rather than piecemeal it and have this issue every time a component goes bad. May even look at coilovers, although I'd hate to lose the airmatic features.

I'm going to have to find some blocks or use something to hold the front up to get it out of the driveway, it gets pretty steep towards the bottom. I checked the price on those towing blocks, $800 for a couple of chunks of rubber?!? No way!
I've got a line on a local MB specialty shop that I can take it to for diagnosis, hopefully they have the blocks and can arrange a tow for a car with airmatic issues. If not I'll figure something out.

 

Does your dad approve of that post?

 

If you are keeping the car, a STAR system will pay itself off rather quickly vs the dealer. My 05 has cost me about 4k per yr in maintenance AND about 500 of that in STAR related fees. I'm finally looking at one now given my suspension is MIA too. Locally you may also be able to provide some diagnostic services to folks and make back some of the money, if one were so inclined.

 

 

Hi,

Same boat a couple weeks back....Went to a local bar to watch a game and came out to a car on the ground. -- Front left bag was hissing on startup. Flatbed tow back to the house. Ordered BOTH fronts from Arnott, SUPER easy with all the DIY's on here. They come pressurized so they are LONG (extended) and if you do 1 at a time you might get frustrated trying to get them over the lower arm on install. Take BOTH the old ones out and it is really easy to push down the lower arm and get them both in. Your working against the sway bar if you don't. Took about 3 hours total.

Just hope the rears are not far behind, but I have read they are much more fun than the front. **helps to have a lift in the garage**

 

Of course you have STAR right? And no saying your daddy has access to it doesn't count. Your in for some interesting less pleasant life experiences with your car, might pay to be more sympathetic to others especially since you claim your daddy doesn't care your troubles.

 

 

Same thing happened to me right before my eyes! It ended up being the front passeneger shock. That one bad shock made the whole car look a lot lower than normal. If you can jack up the front using the jack pad that is located below the engine you should be able to lift the car enough to see if one of the shocks are bad. You should be able to see and/or feel if the rubber bladder is firm or not on the shocks. I hope this helps.

 

Got the car up and put a cut section of a 4x4 block on top of the upper control arm and set it back down. Worked like a charm and I was able to get it onto the street ready for pick-up tomorrow. We'll see what the shop says. Thanks for all the help/ideas on DIY replacement but I think I'll just let the local indy shop take care of it... I just don't have the time right now to mess with it.

 

I moved my car slammed just the other day, turned the wheels and everything with no issue.

Though I'm not sure how it will fare being pulled ONTO a truck it's definitely movable. Where would one get those towing blocks?

 

Merc dealer has them @ around $800,, there was a post on here that should someone made one out of a 2x4,, just pay attention when your doing it -
good luck -- take a look
https://mbworld.org/forums/w211-amg/...e-failure.html

 

Huskerparts sells those rubber blocks (220-327-12-30 Rubber Buffer) for $30.86.