W211 AMG Discuss the W211 AMG's such as the E55 and the E63

Update on Air Strut Availability...

Old Oct 9, 2019 | 07:41 PM
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Update on Air Strut Availability...

My right front air strut blew recently (my left front blew not too long ago...). I took it straight to the MB dealer where all my work is done, one of few places I trust despite being $$$. They said there is currently a back-order on the E63 air struts and it could takes weeks to receive a replacement; IMO that is useless. They offered to install an aftermarket part, which I opted for. The options are now as follows:

Bilstein - OE product
Arnott New - no dampening adjustment
Arnott Rebuilt - has all dampening functions
RMT - rebuilt Bilstein/MB units

Right now, both of my front struts are new Bilsteins but I think I will be going with Arnott's for the rear for obvious installation differences.
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Old Oct 9, 2019 | 08:32 PM
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I would go with two of these for the rear.

Arnott Rebuilt - has all dampening functions
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Old Oct 9, 2019 | 08:59 PM
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I recently replaced the entire air suspension on my CLS I wrote up what I decided to do here: https://mbworld.org/forums/w219/7351...ml#post7856779 long story short, anything other than Bilstiens and you will lose the ADS functionality.
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Old Oct 9, 2019 | 10:43 PM
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Just out of interest, is it the just the brand new arnotts that get rid of the rear air reservoirs or does the Arnott rebuilt oem also get rid of them?
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Old Oct 10, 2019 | 12:53 PM
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Arnott new will include a non adjustable shock. Arnott rebuilt will retain the factory dampening functionality when you switch from Comfort, Sport 1, and Sport 2.

Dampening does change with those settings. I personally would recommend sticking with a shock that retains dampening adjustment if you tend to enjoy taking turns with added stiffness.
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Old Oct 10, 2019 | 01:48 PM
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Originally Posted by tw2
Just out of interest, is it the just the brand new arnotts that get rid of the rear air reservoirs or does the Arnott rebuilt oem also get rid of them?

Only arnott removes the reservoirs for rear airsprings. I just got new oem with reservoirs. It took allmost 2 weeks to get them from mercedes in Germany to Sweden so the backorder seems to be here too. Usually it takes 1-2 days to get parts here from mercedes hq.

I think bilstein makes the oem airsprings as well.

Last edited by Dokus; Oct 10, 2019 at 02:04 PM.
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Old Oct 10, 2019 | 04:56 PM
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Originally Posted by tw2
Just out of interest, is it the just the brand new arnotts that get rid of the rear air reservoirs or does the Arnott rebuilt oem also get rid of them?
Arnott does not remanufacture any air springs including rear e-class bags. Arnott does remanufacture struts including the W211/W212 and W218/W219 fronts which maintain the active damping. For non ADS vehicles (and some ADS) we design and make all new struts valved for an OE like ride.

https://www.arnottindustries.com/pro...air-suspension
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Old Oct 10, 2019 | 05:13 PM
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Rear new arnott would maintain dampening as the dampening is in the shock which is separate to the bag in the rear but combined in the front. Only concern would be does the rear bag lower the 15mm in sport 2 etc? I wouldve thought it does but I dont know!
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Old Oct 10, 2019 | 06:47 PM
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Originally Posted by PieRat
Rear new arnott would maintain dampening as the dampening is in the shock which is separate to the bag in the rear but combined in the front. Only concern would be does the rear bag lower the 15mm in sport 2 etc? I wouldve thought it does but I dont know!
I just went out to test this out since I have recently replaced my front struts with Bilstiens, rear shocks with Bilstiens, and rear air springs with Arnotts.

My test was:
Turn car on
Hit the vehicle rise button
Confirmed that the vehicle raised up front and rear
Turned the vehicle rise button off
Confirmed that the vehicle lowered back to comfort hight
Measured all 4 corners
Hit the Sport 2 button
Front dropped ~.25 inches
Rear did not lower

Unless I did something wrong or you have to actually drive the car in Sport 2, it did not appear that the Arnott rear springs lowered at all. I can try another test later and take it out for a drive and measure before/after.
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Old Oct 10, 2019 | 07:44 PM
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Originally Posted by PieRat
Rear new arnott would maintain dampening as the dampening is in the shock which is separate to the bag in the rear but combined in the front. Only concern would be does the rear bag lower the 15mm in sport 2 etc? I wouldve thought it does but I dont know!



Originally Posted by lost27
I just went out to test this out since I have recently replaced my front struts with Bilstiens, rear shocks with Bilstiens, and rear air springs with Arnotts.

My test was:
Turn car on
Hit the vehicle rise button
Confirmed that the vehicle raised up front and rear
Turned the vehicle rise button off
Confirmed that the vehicle lowered back to comfort hight
Measured all 4 corners
Hit the Sport 2 button
Front dropped ~.25 inches
Rear did not lower

Unless I did something wrong or you have to actually drive the car in Sport 2, it did not appear that the Arnott rear springs lowered at all. I can try another test later and take it out for a drive and measure before/after.
I assumed the Arnott's worked exactly like the OEM's with the ability to lower and rise based on suspension setting (Comfort, Sport 1 and Sport 2). If the back does not lower like the originals on Sport 2 setting I will go with the OEM rebuilds from the manufacturer.
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Old Oct 10, 2019 | 08:17 PM
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Originally Posted by Fountain35
I assumed the Arnott's worked exactly like the OEM's with the ability to lower and rise based on suspension setting (Comfort, Sport 1 and Sport 2). If the back does not lower like the originals on Sport 2 setting I will go with the OEM rebuilds from the manufacturer.
In the back you have the air bag and the shock. I went with the Bilstein shock to retain the ADS dampening and the Arnott air bag. Based on a test I just did in my driveway I didn't see any difference between Comfort/Sport 1/Sport 2 in terms of rear ride height but I can definitely feel the difference in the dampening.
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Old Oct 11, 2019 | 02:44 AM
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Originally Posted by arnottdoug
Arnott does not remanufacture any air springs including rear e-class bags. Arnott does remanufacture struts including the W211/W212 and W218/W219 fronts which maintain the active damping. For non ADS vehicles (and some ADS) we design and make all new struts valved for an OE like ride.

https://www.arnottindustries.com/pro...air-suspension
Thanks, I just wanted to confirm that the spring was the same regardless of which strut option is choosen. I realise they are separate units. A-2725 is used regardless of new or re-manufactured shock.
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Old Oct 11, 2019 | 12:20 PM
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Arnott's rear airbags should self level as factory did. The rear of the car has its own height sensor. Maybe you need to drive around the block before the rear is automatically adjusted.

my factory rear shock/bag and rebuilt arnott fronts raise and lower with all settings. dampening is altered with each setting as well.
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Old Oct 11, 2019 | 06:12 PM
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The Arnott designed rear E-Class air springs work with the vehicle's controls. Neither the OE or the Arnott spring is "smart" so the air pressure is simply controlled by the ECM. The ADS button mainly controls the shock's damping.

Last edited by arnottdoug; Oct 11, 2019 at 06:15 PM.
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Old Oct 12, 2019 | 01:57 AM
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Originally Posted by lost27
I just went out to test this out since I have recently replaced my front struts with Bilstiens, rear shocks with Bilstiens, and rear air springs with Arnotts.

My test was:
Turn car on
Hit the vehicle rise button
Confirmed that the vehicle raised up front and rear
Turned the vehicle rise button off
Confirmed that the vehicle lowered back to comfort hight
Measured all 4 corners
Hit the Sport 2 button
Front dropped ~.25 inches
Rear did not lower

Unless I did something wrong or you have to actually drive the car in Sport 2, it did not appear that the Arnott rear springs lowered at all. I can try another test later and take it out for a drive and measure before/after.
Question begs, why did the rear not lower?
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Old Oct 12, 2019 | 07:26 AM
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Originally Posted by Fountain35
Question begs, why did the rear not lower?
The real question is, are you SURE your front lowered 1/4” while parked? The car is only supposed to lower itself in the Sport modes when it’s above 68mph.
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Old Oct 12, 2019 | 12:23 PM
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Do you have a SDS and did you calibrate them?

For others reading the thread here is another option https://www.rebuildmastertech.com/

Last edited by Pmarino; Oct 12, 2019 at 12:31 PM.
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