W211 E55 Rear Airmatic Failing

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Dec 31, 2019 | 04:10 PM
  #1  
Hello everyone at MBworld. I'm having this issue with my 2003 w211 E55 AMG. I have been getting the "car too low, visit workshop" error in my dash. It used to be if i turned the car on and waited a few minutes, the air pump would raise the back and i would be good to drive it.

That is, until winter started. I have not driven it in a month and now, i can't even hear the air pump turning on and the car just sits there slammed and won't raise even after running for 30 minutes. I've contemplated getting new bags from Arnott but to be honest i'm not even sure if that's the problem.

The issue is that i can't even get the car raised to even have it towed for diagnostics, so if i could get some help possibly diagnosing this thing, i'd really appreciate it.
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Dec 31, 2019 | 04:34 PM
  #2  
The search feature here works well. Hit the "search" on the menu bar, and try advanced search, if you need to narrow it down to your model, etc. Tons of service information, and advise on the Airmatic system. You probably wore out your compressor, by ignoring the warning message for so long. Maybe relay/fuse, also.
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Dec 31, 2019 | 04:35 PM
  #3  
Quote: The search feature here works well. Hit the "search" on the menu bar, and try advanced search, if you need to narrow it down to your model, etc. Tons of service information, and advise on the Airmatic system. You probably wore out your compressor, by ignoring the warning message for so long. Maybe relay/fuse, also.
Thanks for the suggestion. I'll look further into it,
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Dec 31, 2019 | 09:44 PM
  #4  
you should be able to drive/ roll onto a tow truck 30 feet away even with them down imo

I needed two and instead of paying 1000+ for two, I bought arnotts spring replacement kit for the E55 $1100 all four corners.

it replaces the air shocks and it a complete swap.

my car handles much better than the air ever did

just throwing that out there .
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Jan 3, 2020 | 01:52 PM
  #5  
Recently went through a blown bag. You should hear the pump "trying" to put air in, and the air leaking out. if not, you either blew the fuse on the pump or fried the pump.

I went with the arnott replacement route because I like the adjustability on bags when I need extra clearance. A lot of people go with springs because the airmatic WILL leak again in the future....

i think rock Auto has the cheapest Billstein (OEM) replacements if you prefer OEM, but it's more expensive than Arnott...
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Jan 10, 2020 | 06:53 PM
  #6  
I got rebuilt rears form Rebuilt Master Tech and they have been working great, They have a special currently $519 for both rears.
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Jan 13, 2020 | 06:34 PM
  #7  
Thanks a lot of the reply. Finally after letting the car run for an hour the bags raised the car and i drove it to my mechanic. He's had it for three days now and still can't diagnose it so we'll see. I've heard the opposite, when they changed to springs the ride got worse. I think i'll stick with the air suspension for the time being since i can't tell what it'll be like with the springs.

Thanks again.
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Jan 13, 2020 | 06:37 PM
  #8  
Yeah i think i'm going to go with Arnott as well for now. Let's see if the bags fail again. Thanks for your input.
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Jan 15, 2020 | 10:18 AM
  #9  
research the Arnott options carefully. Make sure whatever you choose, retains the active damping/active suspension functionality...
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Jan 15, 2020 | 04:39 PM
  #10  
Quote: Thanks a lot of the reply. Finally after letting the car run for an hour the bags raised the car and i drove it to my mechanic. He's had it for three days now and still can't diagnose it so we'll see. I've heard the opposite, when they changed to springs the ride got worse. I think i'll stick with the air suspension for the time being since i can't tell what it'll be like with the springs.
Thanks again.
The pump is shot. You'll need a working one to properly diagnose the problem. I wouldn't start throwing bags at it yet. There are rebuild kits available from flea bay and amazonian. I just replaced the pump and bought a kit for the old one.

https://mbstardiagnosis.wordpress.co...nsion-on-w211/

http://www.import-car.com/mercedes-b...c-suspensions/

http://www.mercedesmedic.com/air-sus...isit-workshop/
Be sure to follow the links at the end of this one
Reply 1
Jun 13, 2020 | 08:12 PM
  #11  
Thanks for all your replies guys. It seems it was the air compressor. So i had that changed and the bags as well. Everything seems ok now.
Reply 1
Jun 14, 2020 | 07:16 PM
  #12  
If anyone gets the too low warning light. Stop turn car off and start again. If it does not raise in 5 mins then turn it off and fix the strut. The pump will cycle on and off constantly causing it to die.
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