Sports Suspension Issue

[rebecca1]

Hi

I have an E220 CDI Estate (2003). It had sports suspension fitted by the dealer after it was delivered to their showroom. Recently I had to have to the air suspension pump replaced as the car kept 'dropping' onto the rear tyres after being left for a while. This got more frequent and then the car wouldn't rise after being started at all.

Now the pump has been replaced I have two concerns.

1. The car always used to drop and rise a little. It would drop when the engine was stopped and rise when the engine was started. Now it does not drop and rise like it used to.

2. The car seems to be sitting lower at the rear. There are no alarms on the dashboard and it drives fine. Also, the passenger side rear drops onto the tyre occasionally, but rises when the car is started.

I am worried that the work done to the pump has messed with the sports suspension add-on. Is there a way to check this or the state of the bellows? I am nervous about doing more work in this area - given the cost and the age of the car - in case it doesn't fix these issues.

Thanks

Rebecca

 

[steveq]

I don't know what the sports suspension would have done to the self-levelling rear suspension -- maybe just changed the height settings?

If the car is dropping then there must be a leak somewhere. If you are lucky it will be a leak in the pipework.

Possibly the pump went faulty because it was being overworked and the original fault still exists.
The suspension bellows could be leaking. They are very expensive to replace if you go with Merc parts.
Non-Merc bellows aren't as expensive but it is all relative. You will have to fit both sides if you do fit non-Merc bellows.
I replaced the rear suspension bellows on my S212 E220 Estate as it dropped when left for a few days unused. It cured the problem and my car no longer sinks.
It is a DIY job but not easy.

It is also worth checking the height sensors as they can rust and break.

 

[kid-jensen]

On the air suspension bellows on other cars (say Audi) you can use slime to fix leaks pretty well permanently.

I got 2-3 years extra use out of the Air bellows on my Allroad for the sake of a £5 bottle of Slime and about 10 minutes work...

May still be holding air for all I know, but I moved-on...