Changing fron Discs & Pads on 2015 E350 with Air Suspension

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Jswd32

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Joined
Jul 10, 2015
Messages
34
Car
2016 E350 AMG night edition Premium Plus Estate
Hi,
Just been quoted, £475 from dealer to replace the front only discs and pads. I'm fairly mechanically competent and have changed many previous cars brake discs and pads. Total cost of genuine discs and pads from Newcastle MB dealer is £182 delivered. However, the Air suspension and missing car jack with the car puts me off. The thing that concerns me is, the car has an odd function of dropping to the floor, like some kind of lowered racer if any tyres are removed. This I found out at Kwik fit and had to make the staff aware to not try and lift my arches with their hands to get the tyres under after removal.

As soon as you start the engine the air suspension levels and lifts off the floor, it does actually look quite cool, shame you can't press a button for parking, not that I would be likely candidate for a car meet anymore.

I guess Mercedes are making cars ever less serviceable for competent home mechanics.
 
Are you saying when a wheel is removed the susp has a mind of its own. ? Is this the same with the ign turned off....
 
Hi,
I believe its when the ignition is turned off. It happens after any one wheel is taken off. I did wonder if it was some kind of safety mode to do with the self levelling. I often use the air suspension to raise the car to go down lanes with low clearance, and it all works faultless.

Would be handy if there was an engineers mode, to stop this happening?
 
That shouldn't be happening!
I have air suspension all round and no corners drop when a wheel is removed.

Get it looked at before you injure yourself.
 
Hi all, it goes in for service with my local Merc specialist in 3 weeks, so will ask him to look at it then. Main Merc dealer had it in for service 2 months after it dropped, but nothing came up in the service report. It doesn't have any issues with holding position and has never dropped over night. First time I saw it happen, was when I had a wheel welded in the Highlands after I cracked it on a pothole. I came back to the car to find it on the floor like some kind of low-rider! However upon starting, it returned to the correct position and has remained the same ever since. However, at two different Kwik-fit garages, it has dropped all round, when changing a tyre.

I have heard in America that this can happen, and they put the car in tow mode, to lock out the air suspension from dropping. However, like anything read on forums, you take it with a pinch of salt.
 
This I found out at Kwik fit and had to make the staff aware to not try and lift my arches with their hands to get the tyres under after removal..

Surely they don't need told not to try to lift the car by the wheel arch
and can the car not be lifted by the chassis then the suspension will hang.
 
I'm confused on two matters here, firstly, I have Airmatic all round and when changeing wheels nothing happens with the suspension. Secondly, assuming the wheel being removed is supported with a jack or trolley jack, how can it move and have the need to tell someone not to lift the arches to fit the wheel back on?
 
I'm confused on two matters here, firstly, I have Airmatic all round and when changeing wheels nothing happens with the suspension. Secondly, assuming the wheel being removed is supported with a jack or trolley jack, how can it move and have the need to tell someone not to lift the arches to fit the wheel back on?
exactly what I was thinking, the only way I can imagine that happening is jacking on the lower arm, makes no sense at all.
 
I can't explain it myself, however thats what the Kwik fit guys tried to do JOCKcl500, and I'm sure you would tell them to stop if your saw some idiots trying this on your car.

I don't know how they were jacking it up. I think maybe, when they jacked the car up initially, the suspension was higher and holding the wheel. However the car then tried to adjust the height and so dropped the suspension and with it the wheel hub. It would of made sense for them to just jack the wheel a little higher, than try and lift the arches.:confused:

Rf065, thats why I am asking on an internet forum, as just as confused as you! :D lol. I think the e class suspension may also be different to the c class.

Just got off the phone to the local Mercedes specialist and he confirmed its a normal function, that if one wheel is raised the car compensates by letting the majority of the air out of the bellows until it finds the optimum level and this can have the result of dropping the car to the floor, it then resets the moment the engine is started and rises, no fault.

Be interested to hear experience of anyone with the same year and model/spec?
 
Rf065, thats why I am asking on an internet forum, as just as confused as you! :D lol. I think the e class suspension may also be different to the c class.

Just got off the phone to the local Mercedes specialist and he confirmed its a normal function, that if one wheel is raised the car compensates by letting the majority of the air out of the bellows until it finds the optimum level and this can have the result of dropping the car to the floor, it then resets the moment the engine is started and rises, no fault.

Be interested to hear experience of anyone with the same year and model/spec?

Well I'll bow to his superior knowledge, but my C class has Airmatic & it certainly doesn't have this "normal function" and I change wheels twice a year so would have seen it by now. Not sure the why Airmatic in an E Class would act any different to the C Class, but, surely the ignition would need to be on or possibly even the engine running before the car would adjust the suspension?
 
Maybe the key should be left in the ignition on position one, that's what the CL needs to stop it engaging park automatically.
Or use two jacks and lift both sides of the car up evenly like normal mechanics do, or is it just me.
 

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