W211 Rear air suspension failed: what now?

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The Mirror Man

Active Member
Joined
Jan 29, 2015
Messages
216
Car
W211 E270 CDI Elegance.Rover 75 Tourer
I need your help please guys. The car looked fine as I walked towards it but within 50 yards the red warning "Vehicle too low" came on and the back end is almost on the ground. The car is back home (and so am I) and the rear of the car is on it's bump stops.

Does this sound like a suspension unit or a pump issue.

History: the rear has been getting low if left unused for more than a week but has always returned to normal on start up.
 
You had a leak for sometime, Now its more than the compressor can keep up with, And/Or the pump too is now knackered. Need to get it on star and get the codes.
 
Merc85 is correct. You most probably now have two faults:

1) a puncture in one of the rear bags or lines.

2) the compressor may have damaged the ring or overheated due trying to keep up with the leak.

You really need STAR or a good code reader to check and clear any faults. Some faults will kill the compressor until they are reset.

bagpipingandy.com is your man for for compressor kits.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Where to get the airbags from Bruce? And, is it important to stay genuine or are there decent aftermarket ones available...?
 
UPDATE: I left it for an hour or so, then restarted the engine: the rear slowly slowly raised to normal height. There was a bit of a rattling noise this morning on start up when the fault occurred that I now think could have been a frozen pump?? It sounded like it was coming from behind the NS dash board. Is that where the susp pump lives?
 
Where to get the airbags from Bruce? And, is it important to stay genuine or are there decent aftermarket ones available...?


Not sure with Mercs. The BMW guys us Arnott's and really rate them on price, fit, and longevity. I would try bagpipingandy.com for and suggestions as this is his bag (dreadful pun intended)
 
UPDATE: I left it for an hour or so, then restarted the engine: the rear slowly slowly raised to normal height. There was a bit of a rattling noise this morning on start up when the fault occurred that I now think could have been a frozen pump?? It sounded like it was coming from behind the NS dash board. Is that where the susp pump lives?


The system may well be frozen. Be careful. If it is then just the act of it pumping itself up could cause a leak or the compressor to overheat.
 
Can't raise his website Bruce...
 
Hi,
There is also an air filter and a dessicant chamber when I did mine with Andy's kit I replaced both as well (dried the dessicant out in the oven).
I also replaced the Air Compressor Power Relay, if the pump has been running longer than it was anticipated by MB then the relay may have got hot and could of caused damage to the contacts even if it still works it may/will of decreased its operational life.
 
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I know I have a leak. It's usually the OSR that sinks after a few days. Apart from the suspension bag, where else might it be leaking from?
 
I know I have a leak. It's usually the OSR that sinks after a few days. Apart from the suspension bag, where else might it be leaking from?
If you have a puncture, then it is almost certain that your compressor will not be happy and will require a rebuild as stated above. Finding the puncture is the issue now. Start with a soray bottle of fairy liquid and water. Pmmp the car up as high as it will go and spray around all the air bag/pipe, strut that you can see around the OSR, then look for the bubbles.
 
If you have a puncture, then it is almost certain that your compressor will not be happy and will require a rebuild as stated above. Finding the puncture is the issue now. Start with a soray bottle of fairy liquid and water. Pmmp the car up as high as it will go and spray around all the air bag/pipe, strut that you can see around the OSR, then look for the bubbles.

Fairy and water......I hadn't thought of that. I'll have a look at this when I can get it in my workshop. Cheers.
 
The guys in the US make fantastic replacement airbags [none here have failed yet] that DO NOT require the dropping of the subframe to fit. This should be common knowledge but if it isn't feel free to send a PM.
 

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