W221 S350 - should suspension drop whilst parked?

[DSK]

UPDATE

Took the car to MB centre independents.

They did a leak test and all was really good. Without leaving it longer for several days they said the most likely cause will be a small leak inside the legs.

They will price up a front pair both original and aftermarket.

The good thing is they said that’s it’s seriously squeaky clean, every bit genuine 50,000 miles, no other issues found or noticed. As a result I’m happy to spend on it as needed.


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[DSK]

I’ve just had a quote for replacement of the front air struts and calibration of the air suspension at £2, 228 all in using genuine parts at the mb Indy.

Pretty good as the labour and calibration is just about £300 of that!

Prior to just happily getting it done myself, I will contact the supplying garage and AA used car warranty to see if I can get anything from that considering I reported it to them with days of collection.


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[DSK]

We tried the AA warranty company, no they don't cover it - typical this is why I say never bother with warranties but dealer said that its a requirement that it has it

I'll get it sorted in the coming weeks, most likely during March.

 

[mioba]

Did you also try Mercserve, I once used MB Centre and was not overly convinced. Spending that much money I always like a couple of knowlegable quotes....

 

[DSK]

Hi Mioba,

I left the air suspension aspect with MB Centre, decided to give them a whirl. Seemed OK from initial observations.
(The owner did say there was another MB indy with a similar name when they went their own way and that's the one with the less favourable rep).

The CLS will be going to Mercserve for its service in a few weeks so no harm in asking them for a quote also.

 

[Submariner1]

I’ve just had a quote for replacement of the front air struts and calibration of the air suspension at £2, 228 all in using genuine parts at the mb Indy.

Pretty good as the labour and calibration is just about £300 of that!

Prior to just happily getting it done myself, I will contact the supplying garage and AA used car warranty to see if I can get anything from that considering I reported it to them with days of collection.


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Wow thats more per leg than I paid for my ABC strut. And that included flushing the system, new oil and filtre ( and thats a total pig on post 2009, bottom fed ABC reservoirs)
Do you need both legs done?

 

[DSK]

I’m not sure if both legs need doing but for the sake of it, I will be getting both fronts done.

I’m only dragging my heals a bit as I’m within my rights to see if I can get it repaired or a contribution from the supplier under the consumer rights act. I’ll be writing to the dealer on the off chance I can get a contribution. I cant be @rsed with this but, will see if they are willing to do anything as I’ve got time yet.

Additionally I tried parking it on a different part of the block paved drive and there, the front drops over night. Park it back where it normally goes and it takes 4 days…..

Arnott also seem better than OE (price negligible) but, can’t find anywhere other than AUTODOC to get these.

I’ll keep this updated as progress is made.


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[DSK]

UPDATE

Long story short : supplying garage offering to give me £750 which covers one strut.

They want the matter resolved ASAP so I just accepted the offer as that’s all I thought is fair originally. Just a shame punters have to go to such measures to get people to do the right thing and what I’ve always said is, used warranties are worthless and the best one is free, called the law and in this case, the consumer rights act!

I’m still going to use it as it is and see if I can source some Arnott units first but updates will be made accordingly.


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[DSK]

I need a bit of help sourcing some air struts.

I need what I believe is Arnott AS-2820 struts. I cannot find anywhere other than autodoc or one of its many online shop fronts get this from.

Does anyone have any contacts they can share where they have purchased Arnott from?

(I have ordered things like brakes, service parts without issue from AUTODOC but I’m aware that some folks have had issues and found after sales a total nightmare so I don’t fancy buying big ticket items from them).


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[mioba]

Did you try Arnotts website and look at their dealers, surely if a dealer places an order via Arnott it will get delivered to them. I doubt its an item (m)any garages will have on shelf due to the rareityof the motor, so purchased to order ot manufactured to order. Arnott look like they are clearly B2B.

 

[DSK]

Did you try Arnotts website and look at their dealers, surely if a dealer places an order via Arnott it will get delivered to them. I doubt its an item (m)any garages will have on shelf due to the rareityof the motor, so purchased to order ot manufactured to order. Arnott look like they are clearly B2B.

Yes I tried Arnott Europe who don’t answer the phone.

I called their local stockists who said they either no longer did them or only listed struts for the rear.


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[mioba]

not read the entire post, excuse my laziness, whats the story with MB struts if Arnott cant help...

 

[DSK]

Arnott are supposedly better from my research. From memory they eliminate an isolator seal which is supposedly the weak point of the OEM strut. Not fussed about price just want the ‘best’.

I get that the car is 10yrs old but it’s clean underneath and with only 50k I don’t think the OEM MB strut is built very well if it’s starting to fail with little use and a seemingly easy life.


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[Botus]

last time I looked they offer a std replacement or a posh upgrade
but I have to say the website is a mind boggling mess....

Arnott Industries | #1 Replacement Air Suspension

Arnott Industries is the global leader in aftermarket automotive air suspension. From air struts to coil conversion kits, Arnott has it all.

www.arnottindustries.com

as I own one I think I'm justified in saying anything else but airmatic would be an upgrade

Part Number: C-3271​

Arnott's premium Mercedes-Benz suspension conversion kit C-3271 for the 2007-2013 S-Class (W221 chassis) with AIRMATIC and ADS features upgraded dampers. This kit is built with front and rear monotube sport shock absorbers custom valved for Arnott to provide your vehicle with the comfort and handling S-Class owners expect. Arnott's new design features steel springs made and includes a special patented Electronic Bypass Module (EBM) (U.S. Pat. No. 9,329,917) to disarm the Airmatic system and eliminate dash panel error lights.

Features:

• CNC-machined aluminum seats
• Powder-coated steel coil springs
• Pre-assembled for easy installation
• Engineered in the USA
• Patented Electronic Bypass Module

your choice in post 29 is the posh upgrade air shocks - I expect no one on the UK knows they exist

AS-2820 is a new - not remanufactured - aftermarket air suspension strut for the front of the 2007-2013 Mercedes-Benz S-Class W221 Chassis with AIRMATIC. This replacement strut, designed and assembled in the USA, features a new custom-valved shock absorber assembled with a durable new Continental ContiTech rubber air spring sleeve. For durability, we exclude the lower isolator seal, which is subject to failure on the OE. The strut is partly protected by an aluminum can and dust baffle to keep out debris, and is assembled with heavy-duty crimping rings, seals, O-Rings and bump stop. This fully assembled air strut plugs directly into the vehicle's electronic connector and eliminates fault codes.

Features:

• New custom-valved shock absorber
• Multi-ply Continental ContiTech air spring sleeve
• Pre-assembled for easy installation
• Detailed installation manual
• Designed & assembled in the USA

 

[DSK]

Thanks Botus. I didn’t realise it’s a posh upgrade, just thought it was OE spec but built better than MB. If I get more bang for my buck with Arnott then even better. Basically I punched in my car and Arnott into Google and with a little filtering the AS2820 is what came up.

I asked Arnott if I can buy direct at extra cost on the off chance as no one seems to be offer it and they said no.

They recommended FCP Euro in the USA
(who delivered me a part without issue for the Volvo, only 2 left in the world! So I bought the other too) but I can’t find As2820 on their site. I will send them an email tomorrow.

There is partsinmotion based in Exeter which doesn’t appear to be an AUTODOC shopfront but despite several attempts to reach a human I had no joy. So discounting them too as something is not right if you can get through to a human in numerous departments all day.

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[DSK]

FCP Euro don’t stock it and won’t get it.

Partsinmotion have high reviews but it’s a trade name for automotion factors who have **** poor reviews so definitely not risking monies with this lot.

I’ll try going back to Arnott with a stiff email in a last ditch effort to see if they can pull something out of the bag.


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[phobos]

Hi thtere, sorry a bit late to the party.
Started rebuilding the suspension of my facelift W221 and having had Airmatic on my previous cars, I learenda thing or two along the way.

I choose Bilstein Airmatic struts which are the OEM for Mercedes and changed all 4. Heard really mixed reviews from Arnott and their new struts do not offer Active Damping System ( so basilly the sport / confort button will do nothing) . The refurbished ones do preserve settings, but weird mixed review and I only want to to this job once.

Airmatic system tend to lsat around 80/90k or 10 insh years, whatever comes first, as it is normally the air bladder that starts to leak ( it is rubber afterall) .

At this age, I could strongly consider doing this:

a) check the compressor with a Xentry system to make sure that is working well and generating enough pressure within a certina period of time ( Xentry has a test for this )
b) at the very least change the airmatic compressor filter
c) Check the valve block for leaks ( soapy water test)
d) change the height sensor control arms regardless --> these are cheap and make a world of difference.


Done all of the above on mine and it almost perfect. Currently channig all the lower and top contril arms, as with 12 years of use, the rubbers and ball joints are going and want a nice and confortable ride.

Let me know if you have any other queries

 

[Slartibardfast1]

FCP Euro don’t stock it and won’t get it.

Partsinmotion have high reviews but it’s a trade name for automotion factors who have **** poor reviews so definitely not risking monies with this lot.

I’ll try going back to Arnott with a stiff email in a last ditch effort to see if they can pull something out of the bag.


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Have you tried Amazon? Here's the link:

Arnott AS-2820 Front Air Strut

 

[DSK]

Hi thtere, sorry a bit late to the party.
Started rebuilding the suspension of my facelift W221 and having had Airmatic on my previous cars, I learenda thing or two along the way.

I choose Bilstein Airmatic struts which are the OEM for Mercedes and changed all 4. Heard really mixed reviews from Arnott and their new struts do not offer Active Damping System ( so basilly the sport / confort button will do nothing) . The refurbished ones do preserve settings, but weird mixed review and I only want to to this job once.

Airmatic system tend to lsat around 80/90k or 10 insh years, whatever comes first, as it is normally the air bladder that starts to leak ( it is rubber afterall) .

At this age, I could strongly consider doing this:

a) check the compressor with a Xentry system to make sure that is working well and generating enough pressure within a certina period of time ( Xentry has a test for this )
b) at the very least change the airmatic compressor filter
c) Check the valve block for leaks ( soapy water test)
d) change the height sensor control arms regardless --> these are cheap and make a world of difference.


Done all of the above on mine and it almost perfect. Currently channig all the lower and top contril arms, as with 12 years of use, the rubbers and ball joints are going and want a nice and confortable ride.

Let me know if you have any other queries

That’s interesting and thank you for sharing. I drive the car in comfort 95% of the time so want to retain all settings so happy to stick to OEM Bilstein or MB if that’s what it is abs those are readily available.

I thought Arnott was the ‘best’ from what I’d been reading.

The car was fully tested on the xentry system, leak tested etc etc and all hardware was spot on which only left the front struts with a question mark.


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[DSK]

Have you tried Amazon? Here's the link:

Arnott AS-2820 Front Air Strut

Thanks I did check a few times but it was showing as unavailable.


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