I’ve never heard of someone manually inflating the shocks and then capping them off. Some people have invented manual control of the air shocks, but they never got around to releasing a kit for people to purchase. The automatic system is not complex. If the pump relay and valve block are good, your car should lift up. Those parts are not expensive. Get it fixed correctly.

 

The other alternative is to get some quality coil-over replacements, like I did with our S600.

But tusabes is right; the AIRmatic system is not that complex. Do you have an SDS setup? If not, I strongly suggest you get one if you're going to own and enjoy one of these cars.

 

I feel your pain. It is a money pit and while the system isn't overly complicated, there are a lot of failure points. Almost the only time it makes sense to own and drive these cars is when you can work on them yourself and have the tools and diag computer to do it. The chinese struts aren't all that expensive and will hold the car up with no problem, but they won't have the best ride quality and they're known to rattle/clunk. Of course, the labor involved in changing out the struts is not easy from a physical standpoint. A bit strenuous but maybe because I often do that in excessive heat and humidity here in FL.

 

And this is why the Strutmasters coil-over conversion kits are as popular as they are in the United States. If you don't want to be concerned about the air suspension anymore, I can recommend these. We have a set of Strutmasters on our 2003 S600, and they've worked very well. If you go this route, then be sure to get the version with the dashboard-computer error-canceler module.

 

Thank you much. Things have gotten decidedly wore no because some times I'm left w no option but to drive it while it's shocks are flat. I have wound care nice a week. If I don't go I may never heal this wound up. I bounced thru a pretty deep dip in the road (they're always digging up some road in Denver). And now there's something dragging from the right front bumper. Why it is I cannot tell. The cr is too low to the ground to get a floor jack under it. And it seems every mechanic I talk to is more interested in jacking me for what little cash I have rather than jacking the vehicle up and giving me an estimate. Had I any inkling what I was getting myself in for, I would've never even bought it. The sonofabitch is so beautiful and straight, tho', and runs so good w only 160k miles on it, I'd love to just recover my initial investment in it and see it off to a good home. Coil overs are certainly much cheaper, but then I'm saddled w brand new front air shocks that fit on nothing but that particular model and yr. Any one wanna swap out? I'll give yuh the brand new air shocks, so new theyve never even had air in them yet (hahaha) for the front coil overs for this yr. ACH, who am I kidding, might be time to just part it out...

 

The same front struts fit all Airmatic W220 cars from 1999 to 2005. Same with all rear struts.

Your problem (or what I am guessing your problem is, since you haven't told us much) could be as simple and cheap as a fuse or a relay, or a broken air line, or any one of several other things.

If you want to tell us VERY SPECIFICALLY and in exact detail what your symptoms are and what is going on with it, we might can help.

You can start here Airmatic - W220 S-Class Encyclopedia to learn about your system. If you don't want to do any research, or deal with telling us what is happening, all you can do is hope to find a reasonably competent, reasonably honest shop who have a reasonable amount of knowledge on the W220 and prepare for a cashectomy.

 

I’ve never heard of someone manually inflating the shocks and then capping them off. Some people have invented manual control of the air shocks, but they never got around to releasing a kit for people to purchase. The automatic system is not complex. If the pump relay and valve block are good, your car should lift up. Those parts are not expensive. Get it fixed correctly.

Nope. Screw that shit my friend of the Benz. You over simplify. Just getting even a reliable schematic for each fuse box is impossible for SClass, let alone a repair manual. I scrapped the entire air ride system and had coil over conversion kits installed. The result? I'm roaring all over Denver again. I have read so many complaints regarding the air ride system that I'm surprised Benz still puts that crap in their cars. The BMW intelliride knob; Coca-Colas new recipe; Benzs air ride system. ALL fiascos that should have never been invented in the first place.

And this is why the Strutmasters coil-over conversion kits are as popular as they are in the United States. If you don't want to be concerned about the air suspension anymore, I can recommend these. We have a set of Strutmasters on our 2003 S600, and they've worked very well. If you go this route, then be sure to get the version with the dashboard-computer error-canceler module.

I probably won't be able to get this published here. But I'm 100% all for coil overs. Best decision I ever made. Better decision still was to blow Strut masters off,then suggest to them that they change their name to "Rape Masters" due to the way the rape their customers price wise. I too went there on a recommendation. Carded the price. Then noted that three days had passed and the transaction was still pending. I got in touch w them. They told me that it was pending (now get this, one cannot make up shit like this) because, "The IP address of the card is over 400 miles from where the parts are to be delivered, therefore it is potentially fraudulent." That's right, that's what they told me. I told them, have you lost your minds? The delivery address is where I fucking live. If my cards fraudulent, shouldn't you be sending lawdogs after me? And I'll bet you that every IP address on every card in your wallet is also hundreds of miles from where you live. Do you really think I should have a visa server in my basement?" Lots of buck passing. I demanded a full refund ($999.99), and within seconds got it. Not because Rape Masters has integrity, nope. Because I would harass them several times a day and just give them the fuckin blues. Within ten minutes I'd found Unity thru AutoBuffy. They had the exact same conversion kit out and shipped within 30mins. And at half the cost, so f**k Rape Masters. Use Unity, made in Florida. Oh the Unity ones came w a 2yr warranty. Rape Masters would not honor even missing parts unless filed in 10days or less. Don't you just hate corporate greed?

And this is why the Strutmasters coil-over conversion kits are as popular as they are in the United States. If you don't want to be concerned about the air suspension anymore, I can recommend these. We have a set of Strutmasters on our 2003 S600, and they've worked very well. If you go this route, then be sure to get the version with the dashboard-computer error-canceler module.

 

Can you please link the unity conversion kit you bought ? Can’t find it for $500 I only see other sites selling for over $1200

 

Hmm...my experience with Strutmasters was very different from yours.

I too would be interested in a link to that $500 coil-over replacement set, especially if they've got a 4matic version.

EDIT: Waitasec...apparently Unity makes their coilovers in Red China, so I would question Unity's quality. And now they're shifting production from Red China to Thailand to avoid the upcoming tariffs. Thailand's better than Red China, but still....

 

There is nothing wrong with the Airmatic-system.When I bought my car almost 8 years ago,I could see that the struts had already been there for quite a while.And they are still fine.I had to change valveblock and compressor because through a broken rubberhose they got wet.So,it´s not the Airmatic,but lazy and/or stupid owners who don´t care to study this simple system and - for example - change a 2$ hose. Putting some cheapest possible chinese airstruts on the car is also very popular thing to do.

 

Well said Ari..

 

That's true, and I've run across several cars like that. The wife's 2000 S500 definitely had been let go when I bought it. That was my "education" car, for sure, and I knew that going in.

It really depends on each person's situation with his or her car. With the S600, which came with ABC, when that suspension failed catastrophically and left me stranded, I went with coil-overs that very week and didn't look back. For me, in that situation, it absolutely was the right thing to do. And I would do it again.

There are people out there who understand coil-overs and just want to enjoy their cars. Sometimes that means they're not ready to work on an air suspension. It also could mean that, for them, coil-overs are lower-maintenance and less expensive overall, if the AIRmatic system is far gone enough where it's going to cost US $1600 or more in parts to fix. That could very well be the case in some situations, especially if the car is a 4matic.

Therefore, I don't have a problem with people going with coil-overs with these cars. Remember, in at least Europe, and possibly some other places, it was a factory option. MB used to list the parts; I remember seeing it. In the end, we have to remember that it really is the owner's decision.

Now, with that being said, on occasion, even I have gotten a little testy with someone who clearly was just trolling and didn't want to do any actual work to learn about his or her car. But when we do that, we've got to be careful that it really is that sort of situation.

 

Well said cowboyt .

As always, 'Context is all' - as to whether original OE Airmatic set-up is subjectively 'better' or 'worse' than aftermarket Coilovers?

Of course: the answer to this perennial 64k Dollar Q will ultimately depend on any or all of a W220 owner's attitudes, experiences, preferences, circumstances etc. And more besides...?

In my case, for now, I'm sticking with the OE Airmatic system on my cherished & immaculate W220 - despite that irritating long-running 'mystery / intermittent' ADS Hard Damping issue (even in Comfort mode). At worst (say, 90% of the time), the damping is harsher than it should be - but tolerable. But when it mysteriously, momentarily 'softens' / Magic Carpet-wise, the ride quality is very smooth - as it should be.

That said: my Airmatic W220 still rides relatively.. smoothly (even at its 'worst'!) compared with many 'lesser' modern cars equipped with coilovers. I can live with that until or unless my 'mystery HD' problem is fixed. That's still work in progress...🤞

My only caveat is that, in terms of 'Magic Carpet' ride quality: 40 years ago (!) I owned a couple of c. 1980s era Citroen CX 2400 GTI's with (then advanced) hydro-pneumatic suspension. Their ride quality was sublimely supple, responsive & comfortable at any speed and in any driving conditions. And.. (dare I say it?..) even better than my 20-year younger & more 'advanced' Airmatic W220 at the best of times. You tell me?.

TBH, sometimes I have a hankering to re-visit my Citroen CX2400 gti experiences and buy another (restored) one after 40 years - just to enjoy their legendary 'Magic Carpet' ride again. Then again.. maybe stick with my W220 for better or worse... ?

[Warning: Non W220 Content & Images ]

Happy days & keep smiling on your / whaadever W220 Journey too.

Mark B.

 

Actually, I was referring to coil-over-equipped W220's, not ABC. At one point, those parts were listed online, and I understand that "base model" S280's had that option.

 

That´s strange.In my books(literally)Airmatic was a stantard feature.Early brochure says "All models,with the exception of S600,are supported by air-filled spring struts"and I´ve never read or heard otherwise,anywhere. This reminds me,that W140 S280 was the only model that was available with a manual gearbox.

 

FWIW, I put Touring-Tech coil overs on my S430 which were $620 on eBay. They ride fine but are a little high in the back. I don't know how anyone could claim Airmatic is reliable though. I never went more than 9 months without a failure of a pump, valve or sensor. Went through 3 pumps, 4 valves and several sensors. OEM and aftermarket, all failed. Always in winter when it was too cold to repair. The last failure was 200 miles from home and I had to drive it home on the hard stops. I thought about adding a schrader valve so I could at least pump it up in an emergency. That or carry a bottle of nitrogen for emergencies.

 

Wow thanks for suggesting to check eBay (and anliexpress and Amazon ) found a set for $459 on amazon or $350 on aliexpress!

!

 

At $350 I’m tempted to buy them even though my airmatic works fine !!

 

Pretty sweet! I wish the ones I bought had adjustable ride height. Also, BTW, they came with resistors to plug in to fool the computer. Didn't work though. I still get the error message.

 

How difficult is it to replace the airmatic with these aliexpress coilover?

 

It was not too difficult, but I am a former mechanic and do this kind of thing often. In this case it took me two days, working in the driveway. Anyone can do it. It's just nuts and bolts. I have read some posts where people talk about removing the control arms or separating ball joints. I did not have to do that as I recall. The biggest problem I had was that the front struts arrived with the upper mounts installed incorrectly (rotated 180 degrees). I had to compress the springs to correct that issue. If you encounter the same problem, you will need to buy or borrow a spring compressor. I used this one:

Amazon.com: ABN 11.5in Strut Spring Compressor Tool – Set of 2 (Pair) – Macpherson Spring Compression, 13/16in Socket 1/2in Drive : Automotive

I bought this set of struts from eBay, not AliExpress. Though I have bought other things through AliExpress and never had an issue. Best of luck to you.
Karl Heinze

 

The bottom of the front factory Airmatic struts slips over a pin sticking up from the ball joint. To remove the strut, you must loosen (almost remove) two Allen screws, one on each side of the tube. If these are still the factory installation, you will need to heat the Allen screws enough to let you break loose the thread-lock compound on the Allen screws. If you don't do this, you can break off the Allen wrench in the screw, and then you have major problems in River City.

 

Well I think I’m in luck. After reviewing posts here, I determined that the rear level sensor linkage broke. The part 2203200032, seems to be what I need but I’m not sure how to replace it.

Here is a picture of the broken part. The new part is a two piece part that adjusts and has nuts on the end.
Do I remove those broken one and bolt in the new ones? The original linkage looks like a ball and socket design. Did they change it to the new slide linkage.
How do I adjust it to the right height? Jack it up to what I think is the right height and tighten the bolt that connects the slides?

 

When this happened to me, I ended up having to take off the sensor and the link and the bracket to which the link attaches. Everything was stuck and rusty and that's the only way I could get it apart. The new link was adjustable in length and I set it to roughly the middle of the range. If you have a Star diagnostic system you can recalibrate to the correct height after it is installed. Otherwise, its trial and error.

 

Oh, that looks familiar! When that happened to the wife's 2000 S500, the rear end of the car ended up way down. Yes, those are replacement items, and last I chedked about a year ago, they were still available from MB. It's about an hour replacement, if memory serves, a slight pain in the backside, but quite doable. I preemptively did every one of our W220's (except, of course, the S600, which now has coilovers) so we wouldn't get caught like that again.

 

oh yea, the rear end is way down. Had to drive up on boards to get it high enough to get a jack under it. Do I need to remove the whole assembly, including the sensor, to be able to get those rusted nuts off?

 

I removed the whole assembly. It was just easier that way.