x5 E53 Retention clip for hose coupling to air spring is missing= danger?

[omodos]

Originally Posted by wpoll

i cannot see how the hose will stay attached without the retention clip - unless they used a small zip tie (as has been suggested elswhere).

Can you check the joint?

Hey Wpoll all good? long time no speak,last time was exhaust manifold issues days and turbo too! right ok follow my twisted logic and correct me if i am wrong.If you check the pics I posted you see that fella squeezing the ends of the C ish shaped retaining clip yes? squeezing on the clip causes the lets call it quick release black spring in the actual brass housing to retract/embed itself into the brass housing thus creating a flush surface, and allows it to disengage from the connection it makes to the air spring itself, so you can pull off hose....when you let go of or unpinch the black plastic retaining clip the black spring lip as mentioned in image I attached, pops out again thus I assume latching into the groove around the air springs connector in position highlighted in yellow thus locking in..and locking hose onto the spring. Sooo is that black retaining clip just a removal and install aid for the hose? Fact that I have read nearly everyone accidentally breaking clip= non removal of hose leads me to believe the thing doing the locking is that small metal clip/wire inside housing.

[wpoll]

Originally Posted by omodos

Hey Wpoll all good? long time no speak,last time was exhaust manifold issues days and turbo too! right ok follow my twisted logic and correct me if i am wrong.If you check the pics I posted you see that fella squeezing the ends of the C ish shaped retaining clip yes? squeezing on the clip causes the lets call it quick release black spring in the actual brass housing to retract/embed itself into the brass housing thus creating a flush surface, and allows it to disengage from the connection it makes to the air spring itself, so you can pull off hose....when you let go of or unpinch the black plastic retaining clip the black spring lip as mentioned in image I attached, pops out again thus I assume latching into the groove around the air springs connector in position highlighted in yellow thus locking in..and locking hose onto the spring. Sooo is that black retaining clip just a removal and install aid for the hose? Fact that I have read nearly everyone accidentally breaking clip= non removal of hose leads me to believe the thing doing the locking is that small metal clip/wire inside housing.

The images don't show the retention method clearly but what you say makes sense - the black plastic clip is not the actual retention mechanism but simply a device used to release the retention mechanism.

I don't have air suspension so I've not seen these exact couplings before - just going off existing engineering knowledge and experience - and internet images!

What is curious is how the mechanic messed this up. I'm guessing the hose was not able to be removed as they didn't understand how to release the retention mechanism - a guess backed up by their failure to install the new parts correctly also.

[omodos]

Originally Posted by wpoll

The images don't show the retention method clearly but what you say makes sense - the black plastic clip is not the actual retention mechanism but simply a device used to release the retention mechanism.

I don't have air suspension so I've not seen these exact couplings before - just going off existing engineering knowledge and experience - and internet images!

What is curious is how the mechanic messed this up. I'm guessing the hose was not able to be removed as they didn't understand how to release the retention mechanism - a guess backed up by their failure to install the new parts correctly also.

Wpoll yup indeed they either didn't know how, or that retaining clip may have simply broke when they pinched it - dings dongs in that case they could have tried slipping on the new clip from the new air spring set and release the hose that way rather than cut hose to remove old spring!... I have manged to slip on in the clip onto the coupling anyway! but still think it is for for removal of coupling and install ! in the process they lost a couple of those plastic grommets that i replaced em, and broke some of the plastic gubbins they yanked at to get to the air spring on one side (other side they did fine clip and all) man sometimes ignorance is bliss....i used an epoxy resin with a little cutout of fiberglass mosquitoe net embedded in the epoxy to add to backbone to it!looks messy but holds