4.8 Front Air Suspension

[Ambrosius]

Thanks for the information AZ. I get mine on Monday, hopefully it will be as good as yours.

Keep us updated on how it goes with your repairs. Take pictures if you do it yourself.

[AZX54.4]

Originally Posted by Ambrosius

Thanks for the information AZ. I get mine on Monday, hopefully it will be as good as yours.

Keep us updated on how it goes with your repairs. Take pictures if you do it yourself.

I think I might have my indy do the work because I want to take the X in to have a couple other things looked over. However, if I do end up doing the work I will take pics.

[Ambrosius]

Just got my strut today. Looks like it is in good condition. No rust. The guide pin turns as you twist it, but maybe that is the way it is supposed to be.

[AZX54.4]

So, my mechanic replaced the right front air strut today and after installing it he found that it was still a little lower on the right side. He has a smoke tool to find leaks in air tight systems. It turned out that there was a small leak close to the compressor on the hose delivering air to that right front strut. Now the entire system is air tight and functioning as it should!!!

I still think it was worthwhile to replace the air strut because the front left had recently failed. I am sure this one was close behind. And it was sagging more than an inch over night sometimes.

I share this because his smoke tool made checking the system much easier. This would be a good tool to have to check the system. It feels great to know the entire front end is new on the X and should be good to go!!

[Ambrosius]

AZ

Thanks for sharing your experiences. My wife is out in Phoenix right now, but as soon as she returns I am going to work on replacing the strut on mine. (In case something goes wrong I am not stranded ) It looks like a simple process though. Should be a lot of fun.

So Arnott struts have a life time warranty so I guess if these ever go out again for you, they will just replace it for free? This beats paying $800+ labor every time one of these go out.

[AZX54.4]

Is she out here on business or a conference? I ask because my mom's business is a vendor at a nurses conference that starts tomorrow. She sells southwestern/contemporary jewelry...

Yup, they do have a lifetime warranty but that doesn't discount the labor required to get it back out. When I picked the X up i noticed that the normal ride height was much lower than before. My mechanic who I am very happy with showed me the print out from his diagnostic computer showing that all 4 corners were put back to spec. It turns out that the previous mechanic who installed the left front (a mechanic I no longer go to) had put the ride height to high. The normal ride height is now aprox 27 inches in the front and 28.5 in the rear. These measurements were taken with the car off and when I say aprox error on the lower side. As well, when I adjust the ride height it goes lower than it did before and higher than it did before.

The X tracks straight with less effort, handling feels more crisp. Basically, it feels like a BMW should. I don't think my suspension was ever right. It feels so different in a good way. Keep in mind I had all the front end bushings replaced last month. So the entire front suspension is brand new! I am excited to do some more driving tomorrow on some twisty roads and get an even better read on the new front end.

And I think you are totally correct. This doesn't seem like it is to difficult of a job to do. I chose not to do it because I wanted this mechanic to check the work the previous one did.

[Ambrosius]

No she is in town to see family. Pleasure. Who is your mechanic? Maybe when I travel to Phoenix and need any work done, I can see him.

[AZX54.4]

His name is Sam and his shop is EuroCar Center (602.994.6744).He doesn't do any advertising his shop is basically word of mouth. He mainly works on Mercedes but he has the knowledge and tools to work on everything. He has been in business for 21 years with this shop and 10 with another shop he owns in Los Angeles. His hourly rate is $90.

[BMWX5r]

Just wanted to share with you guys, I have had problem after problem with this $%^* suspension. After dumping about $3,500 into compressor, struts, module, then another compressor I looked around and found a company that has a kit that you install regular struts/springs. The kit doesn't lower the car like those other spring kits that they sell online. I am no Mechanic by any means but the guy I spoke to "Diego" actually encouraged me to do it my self. It took me most of the day, followed the instructions, but it wasnt that bad and I just have normal tools. This is the absolute best thing I could have ever done. I should have looked online before I threw away all that money at my BMW mechanic. It rides fantastic !!!!!couldnt be happier!!!! I wanted to tell you DONT waste your money on replacing the factory stuff, my guy's name is Diego and his number is 1-877-401-8028. best purchase I could have ever made for my X5.
thx
BMWX5r