RATS! Caught the friggin' suspension bug!

[civdiv99]

Thought I'd share my X5's idea of humor. As in, "Hehehehehe, I think I'll inflate the left rear bag to full and piss this guy off." Talk about lookin' like a dork. Man did I get ripped on at work. Coworkers =>

When I bought it over 3 years ago, it had the "self-level inact" message shining brightly for all to see. The dealer had already replaced the air bags and height sensors (yep, shiny and new), and figured the msg was "just a reset." I liked the car but stipulated that they fix whatever the problem was with the suspension. They signed agreeing, and so did I, and bought the car. Well, they couldn't clear it. A traveling tech dude from BMW NA was there, and they said, "Hey! Look at this." They guy authorized a good-will warranty (at over 6 yrs old!) and they replaced the compressor unit with a brand new one as well. I've been peachy ever since. Ah, the ever-present reality check sets in.

I'm not worried about being able to fix it. I've got a real good idea of what it is and what to do about it. So, I just parked it and when I get around to it (maybe Sat), I'll deal with it then. And follow up in here with a whaddup when I'm done.

But in the meantime, here's some amusement for the day.

[Brad-E53]

I had trouble with the "inactive susp" message and then it progressed to leaking rear air struts.. I went ahead and ebayed some springs from a coil sprung x5 and swapped the rear bags with the new (used)..coils plus some custom perches.. and for about 75 bucks i no longer have to worry about air suspension. just some food for thought.

[Ricky Bobby]

What do you think the problem is? Module?

[civdiv99]

Not sure yet. I leveled it off, and ran around on normal ride height briefly, but very busy work-hours now so I may not get back to it right away.

Also I am pondering 3 options:

Option 1: Find and fix the problem, and then find a local shop with the ability to reset the system. Dealer is 90 miles away, and I've not been there previously, so.......not my first pick time-wise. I have not had to have anything reset before since my Carsoft prog thus far has been able to do all the modules I've been interested in, but it does not appear to access that EHC module. I will investigate this option first as is also potentially the simplest.

Option 2: I have 4 good air bags (they stayed up w/no change after a week after pulling the fuses etc. when I parked it), compressor runs quiet and pumps well, air tank (oh wait, that's an "accumulator") and solenoid valves are there and are basic in that respect, so I am also considering converting this to full driver control. The sensors, at least on the right side, are sending correct data to the lighting module and controlling the headlights (even when it was whacked out), so this would not be a big deal to me. I really am leaning this way.

I already made some rough drawings and plans to machine my own adjustable height sensor links out of aluminum (I can do this "in-house," no cost to me but materials) and thus decide for myself what "normal" is, so this option 2 with full control anyway has been gaining momentum. Sounds interesting to me.

Option 3: KYB front struts ($300 a pair), front strut mounts ($50 each or so), spring pads, and an Eibach spring set for the front, PLUS the spring mounts and Eibach spring set for the rear, plug lines and pull fuses and all done with air suspension. This option is quickest and easiest if I get annoyed with the whole thing, but it could run as much as $800 total (I already made a parts list off of rockauto.com & other sites).

The trick with options 2 and 3 is to ensure I can find someone who understands we aren't clearing any codes, we are retroactively removing the system entirely, thus EHC computer can go sit on the shelf, and the lighting module will still use the height signals for the HID purposes, etc.

I'll keep the group posted when I move in some direction.

[Brad-E53]

Originally Posted by civdiv99

I already made some rough drawings and plans to machine my own adjustable height sensor links out of aluminum (I can do this "in-house," no cost to me but materials) and thus decide for myself what "normal" is, so this option 2 with full control anyway has been gaining momentum. Sounds interesting to me.

.

i have seen someone do this to lower his and it worked out well for him.