DIY repair of the blocks. Don’t spend over $4000 in replacement parts when you can perform all the work for under $100.
DIY repair of the blocks. Don’t spend over $4000 in replacement parts when you can perform all the work for under $100.
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Took one of these apart today.
Thanks for your tutorial. 😉
thats correct…usually open only one at a time… let car collapse each strut as far as possible…pentosin isnt mandatory.. its simply hydralic fluid with alot of additives to make it almost NON FLAMMABLE.. these additives break down quickly causing them to coagulate throughout the system…but bear in mind why MB wants a non flammable fluid is a helluva fire would result if a hi press ABC line leak @2000-3000 PSI onto a red hot exhaust…i have an 03SL55 and i run NON Pentosin but thats me
When you say you run a gallon of iso alcohol how do you do it? do you just pour it in and open the bleed screws? any insight would be greatly appreciated
I’m not from Los Angeles, but I can tell you that almost no shop is familiar with the process and everybody will just tell you that they want to change the valve body with a new one. I can recommend you the following – go to ANY shop you like and just tell them to remove the valve body and give it to you. You or someone closer to you can clean the valve body – its not that hard and don’t need to be profi. Give them back the valve body to install it. It shouldn’t be expensive to do!
Can anyone recommend a shop that is familiar with the repair here in Los Angeles?
I can do this type of DIY myself but i’d rather pay someone in my older age 🙁
next time that happens pressurize the resevoir with a blow gun while the car is idling do it thru the dipstick snout. new pumps especially will cavitate at first start up..
Did the repair last?
Hi, i fix my car like video guide, after that everything ok but some time it happen again, especially when i drive fast in long way and long time ( 3 -4hours) when i stop overnight i see it sink one side again.
i run a gallon og isopropyl alcohol thru alot of the ones i do..after draining the residual alcohol evaporates in 30 min max of aggresssive driving
Almost every ABC prob iv ever ssen .(and ive seen alot) was caused by dirty fluid.which results from Pentosin being heated repeatedly..(and it does get HOT especially when going fast) btw pentosin is not mandatory.
almost every problem ive ever seen with ABC cars is caused by dirty fluid.. keep that in mind.. i worked at the dealership for 8 yrs until 2008 so i know what im talking about..The fluid gets worked hard and pentosin leaves deposits when heated
your car uses air instead of fluid but somewhat similar.. if u hear air leaking thats a pretty good clue that there is a problem.. just follow the noise until u find leak.. ive worked on hundreds of latemodel mbz.. honestly… hundreds and thats how we diagnosed auspension issues..end of story
theres fucking bleeder screws at each wheel for the ABC…ya might wanna play with them alittle..sometimes the pump needs a helping prime after it gets emptied.. play wut the height switch by cylcling it from full raise to full low as fast u can w engine at hi idle.. and as a last resort ive had to power up the throttle valve on the side of pump just for 5 secs tho was all it took.. onna brand new pump when i worked at dealership.. i did alot of those cars
What do you call service nipples ? Are they the same as the bleeder valves that can be seen at 1:25 on the lowest pressure line at the right of your wrist? Is it necessary to do the same pressure releasing procedure for changing the tandem pump?
I had this problem. ABC visit workshop, when the car parked after 30 min, one side sinks. I fix it. I did the rodeo flush and filter change, didn’t help. Took off the block like video, cleaned everything and still no results. The O-rings were good but not all of them. the Spring on one of mine valve was shorter than suppose to be, this cause the leak. Do not take the block off the car, just twist the valves (very hard to install it back without leaks.
What size O-rings i need to get when repairing the valve block?
my 2003 SL 500 right front suspension drop when parked I performed this service and it still sink on the passenger side front.I read a Mercedes Benz forum when they also clean the valve block like you did on video but he stretch out the springs that go on the valves and it worked great for me when I did it i didn’t notice and sink on my car but it only lasted 5 days or so ….
I just remove the one valve and stretch out the spring again and it worked fine but only for 5 days. So I guess the springs is sagging doesn’t hold good pressure .I am positive this is my problem my question is where can I buy just the springs that go on the valve only need 2 of them ??
i bought a 2006 mercedes R350 and both sides in the front drop on mine and sometimes while driving down the highway the light on the dash comes on and says car too low. but when I stop i can hear the air rushing out but i havent exactly found from where do u think its the same thing as your video please help
I followed the procedure outlined in this video 2 weeks ago on my 2004 CL55. Front passenger would drop to bottom 2 hours after parking. Had to make sure my wheels were straight! Anyway, took me about. 8 hours to remove the block, clean it, and reinstall. The car hasn’t dropped since. Even after sitting for 3 days. Saved me about $3,200.
Nice video. I read in many big MB Forums that you are supposed to replace the O-Rings aswell.
There are some available on the aftermarket, not actually made for this apllication but they will fit.
Basically to keep the ABC System Issue-Free: Install 3micron Filter!!! (STRONGLY RECOMMEND!!! + Rodeo and if neccessary renew filter again afterwards) Replace entire Fluid every 2 years, on every oil-chnage add low amounts of LECWEC.
Proven in germany – helps (if no major ABC hardware already damaged!)
Make sure there is enough fluid in the system. After i made the video, I had to do the front block 2 times. All i did was clean it thoroughly. I did not perform the rodeo. Only cycled the ride height. Ever since then it’s been fine. Its been about 5 months now.
Did the valve block on an ’02 SL500, had issue of sagging on left front or right front when sitting. When I put it back together, I tried to rodeo but of course the car was sitting on the ground in the front. Cycled the ride height multiple times with no luck… Now instead of a sag, the car just sits on the ground in the front =( I have read they are supposed to bleed themselves, but I’m starting to wonder. Codes : Too Low LF , Too Low RF , System Press. Low. Any help is appreciated.
Hey Brother did that fix your problem?? After you cleaned did ABC light went away? Thanks
2001 S55 will do this one of these days!! Thanx a lot for the video…
Well done sir. Thank you
Hey guys, this is awesome, This might be the reason on my customers car. The car was sagging on the passenger front when they brought it in. The pump was leaking fluid so we replaced the pump which the customer bought used/reman/ w/ warranty. After installation, its still not being raised. We tried all the merc procedures of turning the wheels and releasing air through the interior button on the dash. Looks like the pressure is not being sent to that same side. We tried bleeding. Any ideas?
thank you so much, i hope i can repair my Mercedes with the same problem like this. I live in Viet Nam, the price to buy 2 new suspension is about 5000$. My car have the same problem like this.
I saw this clip so many time to remember in my mind, thanks so much for your kind, i have the Mercedes S500L W220 with ABC like this. and now the suspension is the same problem in this clip.
HI,
Also, to clean valves it is not necessary to take remove the block, just twist them and they will come out easily.
Thank you so much for helpful DIY! Be careful to when installing the lines back to the aluminum block.
AWESOME VID!!! I think we may go this route. I was pricing the part today. I have to do the rear so it may be even easier to take off.