After sitting unmoved for the past 3 months the rear air suspension gave up the ghost. My nearer dealer is about 10 miles away and it's booked in for next Wed. I'm just worried would I do it harm driving it in that state?
not if you take it slowly
The ride works on air bladders. An "uninflated" system, would consist of the bladder being flat, and the shocks perhaps being partially useful.
Give the dealer a call and ask for advice! My guys have been pretty good at estimating the safety aspects of the various faults with my car.
*******Cars are supposed to classify faults according to severity. The check engine can have two levels, one indicating "stop immediately!" and the other indicating "service required". You would hope the owners manual addresses these. At first, I thought my light had only one function, but it has two.
Otherwise, in the modern era, everyone owns a code reader, right ? That's what I've got. I look up the codes, and see how severe they are.
Audi and VW require more than a basic scanner, you can use VAGCOM, VCDS or some of the generic solutions made for the VAG market.
Locating the ODB connector is an easy task, as it is often located at the far left, under the steering column. Scan suspension module or scan for all fault codes and find the component that is linked to your fault codes."
What this is telling you, is the "service domains" are divided up. Cars are required to make some level of standardized response, using
*any* generic reader. That's what the first line here corresponds to.engine and emission controls (loose gas cap) <=== regular OBDII code reader air bags (isolated system) air ride suspension (isolated system) cappuccino machine (isolated system)
It's quite possible the air suspension requires a different readout device. Sometimes these consist of a USB module which you head out to your car with a laptop, plug in the USB module to laptop, connect other end to the scanner connector in the automobile driving area, and the software ($$$) provides readout codes for the auxiliary systems.
If my chariot throws an "air bag" code, I have to take that to the dealer, because I'm not wasting money on a too-specialized readout device. My OBDII scanner is for handling common faults, such as intake manifold failure, cat converter codes, loose gas cap codes (could be charcoal filter cannister cracked).
Good luck and have fun :-) You have plenty of options, and a simple phone call looks the easiest.
Paul
Safe enough, but take it slowly.
After further investigation it transpired the fuse for the compressor had blown. Replacing itsolved the immediate problem. However it appears there is a small leak in the drivers side unit so that will have to be replaced, In the meantime I'll live with the warning message, not that I'm going anywhere any time doon
IIRC, it's quite a cheap system to fix, generally. Unlike some suspension bits that can be very pricey.
I wonder how many aircon systems will fail after standing for 3 months ?
Cars are drivable without suspension, if you avoid bumpy patches. I expect the law would say you can't on public roads.
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