yeah it should not look like that dude....

 

yeah it should not look like that dude....

Sh*t. :anger: Anyone wanna buy this Touareg???

 

Wow, what caused that?!

 

I have NO idea. I remember when I was painting my calipers, there was a tiny vertical crack, and I did not think much of it.

Now it looks like this!!!!!!

 

I recall a few good reports on the Forum about this mob....
https://www.arnottindustries.com/part_VW_Air_Suspension_Parts_yid24_pid164.html

Might be cheaper than OEM..

Stuart..

 

^^^^^^^^that is your solution right there.


Also don't forget, steel sprung vehicles need new setups by 160000 miles on factory spring and shocks. You need to do all 4 corners on shock/steel spring setups. With air suspension, you fix only the corner that's broke.

That Arnott solution just made everything super affordable I would think. All you need to do now is find a good independent and you are home free.

 

You need to do all 4 corners on shock/steel spring setups. With air suspension, you fix only the corner that's broke.

That Arnott solution just made everything super affordable I would think. All you need to do now is find a good independent and you are home free.

From the website:

"It is recommended that you should replace these front springs in pairs - Order part A-2572 to add the New Front Left Air Suspension Spring to your purchase"

Would it really be okay to have one corner this new air spring and the other the old one?

 

From the website:

"It is recommended that you should replace these front springs in pairs - Order part A-2572 to add the New Front Left Air Suspension Spring to your purchase"

Would it really be okay to have one corner this new air spring and the other the old one?

Good question. Call them, ask, report back.

The thing is though, going back to the corrosion/air suspension thread sticky, some VW dealers were replacing whole units, instead of simply replacing the air inlet connection. I don't recall them replacing the other side as well for good measure.

I wonder if Arnott is saying that their damping rates might be different over OEM, and not worth the risk of one side being oem, and other Arnott? I would ask this.

 

That looks exactly like mine a couple days before it blew out. Sounds like a shotgun. Of course, it happened while on vacation. Front end all the way down, rear end in the air.

Before.........and.........after

With tow, rental, and fix it was ~$2,500, granted that was through the dealer under my extended warranty. They had to replace the whole assembly, not just the air spring, but only the side that blew. It took a few days for the part to get there and was a painful experience but I'm glad to have had the warranty. Haven't had any issues since.

Fix it soon!

Good luck and hope this helps.

 

wow thats a FAIL, going to check all 4 corners NOW

 

Krusselm - You were lucky it didn't take out the tyre and the brake line as well. Not nice.

LOtouareg - if I were in your shoes I would not drive the car until it's fixed [yeah, I know, glass half empty noobyt here, but I don't want you to break your neck or anyone else's!]

When I last looked, the Arnott kit was about half the price of OEM so you might get two for the price of one anyway.

 

Wow, what caused that?!

+1

I'd like to know as well. I'd hate to go airborne, and gave one of those puppies blow on me upon landing. Not that I ever do, but just sayin'.

Anyone here with a theory?

 

I wonder if it is just caused over time by the stress of the bag expanding and putting pressure on the lip there? The metal got brittle and cracked after awhile?

 

Some questions for those with cracks...

Where do you guys live? How much are you going above below freezing? Does it live outside or in a heated garage? How much wet/snow/salt conditions do you experience a year? How often do you raise lower the suspension?

 

Live in Florida, purchased in Hawaii, it was originally from Connecticut. Parked outside since I've owned it (2yrs). Suspension adjusted ~10x/wk. I also have ~5 speed bumps in my neighborhood.

 

I've had mine for 5 years. Live in Oregon for 4 years. Had it in California for 1. The previous 3 were in CA too I believe. Freezes nearly never. Lots of water in Oregon and these tree huggers don't use much salt. I've frequented the mountain the past couple years in the Touareg so some snow there but not much. I rarely adjust the suspension. It'll dampen and self-level between comfort and sport, depending on my mood. I switch between those about 3x/month. When I found this crack, the suspension was in Xtra as I was taking apart the wheel well -- Related?

This has got me soo frustrated. I honestly just want to drive this thing off a cliff right now.

I'm going to talk with the dealer tomorrow, unless it's gone by then

 

-Is this a 2004 thing?
-Is this a hot climate related thing?

The facts according to my observations thus far point at those two.

FWIW, I adjust my air suspension every single day. I keep it in comfort mode the first 2 km of my morning commute on the pot hole laden rural like road, and then switch to Sport as soon as I hit the highway. Cold winters, lots of salt, and again FWIW to any newcomers and skim readers on here, I reported the first corrosion on the air nipple of the air suspension leak problem, so I don't BS.

I call them as I see them.

Someone please confirm or prove wrong my two hypotheses.

 

Very possible VWDude. Charles don't lose hope man. You just posted in another thread that you had five years of no problems. It's 8 years old and there is bound to be a few problems, but that would happen with any car that age. I get frustrated whenever something doesn't go right with mine, but when I look around at other options, nothing comes close.

 

.….........I'm going to talk with the dealer tomorrow, unless it's gone by then

I predict the dealer will want to charge you at least $2000 per corner.

Call Arnott first thing once they are back open after your Thanksgiving holiday.

 

You just posted in another thread that you had five years of no problems. It's 8 years old and there is bound to be a few problems, but that would happen with any car that age. I get frustrated whenever something doesn't go right with mine, but when I look around at other options, nothing comes close.

And it's only getting older. I'll have more info tomorrow.

I predict the dealer will want to charge you at least $2000 per corner.

Call Arnott first thing once they are back open after your Thanksgiving holiday.

I'm thinking $2k, too.

I'll see what Arnott has to say after I hear from the dealer.

That piece that cracked (kind of looks like an O ring) is that a consistent part through the years?

What is the name of the piece that is cracked?

 

I was thinking a lot of freeze thaw cycles, living outside, winter salt, and lack of use. Age, 04MY (which has been the problem child), heat?, could all be contributing factors.

That piece that cracked (kind of looks like an O ring) is that a consistent part through the years? Reminds me of the difference in the leaky nipples that you brought to everyones attention Dude.

 

Any updates?

 

I have an appointment with the dealer on Friday. They looked at the pictures and are estimating $1,350, but they need to see it in person. The part is $965 plus labor and alignment.

 

If you are ready to part with that coin, I'd spring for the Arnott deal. Your other side is bound to go too sooner or later.

I'll have two plz ☝

 

LO-

These are pics of the new spring.

 

LO-

These are pics of the new spring.

View attachment 19173

Anyone else looking at this picture who has air suspension and experiences salted roads, put a nice gob of grease around that air inlet to keep salt corrosion at bay.

 

Hmmm...looks like they changed the design a little.

 

Anyone else looking at this picture who has air suspension and experiences salted roads, put a nice gob of grease around that air inlet to keep salt corrosion at bay.

Thanks for the tip!

 

If I recall correctly, that new design is plastic sleeve, vs the older metal alloy one.

I THINK it was Yeti who confirmed this in the Air Suspension Corrosion Leak Sticky thread.

 

If I recall correctly, that new design is plastic sleeve, vs the older metal alloy one.

I THINK it was Yeti who confirmed this in the Air Suspension Corrosion Leak Sticky thread.

Yeah, mine def look different from the previous gen ones. So something different was done to improve on the issues they had before.

 

Update:

The dealer has the Touareg. They think catching it early is gonna save me at least a thousand dollars. They believe only the cracked casing (shield as they called it) needs to be replaced. They ordered the part and will know more when it arrives and they can take it all apart.

If this is true, the part is only ~$500 and with labor ~$700. I told them if it's only that much, they might as well do the 100k mile service and make it a round $1000

They have it until then. I'll keep this thread updated in case this happens to anyone else; let's hope not.