Ouch!

 

That looks painful and expensive!

 

Yeah, tell me about it. It looks like the jagged edge even punctured the bag as a final insult to injury.

Oh, here's a shot of how low the vehicle is sitting now.

 

That's a new one. Most have just been fitting issues at the supply line. I would think the bladder blew out in the shock then exploded everything around it. I don't know if it is rebuildable or you replace the whole shock. You will have to find that one out at the dealer.

 

Haha, it is a new one. I was very critical of the air suspension when researching the vehicle, and made sure to look into all the known issues and fixes. Overall it seemed to be a pretty reliable system, and I was confident enough to put my fears aside and get a Touareg with air. And two weeks later... this.

 

Ouch.
Well, at least you know it can be repaired.
Another fellow on this board is parting out a Touareg...asking 400.00 for an air canister...new ones are about 1600.

 

Yeah, and it least it didn't happen when I was going 90.... thank you very much for that heads up btw, I was just checking ebay and such and there isn't much out there.

 

WOW...I guess the upside is that it happened while parked. let us know how it goes.

 

as someone who also just 3 weeks ago bought a 07 V8 with Air, that's damn scary.

please let us know how things progress and repair costs, do you have extended warranty?

 

Here's a little bit of an update: The bag definitely exploded/ruptured and caused the destruction of the strut. I didn't talk to the tech, so at this point I don't know why or how. They're never seen or heard of this happening before. I'm very interested in the why and how, for obvious safety reasons, and I'm sure others here are as well.

The good news: Nothing else was damaged, so the fix is to replace the strut and perform an alignment. ~$2,000 for parts and labor, about what I expected. I might buy the part used, I will try to make the decision today. New = $1,600 or used = $600. On other hand, I'm not sure if this is a component of the vehicle I want to pinch pennies on. Any advice?

 

My thoughts are that this is the first anyone has heard of this happening, I'd spend $600 on a used one. I'm sure it would be no better or worse than the other 3 that are on the vehicle right now.

 

Undecided Now?

Gee, sorry for your mishap here, I really dont know if its wise to purchase one of these vehicles knowing all the things going wrong with them. Considering buying 2011, maybe I should stay with the American side of SUVS

 

Gee, sorry for your mishap here, I really dont know if its wise to purchase one of these vehicles knowing all the things going wrong with them. Considering buying 2011, maybe I should stay with the American side of SUVS

I guess you have never seen american made lincolns drive around with their tailend on the pavement:-D

 

And $2300 later...

 

Did you see my thread a few weeks ago, mine a small split in the top of the canister area, within a week it almost went around the whole aluminum part.

Same here $2300 later its just like yours, silver now instead of black. Total cost to me $100.00 thank god for that warranty I bought

 

guys, my treg with 160K just had the same problem. front right air bag and canister exploded at 70mph but the only thing that happened was the front right corner dropped and there was no loss of control.

My question: with what you know now what is my best repair alternative, replace the shock assembly with a used one or new; fix the shock with a new canister and bag?

 

There's a company that makes replaceable air assemblies for the Touareg;

https://www.arnottindustries.com/

I think a few people have used them here, perhaps they'll chime in.

 

Is this only on the air suspension model or happens to all models?

 

You have to have air suspsnion for your air suspension strut to crack.

guys, my treg with 160K just had the same problem. front right air bag and canister exploded at 70mph but the only thing that happened was the front right corner dropped and there was no loss of control.

I replaced my strut after it started cracking but before it blew. Here's what happened to me:

http://www.clubtouareg.com/forums/f44/air-suspension-cracking-80910.html

My question: with what you know now what is my best repair alternative, replace the shock assembly with a used one or new; fix the shock with a new canister and bag?

The dealer tried and was not able to replace just the canister; the entire assembly must be replaced. People suggested Arnott to me. I didn't go with them, but maybe next time around.

 

I know it is not a matter of if but when. When it is time four Arnott air springs are going in. I avoid dealerships like I prefer to avoid the Taliban.

Thankfully with some searching you can find more robust AND more economical solutions for a fixable but not a bad egg. Gruven intake links, Arnott springs, Vag-com not paying the dealer to troubleshoot... etc.

If you want low maintenance reliability get a base model Tacoma or runner 4x4. However if you do your homework, have some skills and properly equip yourself to DIY these things are not too bad. I'd rather pay cash for a low mileage egg and then spend the $90 on gruven intake arms, $600 on a valve body and when needed $1600 or so on the Arnott springs than make payments on a new $40k plus vehicle.

I love my egg but I know the more complicated a vehicle is the more you need to watch things and change out parts. We know the problem areas and have solutions. If the rubber bags start looking like they are drying out or the aluminum has a hairline crack I recommend ordering the Arnott parts and getting ahead of things.

 

thanks to all, I will call Arnott and see if I can install their bags without the aluminum canister that cracked. if I can do that then I will replace the set. if not, I will buy a used OEM complete strut.

 

Update, I called Arnott and they said that you don't need the aluminum canister so I order the set of air springs. I will let you guys know in a week the results of the install. once again thank you for the valuable feedback.

 

Rudy Arnot has a nify .PDF files on how to file on how to install the springs.

Rear
https://www.arnottindustries.com/file.asp?Manual=TRUE&ProductID=678&Size=SMALL

Right front
https://www.arnottindustries.com/ftpManual/A-2571 RR Web.pdf

Left front
https://www.arnottindustries.com/ftpManual/A-2571 RR Web.pdf

You might want to find replacement struts w/o springs and put in new while you are in there ?

 

Rudy Arnot has a nify .PDF files on how to file on how to install the springs.

Rear
https://www.arnottindustries.com/file.asp?Manual=TRUE&ProductID=678&Size=SMALL

Right front
https://www.arnottindustries.com/ftpManual/A-2571 RR Web.pdf

Left front
https://www.arnottindustries.com/ftpManual/A-2571 RR Web.pdf

You might want to find replacement struts w/o springs and put in new while you are in there ?

I would definately inspect or most likely replace the shock (strut) parts as they are no different in operation to a normal shock with springs instead of air bags to carry the weight.
Not sure what milage you have but i would bet anything over 60,000 they are tired and over 80,000 just plain stuffed.
You can get them rebuilt at a reduced cost compared to the Est $800 ea VW want.

regards
Drag

 

thanks for the links, I printed the Right side but I did not notice any difference in the Left side. I also looked for new struts but no one has them available. at least no one has them for less than $900 each or so...that is insane.

Does anyone know of a strut replacement for a reasonable price?

 

What I would do is look at the sachs part numbers on the strut and search by that or find a shock shop that can rebuild a sachs damper.

No way they are worth $900 a crack with out springs.. Anything more than $150 each is a rip off considering the non air suspension struts are like $61

 

What I would do is look at the sachs part numbers on the strut and search by that or find a shock shop that can rebuild a sachs damper.

No way they are worth $900 a crack with out springs.. Anything more than $150 each is a rip off considering the non air suspension struts are like $61

I have searched for hours trying to find a supplier for the shock absorber part itself( used sach# and by description) and cannot find any one but genuine suppliers for the air shock version.
I have found a company in Aust that will rebuild the items for about $400 ea (save 50% on each shock or 2 for one).
They are a more complicated than a normal shock as the have the electrically controlled valve built into the shock so i guess $400 is reasonable.

regards
Drag

 

I know a few companies that do Sachs bike shocks and a couple that rebuild and re valve car shocks for SCCA guys.

If you could PM the sachs part#s I can see if anyone I know on the west coast can refresh these.

So long as the electronic valve is not fried it should be about $100 to rebuild. I sent my friends adjustable Bilstein shocks for his Ferrari in and they rebuilt them for $100 each.

No custom revalving here. Disassemble, clean, assemble with new o-rings, new seals, new shock oil and new nitrogen. Way too easy to charge $400 each.. $400 a set is fair.

 

Also remember a shock could be fine at 100,000 miles or all out junk at 60,000 miles. Its all about heat and contamination. A mild climate, mild mannered driven on smooth roads touareg could hit 100k with good shocks. In Minnesota the shocks would be contaminated and corroded before 60k. Someone running dirt roads in the Mojave desert would kill them with heat before 60k.

Put in the Arnotts and reinstall the shocks for now.

Someone please send me the sachs part numbers.

 

Also remember a shock could be fine at 100,000 miles or all out junk at 60,000 miles. Its all about heat and contamination. A mild climate, mild mannered driven on smooth roads touareg could hit 100k with good shocks. In Minnesota the shocks would be contaminated and corroded before 60k. Someone running dirt roads in the Mojave desert would kill them with heat before 60k.

Put in the Arnotts and reinstall the shocks for now.

Someone please send me the sachs part numbers.

I will send it

 

My Treg has 160K, I know my struts need rebuilt but where? who? how much? thanks for trying to find out there questions.

 

My Treg has 160K, I know my struts need rebuilt but where? who? how much? thanks for trying to find out there questions.

Just to be picky technically they are a shock not a strut, that comes from a different type of suspension setup.

regards
Drag

 

Googling, I think Bilstein's rebuild centre is at Poway which seems to be about 22 miles from San Diego.

They probably won't rebuild other makes but they may be able to point you in the right direction towards someone who can.

They may even do aftermarket shocks.

Anyway, worth a try perhaps so the contact details are here:

Contact

Here's Sachs US too:

http://www.zf.com/na/content/en/uni...pension_sachs_us/car_shock_absorbers_sachs_us/car_shock_absorbers_sachs_us.html

https://www.zf.com/na/content/en/united_states/sachs_us/meta_sachs_us/contact_sachs_us_form.html

Just for interest:

http://www.off-road.com/trucks-4x4/tech/rebuilding-your-offroad-shocks-52097.html