Stability Control And Brake Jobs
Automotive technology continues to evolve in several directions. While many manufacturers are concentrating on electric and hybrid technology, higher mileage, and smaller and lighter vehicles, others are focused on performance, horsepower and ever-higher top speeds.
Struts: The ‘Loaded’ Question
What can you do in 17 minutes? You can make money on those 17 minutes of billed labor or you can give up those 17 minutes per corner of a vehicle in order to sell a more profitable part that has the potential to lower the chances of a comeback and give the customer more value for the money.
GMC Terrain Alignment And Suspension
The Terrain rides on GM’s Theta platform and its alignment process is mechanically straightforward. The front suspension is a MacPherson strut design with hydraulic bushings in the lower control arms. The rear suspension is a four-link layout.
Crown Victoria Air Ride Service
From 1997 to 2011, the Crown Victoria (more commonly known as the Crown Vic) had the same optional air ride system on the surface. From the outside, the only differences that could be seen were improved air bags in 2003. Behind the scenes, Ford was improving how the compressor, solenoids and ride height sensor worked together with better control modules.
Dogtracking? Bent Frame? Understanding The Thrust Angle
The thrust angle is one of the most important diagnostic angles during an alignment.
BMW E65-E66 Air Ride Diagnostics
For the BMW 7 Series E65/E66 manufactured between 2001-’08, engineers went with an innovative rear air ride system. The Dynamic Drive system that uses active anti-roll bars to keep the vehicle level was standard on these models. Some of these vehicles have optional Electronic Dampener Control (EDC) that tunes the compression and rebound of the dampener to the movement of the wheels and body for the best possible ride.
Ride Control System Protocol
A shock absorber is designed to dampen oscillations in leaf or coil springs by enclosing a piston and rod assembly inside a cylinder filled with oil. The shell or casing generally mounts on the axle or control arm while the piston rod assembly mounts to the frame.
Air Ride Training Sponsored By Arnott Air Suspension Products Available For Viewing
In case you missed the live webinar sponsored by Arnott Air Suspension Products , you can now view the entire webinar for free at any time. This free 30-minute webinar covered how to inspect and diagnose air ride suspensions on Audi, Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen and other import nameplate vehicles. The featured presenter for this webinar was Andrew Markel,
Mercedes-Benz Hydraulic Suspension: Dos, Don’ts And Did-You-Knows
It doesn’t seem that long ago when the closest we came to any kind of active suspension on a Mercedes-Benz was the self-leveling rear suspension systems on the station wagons and 560 models (SEL sedan and the SEC coupe). Of course, there were some exceptions – European models and the 450SEL 6.9 starting in the late ’70s were available with hydraulic suspension at all four corners.
Control Arm Bushing Replacement Proper Tools And Procedures Optimize Service
Once we were able to determine where the noise was coming from and how to duplicate it, it was time for the inspection. When the vehicle was on a service lift, we saw right away that the front suspension arm bushings were leaking their hydraulic fluid.
Loaded Strut Advantages
Recommending and selling loaded strut assemblies not only makes for happier, safer and more profitable technicians, it also provides the customer with the benefit of completely new components. In addition to the strut itself, a loaded strut includes the upper strut mount, strut bumper and boot, spring seat and insulators, and coil spring.
Air Ride Diagnostics: Reservoirs And Compressors
Air-ride systems look for information like vehicle speed, ambient air temperature and ride height. From this information, a system can calculate how long the compressor should run to fill the reservoir. If it is taking too long to fill a reservoir, the air-ride module will set a code, alert the driver, and put the system in a safe mode.