SF Allroad

The left front air spring on my 01 AR has an intermittent leak on the bottom inside of the bag. It only leaks when the car is in 1 or 2 position. I learned from an Audi tech that these bags can develop cracks on the inside of the bag. The airbag is like a donut that folds into itself as the bag deflates. A crack can develop that only leaks when the bag is in a certain position. This explains why the bag will hold air just fine in levels 3 or 4 and in position 2 if it has been in 3 or 4 prior. The bag fill up, rolls down, and seals up the crack. This is a real annoyance, and the danger is that the crack will open up at some point where it will not seal itself no matter how much air is in the bag and how much it is extended. The other problem is that the leak drains the air reservoir, and the air pump can overheat trying to fill everything back up. There is a temperature sensor that cuts off the pump if it gets too hot, and then the front suspension will completely collapse because the valves for both air bags will open trying to level themselves and all of the air will leak out of the defective bag. This is why the car will have both struts down to their stops sometimes.

Unfortunately, a replacement spring is $300+ and labor.

Looks like I have my work cut out for me next week.

moto-one

Sound like you do, but shouldn't be to tough to work out.

RMcQ

the worst kinds of problems are those that can't be pinpointed. Buckle down and fix that bad boy and all will be right with the world again.