Hi,

I just picked up a '99 Eldorado ETCwith~60k miles. The car was imported to the UAE (where I am) from Japan. I am having a problem with the suspension:

The car will 'bottom out' going over speed bumps at ~ 10mph. To feel comfortable going over some of the bumps I basically have to stop at the top of the bump and then slide down.

I don't hear any air compressors come on when I start the car - but the car does not look low either (Is this system like the one on the Lincolns? - I used to have a Mark VIII that would totally flatten out over night). I am not sure if the suspension is the original air system or if it has been replaced. These car reports no errors. I was checking around for fuses and noticed that the 10A fuse for ELC was absent in the trunk compartment - adding a fuse did nothing.

Anyway, if anyone out there can give me some tips on diagnosing the problem, I would appreciate it. I will probably take the car to the dealership next week and have it checked out.

How do I check to see if the suspension is air or passive springs - should I be able to see the air bladders or compressors?
Is there anyway to activate/deactivate the air system? - my Mark VIII had a switch in the trunk to turn the system on/off.
Any other advice appreciated!

Thanks in advance,

John.

p.s. the other thing to note is that the car has aftermarket 18" wheels with wide, low profile tires. I wonder if this is making things worse?

 

My UAE friend I'm Bulgarian and I can contribute some help. My guess is if there was no fuse for the air suspension system then something was probably wrong with it and who ever had it pulled out the fuse just in case so nothing goes wrong because it was broken. If the car has 18" wheels and low profile tires, they would be just as big, maybe even smaller than the stock rims, which are 16" chrome with 60 profile tires. If your tires are 40 profile the whole wheel would be about 20 inches, with the stock rims and tires, they wheel is about 21 inches so that's probably not a problem. When I turn on my Eldorado, I always hear the air suspension pump going on, it's in the back right side. Maybe the problem is in the pump or wiring to it. If it's the pump you can find a good used one for maybe $50 -100 from a junkyard, but I'm not sure how many Eldorados in a junkyard you can find in the UAE. Best of luck, the problem shouldn't be too hard to fix. If it has Passive springs you'll be able to see them, and they'll usually look newer and cleaner than the rest of the things behind the wheel. BTW, I'm just curious how much does gasoline cost in the UAE.

 

Hi - thanks for the information. Gas is running at around $1.80/gallon for premium - apparently approximately double what it was a couple of years ago - but still cheap compared to the US/Europe!

 

If gas for me was $1.80 I would be leaving tiremarks on every corner.