Rear of car dropped down

[Ivory]

Hey! Any ideas  why rear of my car has dropped/lowered down? Could both springs be dead at the same time? Both sides of the rear of the car have lowered evenly. 
Used to be able to put 2 fingers between the car and a tyre, where now I can’t get anything between them.

Edited April 2, 2022 by Ivory
Added text

[Steve Q]

I'd definitely get the car jacked up to see if a spring has snapped or shocks gone (they'll be leaking). If it's got air suspension there could be a leak in the system. 

[Magnet]

Hello Ivars,

My guess is that the car has air suspension, and your issue rests there. The chances of two rear springs snapping at the same time is highly unlikely on a conventional spring system. 
Some marques can have conventional spring systems on the front, and air on the car ( usually with estate/ Sportback) so this theory of front oK/ back low, might make sense. 
If it does have air suspension, then common issues are faulty level sensors ( but possibly unlikely in your case where two are low at same time) air leaks, or most likely - a poor compressor. 
If the latter, look up Bagpiping Andy, who specialises in manufacturing piston rings for the compressors, and/or supplying  replacement compressor.

Perhaps you could keep us informed as things develop.

Kind regards,

Gareth. 

 

[Ivory]

5 hours ago, Magnet said:

Hello Ivars,

My guess is that the car has air suspension, and your issue rests there. The chances of two rear springs snapping at the same time is highly unlikely on a conventional spring system. 
Some marques can have conventional spring systems on the front, and air on the car ( usually with estate/ Sportback) so this theory of front oK/ back low, might make sense. 
If it does have air suspension, then common issues are faulty level sensors ( but possibly unlikely in your case where two are low at same time) air leaks, or most likely - a poor compressor. 
If the latter, look up Bagpiping Andy, who specialises in manufacturing piston rings for the compressors, and/or supplying  replacement compressor.

Perhaps you could keep us informed as things develop.

Kind regards,

Gareth. 

 

A dead compressor actually sounds about right.

Do you know by any chance if A6 S-Line 2007, LeMans, 2.7L saloon come with rear air suspension? Front has a normal spring suspension but havent had a chance yet to life the car up to check the back.

[Magnet]

Sorry Ivars - don’t know. Please don’t assume it’s the compressor, get the system checked before assuming. 
Kind regards,

Gareth. 

[Ivory]

So update to my car: 

Took it to garage- both rear coil springs were dead so they changed both of them. The only thing is now- I’m pretty Sure my model, which is Le Mans, has to be lower than this, but the guy at the garage said these were the springs they gave him in the auto part shop for this model. I don’t know- googled it and it looks too high for Le Mans model. 

Edited April 8, 2022 by Ivory

[Magnet]

Hello Ivars, 

So coil springs not air then. 
The garage’s description of ‘both rear coil springs dead’ seems rather strange to me (unless you have been continuously carrying heavy loads or heavy passengers)  since in my experience coils seldom (suddenly?) develop weaknesses.  Snapped springs are certainly not uncommon, but ‘dead’ ?? 
Re. replacement being too high? 
We take it you have had the car for some time since you say ‘..used to be able…’ so you will now be experienced in assessing the new ride height against the old pre-problem height. Choosing the correct springs can be a minefield, and aftermarket suppliers can confuse, and indeed may not even cater for some variants - say the Le Mans - and yours gets lumped in with most other variants, and you end up with the garage fitting the springs their motor factors supplier lists, which may or may not be the correct ones. 
I really don’t like the comment ‘ these are the springs they gave….’ - not very convincing. 

Positive action:- you will need to Google the correct ride height for your model. The ride height will be quoted in mm. as measured form the wheel centre to the underside of the rear wing ( make sure you adjust all tyre pressures to the correct pressure, and the car is sitting on level ground). Simply compare  your actual ride height with the specified height and please let us know the variation if any. 
Kind regards,

Gareth. 

[Stevey Y]

On 4/8/2022 at 2:49 PM, Ivory said:

So update to my car: 

Took it to garage- both rear coil springs were dead so they changed both of them. The only thing is now- I’m pretty Sure my model, which is Le Mans, has to be lower than this, but the guy at the garage said these were the springs they gave him in the auto part shop for this model. I don’t know- googled it and it looks too high for Le Mans model. 

Hi coil springs take at least a couple of hundred miles to settle if its excessively high it might be they have tightened the carrier arms with the wheels hanging down, when completing this type of work you would normally put the car on a flat ramp MOT type and when the car is sitting at its normal ride height then tighten the lower arm bolt.

Steve.