Which Airmatic struts are better for your AMG & Mercedes? Arnott vs Bilstein
The Airmatic suspension system is a great feature found on many AMG and Mercedes. It allows you to raise the height of the vehicle in the front and rear by the press of a button for increased ground clearance. It's a pretty complex self-leveling system that was intricately designed to always adapt and stay level no matter how many passengers or how much cargo the vehicle is carrying. The Airmatic struts are self-dampening and can quickly adjust to the many different road conditions you experience while driving on and off the race track. Both the dampening and stiffness of the Airmatic struts can also be manually adjusted from inside the vehicle, to drastically change the handling characteristics. Drivers have the ability to enjoy a comfortable luxurious ride, which Mercedes are traditionally known for. But at the press of a button you can adjust the suspension to be stiffer, to significantly reduce the body roll of the vehicle for a night at the track or a weekend run through the canyons. It's the best of both worlds and why the Airmatic system is used in so many AMG and Mercedes models.
Although this system is great with it's adjustable features, it's also commonly known to fail and deflate the struts on all Airmatic equipped vehicles at some given point. Unfortunately it's not a recall item and is considered part of regular maintenance. This can be an expensive repair and nobody wants to pay for the same thing twice. In this video AMG Doctor shows you why we prefer to use the Airmatic struts manufactured by Bilstein instead of the cheaper alternative manufactured by Arnott. We still offer all of our customers both options when repairing your Airmatic suspension, but we want to show you the main difference between the two so you don't have to spend twice as much money in the long run.