Wrecked the Conni

Well,
The unthinkable happened last night. I was on the expressway in Tulsa when it was raining and I lost control of the Continental and spun around about 300 degrees and hit the concrete divider at a backwards angle going about 55 MPH. I had to sit for about 15 minutes till a police officer showed up till I could get out, seeing as how i was facing the wrong way hanging out into the fast lane, and the images in my mind of my trunk being pushed in filled my head. When the cop finally arrived to stop traffic I was amazed at just how little damage there was. The back passenger wheel is cracked, and kind of bent in, I think something on the suspension in bent or broken, and theres just kind of scrapes, dents and rub marks along the back door and fender. I know if I'd been in my Beretta I would have been seriously injured. I hit the wall hard enough to launch my glasses of my head and into the back window, and for my sunroof cover to come completely open (and its pretty hard to open). So a testament to the survivability of our Conni's, I hope mines back on the road shortly! Chris

RE: Wrecked the Conni

Glad to hear your okay! That's why i drive a big car. I'd hate to have anything happen to my car, but if it did, i'd hate to have anything happen to me or my passengers.

At least it doesn't sound like too much damage. If you're insured, it should be taken care of for you. Good luck! Keep an eye on the body shop and the insurance company, some times you have to make a little noise for them to take care of you like they should.

RE: Wrecked the Conni

See thats the bad thing, no comprehensive insurance, so it's all on me. I'll post how much the repairs are in case anyone gets any similar damage. I just hope it's driveable again, cause after driving the Lincoln for 4 months, the Beretta is like a rattly go-kart.

RE: Wrecked the Conni

OUCH! Sorry to hear about your "accident". Glad to hear you are OK. I understand how you feel about your Conni and hope ya get it back on the road soon. Keep us posted.

RE: Wrecked the Conni

Sorry to hear about your accident. It is a good thing that you are not injured. Good luck fixing your Lincoln.

Alexander
President
Lincolns of Distinction

RE: Wrecked the Conni

Okay,
So I got it all fixed (mechanically at least, it still looks a little banged up). It came out to $917 to replace 2 wheels, and some pieces in the back suspension that were bent. It drives just as well, the only thing is, now when i go out to the car in the morning its sitting lower in the back than it usually does. Apparently the car is not susposed to raise up when you turn the car on, that means theres a leak somewhere? Its always done this to some extent, like I can hear the compressor for like 3 seconds when I turn the car on, but I thought it was supposed to do that? My guess, since it sits equally low on both sides that the leak is not in one of the airbags, but in a hose after the compressor, but I have no idea. Any suggestions?

RE: Wrecked the Conni

well the compressor is supposed to come on when you start the car. But if it sits low it could be one of several things, most likely it would be a faulty rear air bag, or it could be a hight sensor that got "relocated" during the accident.

RE: Wrecked the Conni

How low are you talking? An inch, or is it on the ground?
Each air spring has a solenoid on it that opens to let air in or out and closes when the car is at trim height. When they're closed, you could cut the lines and air wouldn't come out of the bags (in theory). You can check to see if the bags are leaking easily. When you park the car for the night, turn the air suspension switch off. This will "lock" the air springs closed. If one or both are low in the morning, they're leaking. No doubt.
I don't think that's your problem, though. If they were leaking, when you fired the car up the compressor would run longer than normal to refill them. It's more likely the height sensor is out of adjustment. There's one on each side on the front, but only one for the rear.
I'm glad to see she's back on the road. I hope this helps.

RE: Wrecked the Conni

Okay, So I turned the suspension off last night before I went to bed, and this morning it was still sitting low. And when I say low I mean the tires touching the fenders. So is one or both of the bags leaking? It doesn't make sense to me that the wreck would cause them to leak, it seems like it would either do nothing or just destroy them, it seems like a leak would be the fault of a small hole? When the tow truck guy put it on the flatbed, he turned off the suspension too, I think so it wouldn't damage it when he tightened it down. I have no I idea, any more suggestions? Thanks alot too, you guys are being a great help, I've never been on a board where people seem to be so knowledgable about their cars. Chris

RE: Wrecked the Conni

Sounds like a leak. It could be a small hole in the bag, or it could be a leaky o ring at the solenoid. It could just be a coincidence that it showed up after the accident.

RE: Wrecked the Conni

The Poly portion of the air spring is bonded to the metal portion of the strut and often this seam will tear slightly. Don't think of a pinhole when you think of this leak. Imagine a glued seam separating.

RE: Wrecked the Conni

I've reread your postings and realized I'm making assumptions based on what you're NOT saying:
1. The car sits level and at trim height when you're driving.
2. The rear doesn't drop lower in a short period of time after you park it; it takes hours for the rear to fall.
3. When you turned the suspension switch back on and started the car the other day, the rear lifted back up. It may have taken a minute or more, but it did rise to trim height.
Am I correct?

By the way, Chris, I apologize for lying to you in my first post. Most air suspension systems have only one sensor in the rear, but '97 and up Continentals do have two!

RE: Wrecked the Conni

Frank,
Yeah, Your totally right on all the assumptions. Sorry I wasn't clear enough. It did come right back up when I turned the suspension back on, it only took like, I'd say, maybe 15-30 seconds. And it sits low on both sides, but I think it is sitting slightly lower on the back passenger side (the side that was damaged), but it still goes really low on the driver side too. So you think I need a new airbag, or two? Chris

RE: Wrecked the Conni

Let's use a specialized diagnostic tool: soap. Mix dish liquid and water in a spray bottle, lift the car up (Turn off the suspension!)
and spray as much of the spring and strut as you can. Wait a few minutes and look for bubbles or foam, particularily around the solenoids. They're on the front side of the struts, visible through the wheelwell. The small plastic air hose and two wires go to them.
A lot of the pressurized portion of the air spring/strut is inaccessable, so if you don't see bubbles, that DOESN'T prove the springs are NOT leaking, but if you do...
Did you pay out of pocket for these repairs or go through insurance? I've seen things like this claimed as consequential damage.
I hate being the bearer of bad news. You say one side drops further than the other? Replace that one only and there's a chance that the other side drops because it has to support all the rear weight by itself.
My fingers are crossed for you. Good luck.

RE: Wrecked the Conni

Frank,
Thanks, I live in an apartment, so it's gonna be a day or two till I can get around to getting the car jacked up, but thanks alot for the help. I'll respond back after I do the test. Chris

PS- no comprehensive insurance, I'm a poor college student who's apparently about to get alot poorer.

RE: Wrecked the Conni

Okay,
Well, I have yet to get around to lifting the car and seeing where the leak is coming from. But, for like the last 3 days, the car has not sagged at all, even when left to sit for over 12 hours (used to be noticeable after 8-10), so I am going to not mess with it, keep my fingers crossed, and hope whatever it was some sort of glitch from the wreck that has fixed itself::roll:: Not very realistic, I know, but just hoping its fixed itslef it alot cheaper than trying to figure it out and messing something else up. Chris

RE: Wrecked the Conni

Hi, Chris!
I suppose it's possible a solenoid got jarred out of position and let a little air past its o-ring and it's worked itself back. ...or something like that... But really, if it stays OK, that would be great. A free fix is the best fix.

RE: Wrecked the Conni

[div class="dcquote"][strong]Quote[/strong]
Glad to hear your okay! That's why i drive a big car. I'd hate to have anything happen to my car, but if it did, i'd hate to have anything happen to me or my passengers.[/div]

Exactly. Considering that our Marks weigh more than a Grand Cherokee but have the handling ability of a car, I feel very safe in mine.

A friend of mine saw an early 90s Town Car spin out in snowy weather and hit a concrete barrier at 50+ mph. It looked pretty banged up (he took some pictures with his camera phone), but the driver was completely uninjured.

The other day I saw a Ranger get T-boned by a Neon at about 40 mph. It was the Ranger guy's fault, he pulled out in front of the car. He wasn't hurt, he was able to pull into a parking lot and help out. The Neon had to be pushed out of the road, and the ambulance crew carried its driver off in a stretcher. Small cars suck.