brighton_4wd Posted July 9, 2010 Share Posted July 9, 2010 Hi people, My brother bought a cheap legacy as a run around today over the net. So we did not really know what to expect until we got to the car. Its a low mileage import, runs and drive very nice & smoothly without any knocks or rattles. I saw on wiki that it features a Bosch air suspension setup. My question lies in a problem I have found with the car. If you turn the ignition, it sounds like the front left compressor turns on and just hums away. Stops after a while for a period of time and then starts again for a little while. I am thinking maybe that air shock is leaking and the car is trying to maintain pressure. But not owning or having any knowledge of these cars; I would like some advice from owners etc. When i drove the car on the way home, I was cruising at between 70-80 mph at 2-2.5k! I am pretty suprised how smooth and comfortable the ride is. Would like to fix this problem asap and maintain the car. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Platinum_Racing Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 The air shocks do tend to develop leaks over time. Each strut has its own compressor, making them extremely costly to replace. Due to the frequency of these shocks failing, finding them at a junkyard is both risky and unlikely. If I were you, I'd swap them for a regular set of struts/springs/hats from a junkyard then maybe replace the actual strut itself as money allows. It would probably cost the less money to buy all 4 regular struts/springs/hats at a junkyard as it would to buy a single air strut brand new. Other than that, these are nice cars. They have their quirks but from a reliability standpoint these are almost indestructible. Its not uncommon to see an EJ22 powered Legacy reach 300,000+ miles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ehsnils Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 Interesting - I did have air suspension on my old XT from '86 and it was a really nice ride. The struts are expensive, but the comfort is good. And you can load the car as much as you like and still get a nice ride. In any case the XT I had did only have one compressor and then a set of valves to distribute the air to the different struts. I'm a bit surprised that they did change to a multiple compressor setup. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sqc151 Posted July 10, 2010 Share Posted July 10, 2010 i had a 93 with airbags, does the compressor run with the switch off?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brighton_4wd Posted July 10, 2010 Author Share Posted July 10, 2010 Thanks for the info people. Considering it has been bought as a cheap run around; i very much doubt we will replace the strut. Maybe I will try and find it & try a cheap fix; if it got worst. But until then its fine. The car has low mileage and drives very well so it shows really how good it is. As for the ride quality; very smooth and comfortable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ehsnils Posted July 11, 2010 Share Posted July 11, 2010 If you can figure out which strut you may try a bicycle repair patch. Soap water may be your friend there. Spray it on and see if you get bubbles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Legacy Wagon Posted July 12, 2010 Share Posted July 12, 2010 20thCB's...nice. How many miles are on it? Just curious. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brighton_4wd Posted July 14, 2010 Author Share Posted July 14, 2010 50k mileage. It was imported by a scrap dealer to break for parts. It just lay in their yard for 8 years, the only thing they took out was the front and rear fog lights & switch. The car went for a MOT yesterday and passed! We had to get a new front number plate, rear fog light to pass which we done. MOT is a UK vehicle inspection thing it needs to pass in order to be on the road; compulsary once a year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Legacy Wagon Posted July 15, 2010 Share Posted July 15, 2010 Ahh, I see. Congratulations! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ehsnils Posted July 21, 2010 Share Posted July 21, 2010 Since you live in the UK you may even consider importing other cars from Japan. A few year old cars in good shape are cheap. Very cheap compared to many other markets. My friend got a '94 Miata from Japan via the UK to Sweden for about half the market price for an used one in Sweden. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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