355 Yes, another active suspension default light on thread

The default light or the fault light?

Did your mechanics look at the actuator plastic internals to see if any were broken? The technicians may have looked at the gears on top of the shock struts, but not the internals of the actuators.

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You can either send the bad units to Captain Z CNC to have them tested/repaired... or swap the front and rear actuators and when the problem returns, take the car back to the workshop to see if the faults have changed position. The frunk luggage compartment liner has to be removed. This can be fiddly. I think I would just send my actuators to Captain Z (even if the US dollar is a little high at the moment). It shouldn't take too long.

The repaired units have white plastic rings around them.

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If you are worried about "cosmetics", you can always swap them to the front at a later date.

If the actuators are ok, then you may have to have the shock struts replaced or possibly repaired (if you can find someone to do this).

Wiring defects seem to be rare. I suppose you could aways carry out restance checks between the Bilstein ECU (in the passenger footwell) and the actuators. Is your car a 2.7 or 5.2?

5.2 diagram:

https://www.dropbox.com/t/9vq3JaS6Z7HSHQIf

 

Is it F1 or gated?

Does your suspension selector have "S" or SPORT on it? Or just a graphic of a shock absorber without the "S"? What is the symbol on the light?

 

So you mean this light?

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Here is the older type switch:

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The "default" position depends on the type of switch & light you have.

 

I don't understand why you don't have a fault light on. You seem to have (possibly) two faulty rear actuators. Is your fault light bulb ok?

My car has the old type switch (no "S" or "SPORT"). I had a problem where if I selected "comfort" (the instrument panel comfort light came on normally) and the fault light came on intermittently.

With the switch in position "2", the light is supposed to come on. Is it not going off in position "1"?

It could simply be a faulty selector switch. Could you try swapping the fog and suspension switches? (Some centre console disassembly required). However, this doesn't not explain why are you are not getting a fault light.

When you turn on your sidelights or headlights, does your suspension switch icon illuminate?

 

Ah.. OK.

Perhaps the weight shift to the rear when climbing the ramp put strain on the shocks or actuators. I've had intermittent lights because of broken components in the actuators. Sometimes the plastic gears are in the right position, othertimes not. Broken gears do not always produce "hard" faults.

 

Old faults do stay in the ECU memory, but only active faults put on the light. If you change an actuator due to a fault, the light will disappear by itself. The Ferrari tool is only required for clearing the memory after an actuator change.

Maybe the gear lubrication worked for a while.

These actuators are quite fragile. I've replaced/repaired 3 on my car.

 

You have three options:

1) Take the car back to the garage for another check to see if you have one or two defects (the same as before) or different fault/s.
2) Start changing parts by yourself.
3) A combination of the above.

Since the scanner picked up the rear actuators, it makes sense to change one of those. It doesn't make sense to change other components if they are not being faulted by the ECU.

Gravity. If you have loose/broken components in the actuators, they may be moving into a position which causes more friction (or jamming) when you are climbing the ramp.

At least pull the actuators off yourself and look for loose components. Make sure that the actuators themselves are seated properly. Sometimes they look and feel ok, but need an extra push.

 

Isn't there a motion/level sensor behind the front bumper? Maybe the connection is lose or it is malfunctioning when encountering the steepness of your driveway.

EDIT: I'm wondering if your problem is really with part 62; 177149; ANTI-LIFT SENSOR; -Valid from car Ass. Nr. 30762 GS and from car Ass. Nr. 30760 GD

 

Why wasn't the acceleration sensor faulted by the ECU? The connection on the sensor runs laterally, not longitudinally, so less chance of gravity affecting the connector.

There is a rectangular metal block inside the sensor which has been known to come loose and short out components (blowing the AC fuse), but, again, why isn't it being faulted by the ECU.

 

Correction. The horizontal accelerometer plug runs laterally, but the vertical sensor plug runs longitudinally.

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Vertical sensor:

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The anti-lift sensor is for the immobiliser system.

 

Most people have trouble noticing a difference between sport and comfort even when the system is working properly.

If you're self diagnosing the system without a Ferrari diagnostic tool, all you can do is play the odds. 9 times out of 10, the actuators are faulty.... and you had fault messages saying they were faulty.

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Normally you remove the actuators to watch the internals moving (after turning on the ignition key). The motors are not under load in this situation. They are not changing the position of the shock strut gears. The motors could still be weak.

It doesn't take long to inspect the actuators yourself for peace of mind. Just don't lose the spring clip. You may have to take off the engine bay side covers (3 bolts) for better access. My cover is held on with 3.5mm allen screws. Yours may be the same or regular screws.

 

The rear shocks may be under greater load when going up the ramp. Maybe the actuators show their weakness when the actuators are under load. Or, the gears in the actuators may be loose and bind when at a larger road angle (again, this may be a weak motor showing its inability to turn the gears). The greasing has helped, but the underlying problem is still there.

Why don't you check the plugs on the ECU for security and cleanliness. This has a low difficulty rating for do-it-yourselfers. It's mounted on the floor, just in front of the passenger footwell fuse/relay panel.

 

This feature is such ... useless. The light is super annoying. If it were my car, I would fake that light out.

 

Yes. Part of the wiring between the ECU and each actuator is a position feedback circuit. If the actuator can't reach the commanded position , it should throw a fault light.