I just went to look at the 2007 Continental GTC I was interested in...One owner, mint, never rain or winter driven 80,000km on it. Just had a major service done by Bentley Toronto. Vehicle has been sitting for 6 weeks in the showroom...I turn on the car to start it for 1 second a Red Warning Flashes in the Cluster, FAILURE...SUSPENSION...Take to WORKSHOP... The message went away after a few seconds. The sales guy says probably due to just sitting around. I am going for a test drive Wednesday. Any ideas???It is sitting level and not nose or rear down.

 

I'm a self admitted layman on this, but based on my experience, I'll suggest that's common and likely not all that alarming... no doubt there's some slight leak in the air suspension system... what the sales guy said "due to just sitting around" if indeed that is the case (that the vehicle hasn't been started for days or weeks as the case may be). Figure on replacing some or all of the air shocks "someday" (maybe "someday" sooner, or "someday" later depending on how much worse it gets over time)... which would more than likely be the case regardless of the current situation. Sure, it would be better if the air suspension system was flawless, but it is an 11 year old used vehicle, and stuff like this is pretty much a given.

With that: I'll suggest the tire pressure is likely low on one or more tires as well if that aspect of the vehicle hasn't been attended for "awhile". If so, I'll suggest that similarly, does it need new tires because the existing tires loose some air over time? I offer "that depends". Even new tires generally loose some air over time (that's why you check your spare). I'll suspect most air suspension systems, even all new ones, loose some air over time. So for me, some loss of air pressure in the system is likely inevitable, so the question is "how much and how fast" is the loss? If it's just a little over many weeks of sitting, that's likely not a big deal, otherwise the air suspension air compressor would be of dubious need.

 

 

John: I believe the suspension system's air compressor is under the boot (trunk). The vacuum pump is under the front LHS wheel well. Agreed, that either singing away for a long time is suboptimal.

 

 

My advice on purchasing a used Bentley is to have a deep-level diagnostic scan performed. This type of scan goes way beyond OBDII diags and shows every error and reveals whether it itermittent or constant. If you are buying from a Bentley dealer, they use the VAS 5054 system. This scan will reveal any hidden defects. In the past, even though I paid for the scan, I have had difficulty getting Bentley to share the actual results. They will "interpret" the results, but not give you the actual computer results. That is why I bought my own VAS system.

 

Thanks for the heads up...I put this vehicle through its paces, up and down and no hissing it went up and came down easily no extended hissing.

 

Thanks for the Great information! I really put this vehicle through it's paces, up and down, nose up and nose down...No extended hissing. I just watched a video on jack mode. Thanks!

 

John:
How did the test drive go?

FWIW: It's a nasty cold (33şF) day here, snowing/raining/wind blowing/grey... basically the blues in A painted with an ugly stick... and I feel great! Just ran a few errands in my GT.

 

Fantastic...It is in my garage right now, I pulled the trigger and I am the proud owner of a GTC! I drove it today -8 dry roads and I could not resist talking her for a drive. WE are supposed to get hit with Snow on Tuesday so I think I am done driving her until the spring.