Was searing through the forums didn't see much information on this. I presume the air struts are the same OEM for all Continentals from 04-10? Anyone have a feeling how long they typically last before they leak? Is it more of a time thing due to the weight of vehicle or is it more of how much it is driven?

Thanks

 

I think the answer is the same as how long is a piece of sring? Some people have had them start leaking as low as 20k and others seem to last forever. My own car is an early 2005 with 72k and is still on i assume its original Bentley air stuts, when i removed them a while ago to do a steering rack change I'm pretty sure they had never been off before you just get a feel for these things. As long as you go into Continental ownership with your eyes open ( and perhaps wallet! if you have to use a workshop for all your maintenance ) you are looking a 2009 car, despite being a Bentley it's 16 years old and will have 16 year old car problems, just enjoy the ride while you can, you are after all a long time dead.

 

Thanks, yea it's a crapshoot, it's weird why there is such a large variance regarding mileage and airstrut issues.

 

It seems the regularly used cars have much less problems (with struts especially) than the cars that spend a lot of time sitting/low mileage cars.

 

Definitely this seems to be the case, like anything mechanical regular normal use is better that being sat still, even in a central heated garage, these cars seem to suffer worse strangely. Use it or loose it is never a more apt moto.

 

My '09 had a slow leak at about 22K and later my '16 failed at 30K.

 

Seems to be the case. Mine has 146k miles on it now and AFAIK it's on its original struts. No leaks whatsoever. It's been daily driven all its life. Shocks are getting ever so slightly soft, which is understandable at this mileage.

 

Wow that's wild 146k miles on original struts! What vehicle model and year you have?

 

2009 FS Speed. Exceptionally maintained all the way from new. Now that I'm moving and a larger garage can't probably be built until next year (I hate red tape) it's likely that it won't be garaged all the time next winter, first time in its history.