Front diffuser damage

[golfski]

My wife is not used to driving such a low car and has a bad track record of hitting immoveable objects when negotiating tight spaces. She has been making an effort to pay attention, but today I backed out of a parking space that she parked in and felt the front of the car lower off the parking spot stopper (curb bolted to ground) as I backed out. There is obviously some scraping on the diffuser underneath (doesn't look to be the first time ) but nothing else wrong that I can tell. Is there anything that could be damaged inside the diffuser or that I am not noticing? I am most worried of the stress it creates on the bumper and front of the car, since it seemed like it lifted the car over the curb and was resting on it.

 

[MoeMistry]

My wife is not used to driving such a low car and has a bad track record of hitting immoveable objects when negotiating tight spaces. She has been making an effort to pay attention, but today I backed out of a parking space that she parked in and felt the front of the car lower off the parking spot stopper (curb bolted to ground) as I backed out. There is obviously some scraping on the diffuser underneath (doesn't look to be the first time ) but nothing else wrong that I can tell. Is there anything that could be damaged inside the diffuser or that I am not noticing? I am most worried of the stress it creates on the bumper and front of the car, since it seemed like it lifted the car over the curb and was resting on it.

Depending on how old your MS is, there's either a foam molded piece inside the diffuser that is detachable, or one that is semi-fixed in there. Either way, nothing noteworthy tha can be damaged.

If you have the air suspension, just have her raise it prior to parking. That should give some needed clearance.

 

[NickM]

Depending on how old your MS is, there's either a foam molded piece inside the diffuser that is detachable, or one that is semi-fixed in there. Either way, nothing noteworthy tha can be damaged.

If you have the air suspension, just have her raise it prior to parking. That should give some needed clearance.

That might actually be a bad idea, and could be what caused the problem the original post described. Unless I'm mistaken, after the car is parked, the air suspension turns off and the car lowers back down again. Thus, if the front bumper is on top of a curb, it will lower down to rest on the curb, and then when you return and back the car out it will scrape. (This could be mitigated by raising the suspension again before you back out, but this seems like it would be a bit of a pain and might not be easy to remember.)

 

[MoeMistry]

That might actually be a bad idea, and could be what caused the problem the original post described. Unless I'm mistaken, after the car is parked, the air suspension turns off and the car lowers back down again. Thus, if the front bumper is on top of a curb, it will lower down to rest on the curb, and then when you return and back the car out it will scrape. (This could be mitigated by raising the suspension again before you back out, but this seems like it would be a bit of a pain and might not be easy to remember.)

I didn't know that's what happens when suspension rests. Before we had some race ramps, we use to raise suspension to do clear bras...it's stayed on highest setting for hours. It's been a while since we've done it that way, so a software update might have changed that behavior.

The other option might be to raise it and keep it in tow mode. I assume it won't settle back down, but not 100% sure.

The ultimate fix might just be do come short of any obstruction. IMHO, the sound or scrape or slight bump should not be your sign that you've parked correctly. Just come short and get out and see how far you are. After a few times, you should get familiar with the distance and gauge it correctly without getting out.

 

[artsci]

My wife is not used to driving such a low car and has a bad track record of hitting immoveable objects when negotiating tight spaces. She has been making an effort to pay attention, but today I backed out of a parking space that she parked in and felt the front of the car lower off the parking spot stopper (curb bolted to ground) as I backed out. There is obviously some scraping on the diffuser underneath (doesn't look to be the first time ) but nothing else wrong that I can tell. Is there anything that could be damaged inside the diffuser or that I am not noticing? I am most worried of the stress it creates on the bumper and front of the car, since it seemed like it lifted the car over the curb and was resting on it.

You need a front camera

 

[Gizmotoy]

I didn't know that's what happens when suspension rests. Before we had some race ramps, we use to raise suspension to do clear bras...it's stayed on highest setting for hours. It's been a while since we've done it that way, so a software update might have changed that behavior.

I believe that's the intended behavior, but for whatever reason some people noticed that their cars settled slightly. So they'd raise it up, park over a curb, and then the suspension would settle a bit. They'd get back in the car and attempt to drive away, only to have their front bumper cover ripped off. There's a couple threads about it around.

I wouldn't use the air to park over a curb unless I couldn't help it.

 

[yobigd20]

The air suspension doesn't "lower" back down to normal suspension level when parked. It "levels" itself at its current height. There's a big difference.

 

[golfski]

You need a front camera

I definitely do! I have seen your mods and definitely using it as inspiration for the mods that I want to tackle myself - but I'm worried what I might mess up I'm hoping to do the front camera, rear entertainment (like DrTaras), aftermarket rearview w/homelink and (I didn't get the tech package) backseat cam to keep an eye on the kiddos. I'm just nervous DIY'ing such an expensive car! Does your kit work on a non-tech package car? I have read in other un-related threads that newer cars have removed 12V power from various areas (trunk, microphone) and I know I have a different wiring harness than tech cars.

Thanks everyone for the info, I don't have air suspension, just a wife that is not used to driving such a long car. She said she didn't hear/notice anything while parking, but when I backed us out of the spot, I felt the top end lower/come down but did not hear any crunching. I was mainly concerned with the stress that puts on the front bumper and the frame. Any other car I have owned, I have (sadly) used the method of waiting until I 'bump' something to know when I've completed the task