New struts already?

buddah said:

I have a 99 STS 53000 miles and this morning service ride control message came up on DIC. I called cadillac and they said I needed new struts. I only have 53000 miles on car should I need struts already and if not what else could the issue be. I have some RSS codes also.

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Any dealer that makes a diagnosis over the phone without doing a thorough check of the system is one that I would definitely steer clear of. The Cadillac suspension is a very sophisticated electronically controlled system. There could be many reasons why it's throwing a code. Find a good service center and have them take a look and let us know what they come up with.

Or... you could post the DTCs.

Most times (almost every post that I have read so far anyway) Strut error codes are not caused by a strut dieing, but by one of the "dog bone" connectors that link the strut sensor to the suspension... This "dog bone" which is as big as 1/2 of a chop stick enables the sensor to tell the computer how much and how fast the suspension is moving and based on this the computer adjusts the shocks... They snap on (and snap off)

Good Luck

Well There are many many things that could make the SRC light come on. Accellerometers, Module problems, dampering valves, and ride hieght sensors all could run into a problem that would display a code and put up the SRC light. To find what exactly is putting up the light, simply go into the On Board Diagnostics (OBD) and retrieve the codes. You can put them up here and someone will tell you what they mean. To go into the OBD, you do not need any tools. Although I'm not sure how to do it on your car.

Here, scroll down to OBD-II:

http://myweb.accessus.net/~090/cadidiag.html

this should tell you how to get into your OBD.

Your struts should last about 100k-125k miles. Unless you're doing a lot of off-roading, the struts are most likely fine. I'd agree with the posts above - pull the codes and post them. The car will tell you what is wrong and the knowledgable folks on the board can help you diagnose/repair...good luck.

Pull the codes for sure... BUT CHECK THIS...

I purchased my 03 STS back in Late July... Was driving about a month later and hit a bump and BAM!!! Felt like the frame hit the ground in the front!!! That was just WRONG!!!! Well, I went to the dealer and the Tech said, he did see some leaking, so they replaced both front struts. Have NEVER had the car hit a bump that hard since... And I've run it hard, even on the streets in Newark and it was smooth. SO, Although they are supposed to last over 100K miles, YA NEVER KNOW!!!

BTW, When I bought my car it was a "Certified Pre-Owned" HA!!! But the dealer did indicate the car probably sat for a while with no use, which can cause issues, especially with front struts. Just food for thought!