A method for detecting a malfunction of a component of a motor vehicle and/or a state change of the motor vehicle. The motor vehicle has a plurality of wheels, a plurality of active wheel suspension systems, a plurality of sensors, a control unit, an evaluation unit and a body, wherein the wheels are each fastened to the body via one of the active wheel suspension systems. The sensors capture sensor information which is used by the control unit to control the active wheel suspension systems. The sensor information is likewise used by the evaluation unit to detect the malfunction and/or the state change.

A method for estimating damping characteristics of shock absorbers in an active or semi-active suspension involves providing a reference model of a nominal relation between a road severity index related to vertical acceleration values, and the mean driving current of the control valves of the shock absorbers, acquiring respective relative acceleration or speed data of at least the front wheels of the vehicle with respect to the vehicle body, determining a value of the road severity index starting from relative acceleration or speed data of the front wheels of the vehicle with respect to the vehicle body, acquiring values representative of the mean driving current of the control valve of each shock absorber, comparing acquired value of the mean driving current with an expected value of the nominal mean driving current determined as a function of the road severity index according to the reference model, and determining a degradation condition if the acquired value does not correspond to the expected value.

A wheel support for a motor vehicle, including a main part and a track lever extending from the main part for attaching a track rod via a track rod joint, wherein the track rod joint is fixed or can be fixed to the track lever at an attachment point by a pin on one side of the track lever. A holding protrusion which covers the attachment point forms a securing means for the track rod on the wheel support. The disclosure additionally relates to a method for mounting a wheel support for a motor vehicle.

A method for operating a motor vehicle having an active roll control and an active steering system designed to map a steering-wheel setting angle predetermined by a driver of the motor vehicle in accordance with a predetermined steer response onto a steer angle of the motor vehicle. The method includes operating the active steering system in a normal operating mode having a normal steer response and upon determining an active roll control fault operating the active steering system in a fallback operating mode in accordance with an fallback steer response, the fallback steer response different from the normal steer response.

The present invention relates to a method for determining aging of a vehicle suspension arrangement (100) arranged between a frame and a wheel axle of a vehicle, said suspension arrangement (100) comprising a flexible bellows (102) for damping motions from said wheel axle, the method comprising the steps of determining a distance moved by a portion of the flexible bellows (102) when the suspension arrangement is exposed to an external load; determining a gas pressure level within said flexible bellows (102) when the portion of said flexible bellows (102) has moved said distance; determining a relationship between the determined gas pressure level within said flexible bellows and said distance moved by the portion of the flexible bellows; comparing the relationship with a predetermined threshold level; and determining that said flexible bellows is aged if a difference between the relationship and the predetermined threshold level is outside a predetermined threshold range.

A system for testing a suspension system of a vehicle includes an inertial measurement module and a suspension fault detection module. The inertial measurement module is configured to, while the vehicle is not moving, collect sensor data from one or more inertial measurement sensors for different states of the suspension system. The sensor data is indicative of inertial states of the vehicle while the suspension system is in each of the different states. The suspension fault detection module is configured to, based on the sensor data and a set of thresholds, determine whether a fault exists with the suspension system, isolate and identify the fault, and perform a countermeasure based on the detection of the fault.

A method of operating an adjustable roll stabilizer for a motor vehicle. The stabilizer has an actuator which can be rotated through a system angle about a rotational axis to apply a system torque and rotate two stabilizer sections relative to one another about the axis. The stabilizer sections are coupled at a radial distance from the axis to a respective wheel suspension, and depending on the system angle and under the external influence of movements of the wheel suspensions, twist relative to one another through a stabilizer angle. In the context of a perturbation magnitude regulation, the actuator is controlled based on the stabilizer angle determined from height levels of the wheels, by virtue of a stored relationship for the roll stabilizer and/or motor vehicle. The plausibility of the stored relationship between the wheel height levels and the stabilizer angle is checked by a model calculation.

A method of operating an adjustable roll stabilizer (1) of a motor vehicle. The adjustable roll stabilizer (1) includes an actuator (2) which can rotate relative to a rotational axis (3) in order to twist two stabilizer sections (6a, 6b) connected thereto relative to one another about the rotational axis (3). The stabilizer sections (6a, 6b) are radially spaced away from the rotational axis (3) and each is coupled to a wheel suspension (7a, 7b, 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b). The actuator (2) is controlled on the basis of a system target torque specified for the vehicle, and the specified system target torque is tested for acceptability in relation to a roll torque distribution () that is acceptable for the motor vehicle.

A method of operating an adjustable roll stabilizer (1) of a motor vehicle. The adjustable roll stabilizer (1) has an actuator (2) which can be rotated through a system angle () relative to a rotational axis (3) in order to twist two stabilizer sections (6a, 6b), connected thereto, relative to one another. The stabilizer sections (6a, 6b) are each a radial spaced away from the rotational axis (3) and each is coupled to a wheel suspension (7a, 7b, 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b). The method includes controlling the actuator with a field-orientated regulator (20) as a function of input signals which include at least a target motor torque (21), and checking the control of the actuator (2), brought about by the field-orientated regulator (20), for plausibility independently of the field-orientated regulator (20).

A vibration damper for vehicles includes a damper tube which is at least partially filled with damper medium and which has a longitudinal axis along which a piston rod is movable back and forth. A working piston is movable jointly with the piston rod, by means of which working piston the interior space of the damper tube is divided into a piston-rod-side working space and a piston-rod-remote working space. The vibration damper has a leakage indicator for the damper medium.