hey guys I'm a little new to the forum, I have a problem. I just picked up a 1996 bonneville sse with the air compressor system in the back, and it seems like my car is riding a little low, and also it bounces around a little bit. I dont know if i'm just being picky (had a 99 tl before this one) or if there is really a problem, but i guess my question is how do i find out if the car needs rear struts or shocks? Any help would be greatly appreciated, and thanks alot for making me part of this forum!

do you ever hear the compressor turn on? If not you might want to check the fuse panel under the dash (fuse might be blown) I had that problem mine also was sitting really low because the ELC wasnt working due to a blown fuse

yeah i do hear it kick on. When i turn the key, it does too. I just dont wanna bring her to the dealership, because I know they'll fix me up! Does anyone know the load rating for these cars?

Well I just got done replacing all my struts on my 95. It raised my car up an inch or two. I was a little surprised because I didn't realize the strut had anything to do with the hight that the car sits. I always thought that was do to the springs. You may just need new struts as I did. After I removed mine I found they were shoot for sure. Mine did have a little bounce in the ride and if I had two adults in the back the suspension would bottom out over bumps sometimes.

Is your car sitting level?

Our struts tend to leak air (its just wear and tear) you probly have leaks in them, therefore they may need to be replaced.

Push the back end of the car down as far as you can real fast... does the end recoil more than 2-3 times? This is a good sign of strut wear/malfunction.

that and listen for strut noise, if you know what to listen for you can pretty much tell if the piston seals are still good. but yes, the bounce test is the best way, usually it will catch more on the upward bounce, so like after 2-3 pushes it should come up and kinda catch and then become harder to bounce or just not bounce at all. if you're bottomed out, thats basically a sign of either ELC motor failure or just the strut seals are gone. One way to test the motor would be to use the built in compressor on something, if it works, its probably the struts.

ok seems like i have some stuff to do this weekend! Thanks for all the replies guys, i'll keep ya informed

Don't forget that the rear ELC struts are NOT just air. They are traditional gas struts with air assist. One or both of these functions can be the culprit.