Selling a car with a broken suspension

The rest of this page walks through the towing rules automakers publish, what the recall records show about springs that break, how to tell a real air suspension fault from normal behavior, and how each state measures when a repair outruns a car.

Move it on a flatbed, and keep hooks off the suspension

A car sitting on a broken spring is already resting on parts that are out of place. The towing bulletins automakers file with NHTSA are blunt about what not to do to a car's underside.

Cadillac's 2012 bulletin for the ATS says "do not hook, pull or secure the vehicle using any under-body or suspension components", or the car can be damaged (Cadillac ATS bulletin). Chevrolet's 2015 bulletin for the Camaro gives the same warning (Camaro bulletin).

Both go further than that:

• Flatbed only. Each bulletin says to recover or move the car only on a flatbed car carrier, because a wheel-lift tow truck could damage it.
• Strap the tires, not the frame. Once the ATS is on the bed, Cadillac says to secure it with a nylon strap-type harness over all four tires.
• The warranty won't cover it. Cadillac states that damage of the kind the bulletin describes would not be covered by the vehicle warranty.

Those bulletins were written for two specific models with healthy suspensions. A car whose suspension has already failed has even less margin, so the same rules make sense for it. When you book a tow, say up front that the suspension is broken.

Why a broken spring is a reason to stop driving

NHTSA's recall 26V051 covers certain 2021-2023 Jeep Grand Cherokees. Its report calls a rear coil spring that detaches while driving a road hazard to other drivers and to the people inside (NHTSA recall 26V051).

That recall is unusual in one way. NHTSA describes it as a repair issue, not a part defect: the vehicles may have been fixed under an earlier recall with an out-of-position rear coil spring assembly. The document counts 20 complaints of coil spring separation made after the earlier 64A recall repair had been done. The new remedy is to inspect the rear coil spring assembly and repair it if needed.

Two lessons carry over to any car:

1. A spring that has come loose once can come loose on the road, and the danger reaches other people.
2. A past repair doesn't settle the question. If you can see a spring out of its seat, or the car sits low on one corner, have it checked before it moves under its own power.

Whether your own car is under a recall depends on its VIN. A dealer for the brand can look it up.

Air suspension: sagging is not always a failure

Cars and trucks on air springs behave differently from coil-spring cars, and a low corner doesn't always mean an expensive part has failed.

Maserati's 2025 bulletin for the Grecale says the air suspension "is subject to micro air leaks", and calls them a normal characteristic of the system (Maserati bulletin). What sends a Grecale to air-leak troubleshooting is a suspension warning light with code DTC 55A100, which means the car can't reach its desired ride height.

RAM's bulletin for the 1500 describes a truck that can get stuck at its lowered entry/exit height after the owner drops it to load the bed and then drives on the freeway. The fix in that bulletin is reprogramming the air suspension control module with newer software, not replacing parts (RAM 1500 bulletin).

So before you decide an air-sprung car is finished, find out three things:

• Is a warning light on, or does the car just settle a little overnight?
• Is there a stored fault code?
• Has the maker issued a bulletin with a software fix for that symptom?

Repair it or sell it

Run through it in this order:

• A recall applies. Let the dealer do the recall work first. That changes the math entirely.
• An air suspension fault with a known software fix. In the RAM 1500 bulletin, the fix is new software for the control module, not new parts.
• A broken coil spring or a failed air spring with no recall. Get a written quote that covers parts, labor and an alignment check. Then line it up against the car's value today and its value once repaired. Our guide to when repairs cost more than the car shows how to run those numbers.
• The suspension is one of several faults. Get a written quote for each fault, add them up, and compare the total with the car's value.

States set their own yardstick for when damage makes a car "salvage". Most of these rules apply when an insurer or a business totals a car, not when a private owner turns down a repair, but they show where each state draws the line.

State by state: when repair cost makes a car salvage

Every row traces back to a statute or agency page in the list below.

Say what is broken when you sell

Federal rules for used car dealers set the tone. Under 16 CFR 455.1, it is a deceptive act for a used vehicle dealer to misrepresent the mechanical condition of a used vehicle. Under 16 CFR 455.2, a dealer selling with no implied warranty marks the "As Is" box on the Buyers Guide, and a state that restricts "as is" selling overrides that box.

Those rules are written for dealers. For a private seller, the practical point is the same: name the broken spring or the air suspension fault in writing. A buyer who was told can't later say they weren't. Our guide to selling a car as is covers the rest.

Selling a car with a broken suspension to us

We buy whole non-running and junk cars, and a car sitting on a broken spring is one of them. You can sell the whole car as it sits, without fixing the suspension first, and pickup is free anywhere in the US. Call (877) 421-6008 and mention that the suspension is broken.