Member Since: 03 Mar 2023
Location: Nottingham
Posts: 27
Hi NJSS
I have general grabbers at3 all round, 255 55 20, do you think that could be the issue?
I drove my wife's BMW 1 series m sport the other day and was thinking that deals with general road bumps and potholes better than my D4 on air suspension!
I changed from 20" and am now running 19" wheels; the reason for downsizing was both off-road performance & ride quality.
I have had both General Grabber AT3s and Yokohama Geolandar A/Ts (G015) in 255/55 R19 and haven't had the problems you are facing.
NJSS
13th Apr 2023 10:06 am
M3DPO
Member Since: 22 Sep 2010
Location: Notts.
Posts: 8226
Longy wrote:
I'm thinking it's the struts just being old and tired. The cars on 115k miles.
Is this sort of the age they tend to require replacing?
Is there a definitive way of checking the struts to see if they're knackered? It's feels like all 4 are as bad as each other to me however would like to test so I can isolate the issue to the struts.
Just about run in, while ever they hold air they are good.It can when others can't,
It will when others won't,
It goes where others don't.
13th Apr 2023 12:06 pm
Longy
Member Since: 03 Mar 2023
Location: Nottingham
Posts: 27
Really!
The car holds air fine to be honest, no dropping overnight etc, I sorted the compressor yesterday, serviced the air dryer and that's got rid of the fault code and works fine now.
If you think the airstruts should be fine at 115k then they probably are, they all feel the same, no corner feels any different to the other in all honesty.
I'm at a loss to be honest, all bushes seem ok when I've looked, not that I'm any expert, I'll probably have to get someone to have a test drive and a look.
I've seen air valves mentioned in other posts, would a knackered air valve cause issues to the ride quality?
13th Apr 2023 1:08 pm
rrhool
Member Since: 28 Aug 2014
Location: Norfolk
Posts: 4520
I changed my front air struts at 150k miles because they both developed leaks in the same week. Replaced with BWI, and it honestly made no difference to the ride. The old dampers were fine, just the bags leaked.
The ride you're experiencing can only be down to bushes or tyres. If the air system had more pressure than required, the car would be high. The air only controls height, it cant change the spring rate which is designed into the airbag.Richard
D3 SE 2007. Triumph 2.5Pi 1973. Ferguson TEA20 1948.
Discovery 2 4.0 ES 2001- Gone
Discovery 1 300Tdi ES '95 - Gone
Range Rover Classic '79 - Gone
13th Apr 2023 3:23 pm
M3DPO
Member Since: 22 Sep 2010
Location: Notts.
Posts: 8226
Longy wrote:
Really!
The car holds air fine to be honest, no dropping overnight etc, I sorted the compressor yesterday, serviced the air dryer and that's got rid of the fault code and works fine now.
If you think the airstruts should be fine at 115k then they probably are, they all feel the same, no corner feels any different to the other in all honesty.
I'm at a loss to be honest, all bushes seem ok when I've looked, not that I'm any expert, I'll probably have to get someone to have a test drive and a look.
I've seen air valves mentioned in other posts, would a knackered air valve cause issues to the ride quality?
The bushes may look ok but look at the lower suspension arm rear bush it should be hard rubber if it is nylon/plastic that is your problem, your tyre section is 55 that’s what matters and is correct.
Tyre pressure can make a vast difference if to high, common practice to slightly overinflated, but if the gauge is also inaccurate
The other thing is if the lower arms have been changed and have been tightened and locked up up whilst the wheels are hanging (common mistake) the front arm rear lower bush will be twisted to it’s max and will give a hard ride until it prematurely fails.It can when others can't,
It will when others won't,
It goes where others don't.
13th Apr 2023 7:43 pm
Longy
Member Since: 03 Mar 2023
Location: Nottingham
Posts: 27
Thanks all, really appreciate the advice.
I think I'll just bite the bullet and change the control arms over the next month or so, I think I'll change the front lowers first then look at changing the rear uppers afterwards, I'll let you know how I get on!
Need to buy/borrow a reciprocating saw!
13th Apr 2023 8:11 pm
beanoir
Member Since: 02 Sep 2021
Location: Bedfordshire
Posts: 27
I was surprised how sensitive the D4 was to tyre pressure, if it's too high you really do feel a lot of bumps particularly on larger rims.
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