Member Since: 16 Apr 2012
Location: Taunton
Posts: 136
I think I'm slowly closing in on it, I wiggled the wiring and multiplug to the O/S/F height sensor and got a 'Suspension Fault ' message come up - this cleared after stopping and starting the car. Is it possible then that I do have some iffy wiring, or perhaps the connection into the sensor itself is bad?
8th Jun 2023 8:40 am
M3DPO
Member Since: 22 Sep 2010
Location: Notts.
Posts: 8223
Providing the suspension isn't dropping to access height or near it shouldn't affect the ride quality, this is why when the suspension goes hard you need to stop switch the engine off and measure the height all round.
What size tyres and what pressure are they? Have you checked the front lower rear bushes?-are they rubber or a nylon/plastic material.It can when others can't,
It will when others won't,
It goes where others don't.
8th Jun 2023 6:55 pm
alex0264
Member Since: 16 Apr 2012
Location: Taunton
Posts: 136
Apologies for the slow reply. I would definitely say that it's running lower than it should be, as today I'm almost 100% certain it hit the bump stops when I went down a dip in the road. Unfortunately, I was unable to pull over at that point to measure the height. The height measurements I listed earlier in the thread were when it was riding badly (which is pretty much all the time now).
I'm running 255 55 19 Pirelli Scorpion's that were fitted in February / March, and the pressures are 34 front and 37 back. I know this is 1 PSI above recommended, but I've run this pressure since Nov 2011 when I got my D3, then my previous D4 and had no issues.
The front lower arm bushes I'm afraid I couldn't tell you what material they are, all I know is that they're genuine parts that were fitted in 2019/2020. I can provide you with the part numbers if that will help, as they're on the invoice?
I am going to purchase a GAP tool this week and see if I can make sense of it all. I just have to get this sorted ASAP, as I honestly dread driving the car - no enjoyment to it at all.
20th Jun 2023 8:14 pm
alex0264
Member Since: 16 Apr 2012
Location: Taunton
Posts: 136
M3DPO wrote:
Providing the suspension isn't dropping to access height or near it shouldn't affect the ride quality, this is why when the suspension goes hard you need to stop switch the engine off and measure the height all round.
What size tyres and what pressure are they? Have you checked the front lower rear bushes?-are they rubber or a nylon/plastic material.
IID tool has arrived - are there any specific tests you can recommend that might highlight any issues? I managed to get the live readings working and could see things like the voltages of the height sensors, compressor temps etc. The gallery pressure was 110kpa, does that sound about right?
6th Jul 2023 9:51 pm
gstuart
Member Since: 21 Oct 2016
Location: kent
Posts: 14120
Hope this chart helps u , gallery should be around 248 Kpa
Click image to enlarge
7th Jul 2023 4:14 pm
alex0264
Member Since: 16 Apr 2012
Location: Taunton
Posts: 136
Thank you Stuart, sorry for the slow reply.
So a couple of weeks ago after trawling through many a post regarding suspension, I decided to spend a whole £12 on a new compressor relay. To my complete and utter shock, it actually fixed my problem and the car rode perfectly. Sadly, this enjoyable ride was only to last 8 days in total before going back to it's usual awful self. It's also worth noting that at one point in the middle of that 8 day window, there was one day that it wasn't as good, but nowhere near as bad as it is again now, and it was fine the next day.
I decided to open up the old relay and quite honestly apart from a bit of soot from arcing when it opens and closes, I really couldn't see anything wrong. I suppose the resistor may not be doing it's job perhaps and the actual switch isn't operating when it should. I did buy two more relays and fitted one today, but unfortunately this has not worked the magic that it did last time.
To summarise, this confirms my suspicions that evidently it's some kind of electrical issue, or at the very least the compressor is possibly damaging the relays, maybe by running too much? I don't really know where to go next with this. Tonight I've removed both supension fuses (5 amp and a 60 amp), as well as the relay. I'm not exactly sure what I'm hoping to achieve, maybe it'll highlight an air leak, who knows.
Aristarkhov I hope you're having a bit of luck with yours?
21st Jul 2023 9:02 pm
M3DPO
Member Since: 22 Sep 2010
Location: Notts.
Posts: 8223
It should highlight a leak if the suspension has dropped overnight, if it hasn’t I would try running it with the compressor relay removed for a while, this could eliminate the compressor if it is still hard.It can when others can't,
It will when others won't,
It goes where others don't.
22nd Jul 2023 7:42 am
pwheeldon
Member Since: 14 Jan 2020
Location: West Yorks
Posts: 1504
Just a note on the heights you measured, they don't seem right, the fronts should be about 19mm lower than the rear. Off the top of my head I think it's 465 front and 484 rear, but don't hold me to tgat. If you've got the IID I'd suggest a suspension calibration, it may resolve the issue but either way it won't hurt. Just so you don't panic, when you start the process it will throw up the red warning light on the car.Discovery 4 GS 2009 Auto Stornoway Grey
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22nd Jul 2023 8:11 am
Aristarkhov
Member Since: 03 Jan 2016
Location: Tambov
Posts: 12
alex0264 wrote:
Aristarkhov I hope you're having a bit of luck with yours?
Hi. I came up with an idea for a mechanical compressor valve consisting of two springs. Through which the air passes when discharging, and which is always connected to the common line. Maybe from time the springs become less elastic, and the valve begins to maintain less pressure in the main line itself, because of which when opening the suspension valves on a bad road, part of the air goes into the main line itself, hence the suspension becomes stiffer. Well, that's just one of the theories.
22nd Jul 2023 4:40 pm
alex0264
Member Since: 16 Apr 2012
Location: Taunton
Posts: 136
I left the car for 36 hours and there was no drop in height, so I guess I'm good on the leak side of things. I also drove it for a few miles with no relay, and I would say the ride was about the same, perhaps a tad worse. I measured the height before putting the relay back, 465mm front and 485mm rear. Some of those other relays were pretty damn hot too, almost untouchable!
The next step I think will be to get it booked in again - there is a JLR dealer here in Taunton. I'm fed up of trial and error every weekend trying to fix it, and the dread of driving over manholes and not knowing how it will drive one journey to the next. The poor ride has trashed the steering as well, with a light knocking and play over rough ground. I've got other faults that the IID has highlighted, BCM communication failures, fan failure etc.
23rd Jul 2023 2:26 pm
alex0264
Member Since: 16 Apr 2012
Location: Taunton
Posts: 136
Last edited by alex0264 on 28th Jan 2024 7:54 pm. Edited 1 time in total
23rd Jul 2023 4:40 pm
alex0264
Member Since: 16 Apr 2012
Location: Taunton
Posts: 136
Small but relevant update, I purchased some cloth measuring tapes and used the guided calibration on the GAP tool to level things out to the best of my ability - sadly no further improvements afterwards, if anything worse.
Conclusion - there is a webuyanycar thing that's popped up in the Asda near me. I shall be going this weekend to see what they'll offer me, I've simply had enough of this car, it's an absolute joke.
I'd like to thank all those who have taken the time to suggest fixes and things to try, but enough is enough now. Good look with the troubleshooting Aristarkhov!
27th Jul 2023 8:22 pm
Mastertech
Member Since: 13 Apr 2014
Location: North East
Posts: 131
You’re throwing the towel in but have you had an experienced Land Rover technician/ master technician look at the vehicle?
28th Jul 2023 7:46 pm
alex0264
Member Since: 16 Apr 2012
Location: Taunton
Posts: 136
Sorry for not replying to you, the last couple of months have been manic, and believe it or not I still punish myself by continuing to own this car.
To summarise, I was extremely foolish and added up what I've spent over the last 15 months trying to resolve this issue - just over £3.5k and it still drives like a dog. Last week I decided to have all the valve blocks replaced, as I had this stupid idea in my head that one or more of those could be dodgy. £600 later and still the problem persists. The harsh ride has damaged something in the steering system too, and I have a screeching heatshield at the rear - most likely that's been rattled off it's mounts too.
I have one final thing (realistically) that can be changed, and that's the compressor. I've noticed that since having the valve blocks replaced it actually takes longer to raise, and the front sometimes hesitates for a couple of seconds, then commences raising again. The compressor sounds louder too. Pair that with the fact that putting in a new relay in July fixed the poor ride problem for a week, is the problem staring me right in the face? Sadly, the GAP tool and garage diagnostics are not showing a single fault.
The only reason I've continued thus far, is because if I give up I may as well have withdrawn the money I've spent and simply burnt it! To top it off I have a passenger footwell that I found full of water at the weekend, and the sunroof pipe is clear!
2nd Oct 2023 9:19 pm
1784
Member Since: 04 Sep 2009
Location: Almunge
Posts: 170
The air suspension is a very simple system, the air pressure fed into the airbag "springs" directly control the ride height. As long as the four corner heights are reasonably within spec for the normal setting and stays there when driving, the compressor, valves, relays, system pressure etc has no influence on the ride quality. (OK, the crosslink valves will give some improvement when driving very uneven ground at low speed.)
If the heights are OK, then you need to look at all suspension bushings (confirm OEM quality and correct fitment), shock absorbers, tyres (OEM size, quality and pressure) and finally do a 4 wheel alignment.
That's it really, if those items are in "as new" condition, it will ride as designed, the rest is up the the roads it rides on and the users expectations.Defender 110 SE 2021, Tasman Blue
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