Member Since: 10 Jul 2014
Location: Essex
Posts: 103
Suspension error - what next?
Hi all, I'm new to the forum and D3 ownership although have had my fair share of landies.
Wonder if anybody fancies offering an opinion on my suspension problem please?
I have just acquired an early (July 04) v8 HSE D3 which has a noisy air compressor. After crawling underneath myself it was apparent some cowboy has had the unit off before as there was not one bolt left on it, just cable ties! It was also missing it's top cover. I dropped it into independent LR specialist to give it the once over and report back any faults, they advised that there were no faults recorded on machine/computer and as all seemed to be working fine I felt it just needed to obtain the correct fixings and case and bolt it up correctly.
After reading lots of excellent threads on the website I felt confident to attack it myself so set to removing the cable ties and the compressor from the car, all pipes came out without drama (the service history suggests compressor was replaced in 2009 by LR dealer). I was able to then to identify exactly which parts were missing and order. Whilst unit was off the car I thought it prudent to have a go at cleaning and re-energising the silica balls(seemed logical) all this went well and tonight I have correctly re-fitted the compressor with cleaned out dryer and microwaved silica balls. However now I have a problem....
The car initially raised up and down ok (once) then on second attempt seems to have got confused, car is currently in access height on front, standard on rear but display thinks it's in extended mode...
Compressor was still noisy during this. I have changed the relay too but car now won't change height at all from current position, friend was sitting in drivers seat as I was out side as dirty from re-fitting the unit, I think the message was something like 'reset suspension' I decided to throw the towel in and come inside and post to see what you all think and re-attack in morning. Also optimistically hoping that while the car is switched off it may go to sleep and when I start it in morning it might reset itself...? Well I can always hope!
To add, I didn't disconnect the battery during this procedure at anytime, don't know if this was a schoolboy....? It's a hitachi unit. Look forward to some responses.
30th Jul 2014 12:10 am
Kingmav66
Member Since: 20 Jul 2010
Location: Gloucestershire
Posts: 1349
You say the compressor was continually running but not lifting the car..... I would first look for air leaks on the bits you touched
2nd, get a diagnostic tool, read the faults and check live-data
30th Jul 2014 1:39 am
Landie71
Member Since: 23 Oct 2012
Location: Worksop, Nottinghamshire
Posts: 1019
Member Since: 24 Jan 2010
Location: West kent
Posts: 8531
Check that you've not trapped any of the small pipe work when putting the compressor back up
30th Jul 2014 7:24 am
Mav 90
Member Since: 10 Jul 2014
Location: Essex
Posts: 103
Hi, thanks for the replies.
Update: having started car this morning it no longer thought it was in extended mode
I dropped the car to access height - no problem.
Raised back up to standard height, the rear went up swiftly and correctly but the front took an age with the 'suspension will raise when system cooled down' message. I then put it in off road height with same results - swift rear and very slow front taking about 3 cycles of compressor on and off to finally reach the height.
The compressor is noisy and no doubt will require replacing however it seems to raise the rear ok, I am now thinking I may have trapped or dislodged one of the pipes to front but which one? I have had a good crawl around under the compressor area and doesn't seem anything obvious. Can anyone direct me to which pipes I should focus on?
I hadn't played with the suspension much before attempting to re secure as was worried about failure before it was convenient to resolve however I did get it to go up and down ok and would have noticed if anything like this had happened. I've owned the car about 2 and half weeks and covered 300+ miles including towing without any error messages or obvious issues accept for the noise.
30th Jul 2014 10:29 am
Mav 90
Member Since: 10 Jul 2014
Location: Essex
Posts: 103
Another update: just spent more time investigating, used soapy water to check for leaks and it appears both the red and blue joins on the dryer are leaking, took pipes out and cleaned and put back firmly but still leaking. I think new dryer and compressor will resolve half my problem but still have the issue of slow rising front.
After experimenting a little it appears that the rear rises swiftly and what I would consider correctly, it also lowers swiftly and correctly however the front raises incredibly slowly causing the compressor to over heat and when I lower the car the front is always slower than the rear although no where near as slow as when it is going up!
What do I need to check now regarding to front?
30th Jul 2014 11:22 am
Martin Site Admin and Owner
Member Since: 06 Nov 2004
Location: Hook Norton
Posts: 18506
You may have a split in the dryer casing between the red and blue outlets. I had this on mine, spent the time renewing the silica and found the split when putting the lid back on
Swapped the dryer and it's been good as gold since.06 D3 SE / 15 LR D90 XS SW / 88 LR 90 Td5 / 68 BMW 2000 ti
Any issues with the site let me know!
30th Jul 2014 11:24 am
Scarab
Member Since: 11 Jun 2011
Location: Hastings
Posts: 1283
Isn't there a chap on eBay who does replacement dryer casings that are stronger than the original?
Or would the whole dryer still need to be replaced?
30th Jul 2014 11:44 am
Martin Site Admin and Owner
Member Since: 06 Nov 2004
Location: Hook Norton
Posts: 18506
A replacement top cover would work, not available from LR though. Don't know about aftermarket.06 D3 SE / 15 LR D90 XS SW / 88 LR 90 Td5 / 68 BMW 2000 ti
Any issues with the site let me know!
30th Jul 2014 11:45 am
Woolmeister
Member Since: 26 Mar 2007
Location: Chandler's Ford
Posts: 3459
A few members have reported success with parts/service from these people:
A new AMK compressor will likely be a better longer-term fix but will need to have your Ride Height Module software flashed to the AMK version from the Hitachi version you already have. The IIDTool is capable of this. No doubt other diagnostic tools are equally capable.
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30th Jul 2014 12:20 pm
Mav 90
Member Since: 10 Jul 2014
Location: Essex
Posts: 103
Martin wrote:
You may have a split in the dryer casing between the red and blue outlets. I had this on mine, spent the time renewing the silica and found the split when putting the lid back on
Swapped the dryer and it's been good as gold since.
Yes, I had seen this thread before embarking on the removal of mine, so was conscious of looking for a split when it was out however no sign of one then or now, I think it can only be the connectors being worn/old or the pipes worn/old.
That said, if I have missed a split, would this cause the slower raising and lowering of the front end?
30th Jul 2014 1:01 pm
Shutts
Member Since: 26 Nov 2011
Location: Tiptree
Posts: 146
Had the same issues you are having after filling the crack in the dryer cover and reconditioning the silica gel.
I did notice that the air was leaking from where the dryer connected to the compressor, through the tried an tested use of squirting soapy water on it, but this stopped after a while once it got warm a few times. Once this was sealed, all the pipe connections checked and tank was full, it went up and down quicker.
Before I took the compressor off to do the crack in the dryer had a reoccurring, and over the last 6 months constant, yellow suspension warning light. Afterward there was a mix of yellow and red, as well, as the odd 30 mph warning coming up. As with you, I'm now having the problem of the car thinking it hooked up and going into extended mode. And the every now and then of the front being lower then the back. I have had the codes read and it says the exhaust if blocked.
So bit the bullet last night and crawled under the car again to struggle with the dreaded 3rd bolt. Once the dryer was removed and disassembled I noticed that even after blowing the filter out last time they are blocked with dust, also carbon had built up in the holes on the plate at the compressor end of the dryer.
Click image to enlarge
I had removed some of the carbon in the picture but you get the idea.
Only thing I can think is that there was a small amount of dust still on the silica gel once it was reconditioned.
I have given it a good clean today, and once the new O ring arrives tomorrow, I will refit it to see if the problem goes away.
Shutts|____000_
[l_|__\___\,___
l--___--_[O==O]
()_)' '()_)-----()_)
2005 D3 SE
1998 Disco 300tdi - slow play thing
1995 Defender 300tdi - Winching play thing
Aprilia RSV 1000 - fast play thing
Honda CR250 - noisy play thing
Last edited by Shutts on 30th Jul 2014 3:48 pm. Edited 1 time in total
30th Jul 2014 3:36 pm
Barn1e D3 Decade
Member Since: 28 Aug 2006
Location: Mid-sussex
Posts: 2021
I used the Landyair replacement dryer lid and filters and it was fine - but the instructions were pretty poor. I also replaced the main valve parts, but to be honest, they all looked OK. If you decide to get the new lid, PM me and I will talk you through what the instructions are trying to say. Or give Andy at Landyair a call and he will explain (as he did to me and I am sure, a few others). Good luck.
Edit - it would be easy to put an old (blocked) filter back in the dryer if following the poor instructions.2005, TDV6 S, Auto, 190k miles, owned from new, V8 Brake Upgrade, Nancom Evo, RLD protector, BAS EGR blanking & Remap, separate ATF cooler, changing all the fluids ahead of time.
30th Jul 2014 3:47 pm
Mav 90
Member Since: 10 Jul 2014
Location: Essex
Posts: 103
Thanks all for your input, all helpful. Currently the car is happy when left in standard height, only get issues if i try and raise it, it happens eventually but takes a lot longer than it should.
Obviously I need to consider what I change to fix it. Do we all think that changing or refurbishing the dryer will resolve the slow front rising and lowering?
If I change/refurb the dryer won't I still have noisy compressor?
If I get the kit to change the piston ring on the compressor will it no longer be noisy? Or is a noisy compressor beyond repair?
30th Jul 2014 5:20 pm
yogi972
Member Since: 05 Jun 2011
Location: Kineton
Posts: 3372
When I serviced my dryer, the compressor was really quiet after and car raised and lowered so much quicker with a nice hisssss sound tooðŸ‘
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