Agh - EAS complete failure

Took the old girl up to a meeting in Colchester today. Happily trundled up, no problem.

On the way home however.... The EAS light came on and a few miles later the car dropped to it's bumpstops. At 70. Very bouncy, very slow ride to the next junction where I waited for the AA. After an hour (pleased they came so quickly!) they took me and the rangie to somewhere safe where I waited for a man with a van and tools, but no EAS kit for another hour, then when he gave up, I waited another hour and a half for the next recovery truck. Six hours later, I'm home. The Rangie being relegated to a very comfortable radiator. Still love the rangie, but I gave the trusty S4 a little pat coming back into the house.

I guess I'll plug it into the EAS software tomorrow, then start asking for advice if that's ok

To give you a headstart tho, the last time I cleared the faults in the EAS, it looked like every error was there - pressure too high, too low, exhaust valves stuck open, stuck closed. It looked like I had everything there. I'm thinking the EAS cpu or the connector block?

JerryXt said:

Took the old girl up to a meeting in Colchester today. Happily trundled up, no problem.

On the way home however.... The EAS light came on and a few miles later the car dropped to it's bumpstops. At 70. Very bouncy, very slow ride to the next junction where I waited for the AA. After an hour (pleased they came so quickly!) they took me and the rangie to somewhere safe where I waited for a man with a van and tools, but no EAS kit for another hour, then when he gave up, I waited another hour and a half for the next recovery truck. Six hours later, I'm home. The Rangie being relegated to a very comfortable radiator. Still love the rangie, but I gave the trusty S4 a little pat coming back into the house.

I guess I'll plug it into the EAS software tomorrow, then start asking for advice if that's ok

To give you a headstart tho, the last time I cleared the faults in the EAS, it looked like every error was there - pressure too high, too low, exhaust valves stuck open, stuck closed. It looked like I had everything there. I'm thinking the EAS cpu or the connector block?

Click to expand...

Get the faults read as you said first.
From the multiple codes you had previously it may well indicate a EAS driver module failure as they are known for giving odd symptoms when they fail.

JerryXt said:

Took the old girl up to a meeting in Colchester today. Happily trundled up, no problem.

On the way home however.... The EAS light came on and a few miles later the car dropped to it's bumpstops. At 70. Very bouncy, very slow ride to the next junction where I waited for the AA. After an hour (pleased they came so quickly!) they took me and the rangie to somewhere safe where I waited for a man with a van and tools, but no EAS kit for another hour, then when he gave up, I waited another hour and a half for the next recovery truck. Six hours later, I'm home. The Rangie being relegated to a very comfortable radiator. Still love the rangie, but I gave the trusty S4 a little pat coming back into the house.

I guess I'll plug it into the EAS software tomorrow, then start asking for advice if that's ok

To give you a headstart tho, the last time I cleared the faults in the EAS, it looked like every error was there - pressure too high, too low, exhaust valves stuck open, stuck closed. It looked like I had everything there. I'm thinking the EAS cpu or the connector block?

Click to expand...

If you have all the faults up, either the software is not communicating, or there is no pressure in the system, or at some point the battery voltage has been low and the EAS has got confused. Just clear all the faults (make sure the EAS screen shows "Good Idle") and re-read. The remaining faults are the ones to worry about. The EAS ECU is one of the more reliable bits of the car, more likely its either the compressor, an airspring failure or a height sensor.

So, the codes were as follows (first at top, newest at bottom):





It's a bit chatty.

It took a little while to get to raise the car, but I'm presuming that the tank would be empty and therefore took some time to fill.

Reading the heights, the data seemed to be accurate (in that the values increased as the car got further away from the bumpstops). I got the height to about normal, then turned the engine off, opened and closed the drivers door and the car went down to a 'normal' height. It's still sitting at approximately the same height, so I'm presuming there is no major leak.

Your advice and help is very much appreciated. Thanks!

Gobbledy gook like that comes out when you have a communication problem. Having all the valves open and closed at the same time is a clue to their significance. Low air pressure is most likely cause of the fail.

crap cheap laptop and lead hidden in car somewhere for future....???

zen said:

crap cheap laptop and lead hidden in car somewhere for future....???

Click to expand...

Surprisingly crap cheap laptops with a serial port run EASunlock no problem. It's the dear USB ones that are hard work.

yes i know..thats why i suggested...mine cost £40..very handy for just in case..

or carry spare ecu..but lappy easy..

JerryXt said:

So, the codes were as follows (first at top, newest at bottom):

2 : FR signal incorrect
2 : Pressure signal constantly high
3 : Pressure signal constantly low
7 : Vehicle has moved



2 : FR signal incorrect
2 : FR signal incorrect
2 : FR signal incorrect
2 : FR signal incorrect
2 : FR signal incorrect
2 : FR signal incorrect
2 : FR signal incorrect
0 : FL valve stuck open
1 : FR valve stuck open
2 : RL valve stuck open
3 : RR valve stuck open
4 : Inlet valve stuck open
5 : Exhaust valve stuck open
6 : FB:64_Hidden
7 : FB:128_Hidden
0 : FL valve stuck closed
1 : FR valve stuck closed
2 : RL valve stuck closed
3 : RR valve stuck closed
4 : Inlet valve stuck closed
5 : Exhaust valve stuck closed



0 : FL signal incorrect
1 : F8:2_Hidden
2 : FR signal incorrect
4 : RL signal incorrect
5 : F8:32_Hidden
6 : RR signal incorrect
7 : F8:128_Hidden
0 : Engine speed fault
2 : Pressure signal constantly high
4 : Air supply fault
5 : Air supply leak
6 : Target heights incorrect
7 : Vehicle has moved
0 : FL valve stuck open
1 : FR valve stuck open
2 : RL valve stuck open
3 : RR valve stuck open
4 : Inlet valve stuck open
5 : Exhaust valve stuck open
6 : FB:64_Hidden
7 : FB:128_Hidden
0 : FL valve stuck closed
1 : FR valve stuck closed
2 : RL valve stuck closed
3 : RR valve stuck closed
5 : Exhaust valve stuck closed



1 : F8:2_Hidden
3 : F8:8_Hidden
6 : RR signal incorrect
0 : Engine speed fault
1 : Vehicle speed fault
4 : Air supply fault
5 : Air supply leak
6 : Target heights incorrect
7 : Vehicle has moved
0 : Cannot lower FL
3 : Cannot lower RR
4 : FA:16_Hidden
6 : FA:64_Hidden
0 : FL valve stuck open
1 : FR valve stuck open
2 : RL valve stuck open
3 : RR valve stuck open
4 : Inlet valve stuck open
5 : Exhaust valve stuck open
6 : FB:64_Hidden
7 : FB:128_Hidden
0 : FL valve stuck closed
1 : FR valve stuck closed
2 : RL valve stuck closed
3 : RR valve stuck closed
5 : Exhaust valve stuck closed



0 : FL signal incorrect
1 : F8:2_Hidden
2 : FR signal incorrect
3 : F8:8_Hidden
4 : RL signal incorrect
5 : F8:32_Hidden
6 : RR signal incorrect
7 : F8:128_Hidden
0 : Engine speed fault
1 : Vehicle speed fault
2 : Pressure signal constantly high
3 : Pressure signal constantly low
4 : Air supply fault
5 : Air supply leak
6 : Target heights incorrect
7 : Vehicle has moved
0 : Cannot lower FL
1 : Cannot lower FR
2 : Cannot lower RL
3 : Cannot lower RR
4 : FA:16_Hidden
5 : FA:32_Hidden
6 : FA:64_Hidden
7 : FA:128_Hidden
0 : FL valve stuck open
1 : FR valve stuck open
2 : RL valve stuck open
3 : RR valve stuck open
4 : Inlet valve stuck open
5 : Exhaust valve stuck open
6 : FB:64_Hidden
7 : FB:128_Hidden
0 : FL valve stuck closed
1 : FR valve stuck closed
2 : RL valve stuck closed
3 : RR valve stuck closed
4 : Inlet valve stuck closed
5 : Exhaust valve stuck closed
6 : FC:64_Hidden
7 : FC:128_Hidden



0 : FL signal incorrect
1 : F8:2_Hidden
2 : FR signal incorrect
3 : F8:8_Hidden
4 : RL signal incorrect
5 : F8:32_Hidden
6 : RR signal incorrect
7 : F8:128_Hidden
0 : Engine speed fault
1 : Vehicle speed fault
2 : Pressure signal constantly high
3 : Pressure signal constantly low
4 : Air supply fault
5 : Air supply leak
6 : Target heights incorrect
7 : Vehicle has moved
0 : Cannot lower FL
1 : Cannot lower FR
2 : Cannot lower RL
3 : Cannot lower RR
4 : FA:16_Hidden
5 : FA:32_Hidden
6 : FA:64_Hidden
7 : FA:128_Hidden
0 : FL valve stuck open
1 : FR valve stuck open
2 : RL valve stuck open
3 : RR valve stuck open
4 : Inlet valve stuck open
5 : Exhaust valve stuck open
6 : FB:64_Hidden
7 : FB:128_Hidden
0 : FL valve stuck closed
1 : FR valve stuck closed
2 : RL valve stuck closed
3 : RR valve stuck closed
4 : Inlet valve stuck closed
5 : Exhaust valve stuck closed
6 : FC:64_Hidden
7 : FC:128_Hidden



2 : FR signal incorrect



0 : FL signal incorrect
1 : F8:2_Hidden
2 : FR signal incorrect
3 : F8:8_Hidden
4 : RL signal incorrect
5 : F8:32_Hidden
6 : RR signal incorrect
7 : F8:128_Hidden
0 : Engine speed fault
1 : Vehicle speed fault
2 : Pressure signal constantly high
3 : Pressure signal constantly low
4 : Air supply fault
5 : Air supply leak
6 : Target heights incorrect
7 : Vehicle has moved
0 : Cannot lower FL
1 : Cannot lower FR
2 : Cannot lower RL
3 : Cannot lower RR
4 : FA:16_Hidden
5 : FA:32_Hidden
6 : FA:64_Hidden
7 : FA:128_Hidden
0 : FL valve stuck open
1 : FR valve stuck open
2 : RL valve stuck open
3 : RR valve stuck open
4 : Inlet valve stuck open
5 : Exhaust valve stuck open
6 : FB:64_Hidden
7 : FB:128_Hidden
0 : FL valve stuck closed
1 : FR valve stuck closed
2 : RL valve stuck closed
3 : RR valve stuck closed
4 : Inlet valve stuck closed
5 : Exhaust valve stuck closed
6 : FC:64_Hidden
7 : FC:128_Hidden
​

It's a bit chatty.

It took a little while to get to raise the car, but I'm presuming that the tank would be empty and therefore took some time to fill.

Reading the heights, the data seemed to be accurate (in that the values increased as the car got further away from the bumpstops). I got the height to about normal, then turned the engine off, opened and closed the drivers door and the car went down to a 'normal' height. It's still sitting at approximately the same height, so I'm presuming there is no major leak.

Your advice and help is very much appreciated. Thanks!

Click to expand...

:doh: see post 3

how long it take you to type them faults in?????

wammers said:

Gobbledy gook like that comes out when you have a communication problem. Having all the valves open and closed at the same time is a clue to their significance. Low air pressure is most likely cause of the fail.

Click to expand...

I made sure I was seeing 'good idle' on the screen between clearing and re-reading. Is this a communication problem or a knackered drivers module? I'm convinced the hardware is ok: the bags, (rear) pipes and compressor have all been replaced recently. The car was cheap enough to let me spend some cash on it, but I don't want to waste time and money.

zen said:

crap cheap laptop and lead hidden in car somewhere for future....???

Click to expand...

yup, I've got that sorted and will be putting an inverter to keep it charged.

JerryXt said:

I made sure I was seeing 'good idle' on the screen between clearing and re-reading. Is this a communication problem or a knackered drivers module? I'm convinced the hardware is ok: the bags, (rear) pipes and compressor have all been replaced recently. The car was cheap enough to let me spend some cash on it, but I don't want to waste time and money.




yup, I've got that sorted and will be putting an inverter to keep it charged.

Click to expand...

Communications problem or lack of air. If the ECU commands an action, and that action does not happen with a certain time span, it sometimes has fit. You cannot have all the valves open and closed at the same time, nor can you have constantly high pressure and constantly low pressure at the same time. The read out does not make sense.

Thanks Wammers.

Since the compressor is less than a month old, I'd say that there should be enough pressure in the tank. Is there any way of monitoring that?

If it's a communications issue, how do problems occur? Either the sensors or the ecu must be buggered. Or both?

JerryXt said:

Thanks Wammers.

Since the compressor is less than a month old, I'd say that there should be enough pressure in the tank. Is there any way of monitoring that?

If it's a communications issue, how do problems occur? Either the sensors or the ecu must be buggered. Or both?

Click to expand...

You could stick a pressure gauge in the Violet coded pipe from the valve block. Or just do the finger over the outlet test to see if it is making good air.

JerryXt said:

Thanks Wammers.

Since the compressor is less than a month old, I'd say that there should be enough pressure in the tank. Is there any way of monitoring that?

If it's a communications issue, how do problems occur? Either the sensors or the ecu must be buggered. Or both?

Click to expand...

If you are using a USB to serial adaptor that would be my first thought. They can give some very strange results if not working properly. The EAS software is not very sophisticated in it's communications ability.

Datatek said:

If you are using a USB to serial adaptor that would be my first thought. They can give some very strange results if not working properly. The EAS software is not very sophisticated in it's communications ability.

Click to expand...

I agree Keith, the last read out seems to be a list of all possible failures. Something is going wrong somewhere. This sort of thing happens on my ACER USB laptop. But never on the old serial Dell i use for diagnostics.

any one know what the values are for maximum ride hiesght normal hieght motorway and exit mode this is my second week of owning p38 and had to use the eas unlock software i got the car to reasonable hieght but wont go up to maximum and the values i have each corner is off about 2-3 points more or less than the other side

Todays update. I've been feeling sorry for myself with a broken RR and a sore tooth. Today, I talked to my local garage about getting the car ready for it's MoT and looking at this EAS issue.

When I went to the car, it was on it's bumpstops again. This time however, the battery was completely flat and the car wouldn't start. So, after jumping it, I cleared the faults and raised each corner a little off the stops and drove it round to the garage. It raised itself nicely and maintained height. The pump switched on and off to maintain height, the EAS didn't freak again and when I parked it, the vehicle stayed where it was - didn't drop.

When we took the cover off the battery to jump the car, we found that the loom had rubbed through on the negative battery terminal and was still touching the post. We moved the loom away from the terminal to start the car. I guess it's possible that it has rubbed through a wire and it's been draining the battery.

Last time I looked at the faults, I was switching the ignition on and off and didn't start it often, or give it time to charge significantly, If it is a problem with low voltage - the charging system or this hole in the loom, it may be that this is why it took longer to get the EAS right, and maybe why it dropped again.

So, I have something else to check: the alternator, battery and the loom. If they are ok, we're going to look at the terminal block on the drivers module and maybe replace that ECU too. Whatever, the whole system is going to be checked for air leaks.


Thanks for reading, and for your advice.

scottg7511 said:

any one know what the values are for maximum ride hiesght normal hieght motorway and exit mode this is my second week of owning p38 and had to use the eas unlock software i got the car to reasonable hieght but wont go up to maximum and the values i have each corner is off about 2-3 points more or less than the other side

Click to expand...

I have posted these several times on here do a search. Being out a bit side to side is not a problem. If you have raised car to max it can go in standard mode it won't go to max, because it's already there when you select it. Standard is 470mm from centre of wheel to wheel arch.

JerryXt said:

Took the old girl up to a meeting in Colchester today. Happily trundled up, no problem.

Click to expand...

Where from????