Front end suspension intermittently drops when parked/locked

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Disco56

New Member
Posts
6
Location
Midlands
Hello, my first post here since joining the forum and becoming a Discovery 3 owner.

*Hope this has been posted correctly/in the right area :/.

So the car being a Disco 3 S 2.7d '56 model is new to me for a few months now. I have started noticing that only sometimes the front end suspension begins to sag/drop over several hours. No dash lights or warning messages..

Overnight/daytime its parked on the curb road side just outside the house. Its dropped when parked here and as of currently writing this post is parked like this now where the issue isnt happening!

On a flat surface sometimes the drop is also experienced. When the car is locked, i have noticed again only occasional the front end lower slightly but by the time i go out to it for my next trip its lowered all the way to what the pros here i guess call the bump stops.

If the front end lowers to the bump stops, when the ignition is on, the front end very quickly raises to normal height mode.

If it hasnt dropped i can simply drive off no problem.

The air suspension rises into extended mode without issue and also drops into the easy access mode too. The latter sometimes see me enter easy access mode so it begins to lower but then immediately jumps into the extended mode. Neither of these modes are generally required on daily basis to be honest.

Im not mechanically minded but have access to tools and basic knowledge of these tools to troubleshoot potentially where required.

Have read a few different posts here and on Disco3 that cover the suspension drop but nothing that directly relates to what im experiencing.

Talked to and independent specialist who advised it could be the relay? Advised to disconnect the battery and see if there was any difference there but most of what he said went straight over me with all the tech/jargon thrown my way! I have noticed at times when the ignition is turned off after a trip the radio display shows low power mode, potentially something to do with the battery?

As i mention when i need to drive the motor, there isnt really any issues. Occasionally if the car has been left a while without being a driven ive noticed it throw up a few suspension fault warning messages all which clear once the cars been driven for a few days or regular.

Hoping its nothing major, any help/advice would be amazing from any of your boffins. If this has been covered directly elsewhere i apologise in advance!

Here's to waiting on those replies
icon_smile.gif
 
It's possible the front valve block has a leak, allowing the front to drop.
The valve blocks aren't ever cleaned, but they can really do with maintenance occasionally, so issues like this are avoided.
It could also be leaking air lines or even the air bags, but those often effect just one corner.
 
Get a £1 plant sprayer, add some water and washing up liquid, and spray your airbags and pipework. If you see bubbles, there's your leak,,,,
 
It's possible the front valve block has a leak, allowing the front to drop.
The valve blocks aren't ever cleaned, but they can really do with maintenance occasionally, so issues like this are avoided.
It could also be leaking air lines or even the air bags, but those often effect just one corner.
Thanks for this. How would I know if any of the above maybe the culprit? I.e. Anything I can do to check/troubleshoot?
 
It may be worth noting I recently serviced the car. This included, the oil, cabin and air filter, drained and refilled the oil, also replacing sump plug. Fuel filter. So naturally jacked up the front end and popped it down. Since I've kept it parked level I.e. Not popping it on the curb and it hasn't dropped..
 
Hello, my first post here since joining the forum and becoming a Discovery 3 owner.

*Hope this has been posted correctly/in the right area :/.

So the car being a Disco 3 S 2.7d '56 model is new to me for a few months now. I have started noticing that only sometimes the front end suspension begins to sag/drop over several hours. No dash lights or warning messages..

Overnight/daytime its parked on the curb road side just outside the house. Its dropped when parked here and as of currently writing this post is parked like this now where the issue isnt happening!

On a flat surface sometimes the drop is also experienced. When the car is locked, i have noticed again only occasional the front end lower slightly but by the time i go out to it for my next trip its lowered all the way to what the pros here i guess call the bump stops.

If the front end lowers to the bump stops, when the ignition is on, the front end very quickly raises to normal height mode.

If it hasnt dropped i can simply drive off no problem.

The air suspension rises into extended mode without issue and also drops into the easy access mode too. The latter sometimes see me enter easy access mode so it begins to lower but then immediately jumps into the extended mode. Neither of these modes are generally required on daily basis to be honest.

Im not mechanically minded but have access to tools and basic knowledge of these tools to troubleshoot potentially where required.

Have read a few different posts here and on Disco3 that cover the suspension drop but nothing that directly relates to what im experiencing.

Talked to and independent specialist who advised it could be the relay? Advised to disconnect the battery and see if there was any difference there but most of what he said went straight over me with all the tech/jargon thrown my way! I have noticed at times when the ignition is turned off after a trip the radio display shows low power mode, potentially something to do with the battery?

As i mention when i need to drive the motor, there isnt really any issues. Occasionally if the car has been left a while without being a driven ive noticed it throw up a few suspension fault warning messages all which clear once the cars been driven for a few days or regular.

Hoping its nothing major, any help/advice would be amazing from any of your boffins. If this has been covered directly elsewhere i apologise in advance!

Here's to waiting on those replies
icon_smile.gif

In a nut shell the air susp never switches off even with the car asleep, so if there is a leak it will keep trying to adjust itself until it runs out of air, so what your specialist is suggesting is by pulling the relay you have killed the system electrically so any movement can only be because of a leak.
Valve blocks are pretty robust, they can fail duel to the compressor dessicant breaking down and filling the system with dust.
 
I would say you also need a new battery.
And you have a leaky bag/s on the front, fairy liquid and a squirty bottle is your friend. Good for your hands too apparently :).
Park it on level ground, see if you can see sag on 1 particularly corner, after a few hours/6
had it recently on the L322 1 front corner would look low, but after a few days they were all down. The time between self levels is quite long after the initial 1 (on the 322 anyway) so it will show a leaky corner;).

J
 
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