My First Eas Problem

Hi, I know i am lucky but after 120,000 miles i have my first eas problem apart from a height sensor replaced a couple of years ago. I went to start it yesterday but it wouldnt pump up to normal height just stayed on the low setting where it was left the night before. I got out of the car and it pumped up very slowly, got to its normal height. I used it for that afternoon and it stayed at normal height, when i parked it i left it on normal height and this morning it is low on the drivers side front only. It wont pump up and i have no warning on the dash display. Any ideas would be most wellcome as i have searched on here and most problems seem to have dash warnings. I wondered if it might be a leaky air spring but i cant hear any hissing when under the car. Thanks, Paul

kinell its paulc!

What!!!

Get underneath the front of the vehicle and have a look at the air springs, if they are all cracked and crazed then you most likely have one leaky bag at the very least. Replacement isnt too difficult to do at home.

Have you ever had the air springs replaced in the past??

-Wills

Never had airsprings replaced, have been under the car yesterday and i can see the drivers side not inflated but if there was a leak would i hear air leaking or get a message on the dash.

Paul A said:

if there was a leak would i hear air leaking or get a message on the dash.

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That depends if theres any compressed air left in the system I take it you are aware of this Web site below, if not theres loads of fault finding tips and help. The link should take you to the manual operating info, at least you can then bypass the EAS controls to see if the compressor is pumping and should be able try to inflate the O/S/F air bag.


suspump


hth

zzr

Where do you live just in-case someone is close by and maybe able to help?

Hi ZZR, I live in west sussex very near billingshurst, i will try your tips and look at the info site. I can hear the comp running so would i not hear air comimg out of the hole in the deflated spring or possibly it may be to small. Sorry to sound so dumb but i have not been along this path before, most of the others but not eas. regards,P

Try removing the air pipe from the top of the O/S/F airbag and check for flow there, by disconnect the O/S/F sensor on the drivers side and operate it manually to see if the system trys to alter the ride height.

An update, just went out to the car and all four corners down now, started it but nothing goes up, comp seems to be running. will try the manual pump up but cant do that until tomorrow. dont know where to start to look for the problem now, all i know is the drivers front went down first and still no warning on dash

hmm, this is a slightly difficult to diagnose, you may have the combination of a worn pump and a leaky bag.

If you start the engine and leave the door open so the EAS is frozen how long does the pump run for??

-Wills

There is an independent Land/Range Rover garage only a small garage but very helpful, in between Bexhill and Hastings, on the coast road somewhere around St Leonards on the left hand side as you travel to-wards Hastings from Bexhill, just can't remember the name.

Thanks for the small garage info but that location is a long way from me and dont think the car is movable now!! Wills, i am a little worried about leaving the door open and engine running as i have read on here that if i do that i would get the dreaded message up on the dash and that would make my problems worse, at the moment the car has not detected a fault. Maybe i should start with replacing the o/s/f/ airbag which is the one that went down first and then see what happens with the pump.
Any advice from anyone would be a real help. Thanks

Give these a bell Gumtree 4x4 Ltd quite local, I drove mine there on the bump stops

Hi, an update. I took the pipe off of the o/s/f air bag as suggested and loads of air came out. i tried to pump up the suspension as suggested from a link on one the replies by disconecting the pipe from the pump and attaching my own air supply, this did not work, all that happened was the air was escaping from what seems like a small paper filter that screws onto the side of the valve block on the outside of the plastic cover. re connected the pump and ran the engine for 5 mins no air came out of the little filter this time but still no suspension, again took the pipe off of the o/s/f air bag and a little air came out not much. the pump sounds and feels as if it is working. now at a loss for what to do, can anybody steer me in the right direction.

ok, so, it sounds like from your own investigations that the drivers side front airbag is holding air which is good news. You dont say whether you have been under the vehicle and inspected the airbags, this would be a good idea so you have at least some sort of idea as to the state of them.

Disconnecting the pump and pumping in your own air when the system is off won't work and what you heard was the air entering the valve block and then immediately being routed straight to the exhaust valve.

Reconnect the compressor, start the engine, make sure the selector switch is set to access and leave the door open with the engine running. You shouldn't get a fault with it like this, now meausre the ammount of time the compressor runs, if you get to around 7 minutes and its still running, whizz into the car and try and select motorway height and see if it tries to come up at all. If nothing then select access again and get the door back open and see if the compressor is still running.

If it is then the worn compressor theory is probably the best.

Let us know how it goes...

-Wills

Thanks Wills, i will try this first thing in the morning.

Wills, tried what you suggested, nothing happened, pump was still running after about 8 minutes and car didnt move. under the car the rear bags look a bit cracked but fronts are in better condition. the car is on the bump stops. do you reckon a pump rebuild is the best start. many thanks for all your advice on this. Paul

Yes, if you got no movement at all after letting the pump run for a few mins and you then tried selecting motorway height then it would point to a worn pump.

To double check, have you made super sure you reconnected the pump ok?? To check the pump, you can remove it from the vehicle and then open it up to check the seal, have you done this at all before??

You can get new pump seals online, I would recommend going for the full refurb kit that includes the piston assembly as well though to be honest, I have seen several pumps now where people have gone for just the seal and not managed to put it on straight and the pump hasn't worked properly because of this.

-Wills

I only disconected the airline yesterday and am sure i have put that back ok. never had pump off before, would a worn piston rubber look or act different, would i be able to tell if it was no good. Do you know if the pumps just stop functioning as the very first sign of a problem was slow rising of the car the other day, and then nothing and would the car go down on one corner first before the others or should it have stayed at normal height where i left it. sorry for so many questions.

Paul A said:

I only disconected the airline yesterday and am sure i have put that back ok. never had pump off before, would a worn piston rubber look or act different, would i be able to tell if it was no good. Do you know if the pumps just stop functioning as the very first sign of a problem was slow rising of the car the other day, and then nothing and would the car go down on one corner first before the others or should it have stayed at normal height where i left it. sorry for so many questions.

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Yes, a worn pump seal looks just like that, the teflon seal doesnt make good contact around the piston walls hence no pressure being produced when pumping. You can see this by dissembling the pump.

The final piece to all this is the fact that you say it was slow rising the other day, this is a classic sign of compressor wear due to there not being enough air pressure in the tank to lift the vehicle.

Assuming nothing else was wrong before all this trouble started I think its safe to assume a compressor refurb kit will sort things out.

-Wills