P38 EAS issues airloss/self selecting height/height hunting

P38Rover said:

Okay thanks for the confirmation! Iam going to go to sleep now,while you all are getting up! I will update tomorrow after I inspect everything. Should I even bother swapping drive packs?

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Not yet, clean valves and see what you get.

P38Rover said:

RR.net is a rubbish place to be so thats what I think about that Id much rather hang out here..

My ultimate plan was to get the EAS working well and reliable with all factory equipment. And then get some Arnott Gen3s for the extra articulation(not lift,good to know).. Then I could keep the known good factory Dunlops as spares for the trail.

Okay, so the only way to truly lift the p38 is by tricking it into thinking everything is normal. And so we must play its game by its own rules then.....I see now, thanks for your insight

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Even if you "lift" it by tricking the ECU the diff will still be at the same height and banging boulders without bigger wheels. Cannot think of a way around that with solid axles.

Winch: I have a TU16 Tirfor winch with 15m cable, straps and associated bits. That way I am not reliant on electrics or engine and can pull in any direction. Normally you drive in and need pulling back out. It can also be used around the garden or to pull the missus out the cake shop.

Mark Piercy said:

We all have these relationships with our buses, some more than others. It takes time, patience, unfortunately money and a real passion to stick with these machines. But they are a different machine from the rest of the available 4x4's and do have they're own character.... You'd regret getting rid of her... I've not had mine since the 19th of July because of an insurance claim I wish I'd never had made... I WANT MY FūCKING RANGE ROVER BACK!!..
Anyhoo... Stick in there, we'll fix it together.

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Speak for yourself, mine has given very little trouble in over 9 years and after the initial expenditure on new airbags, valve block and compressor overhaul etc and a stainless exhaust has cost the best part of bugger all apart from routine maintenance

Grrrrrr said:

Even if you "lift" it by tricking the ECU the diff will still be at the same height and banging boulders without bigger wheels. Cannot think of a way around that with solid axles.

Winch: I have a TU16 Tirfor winch with 15m cable, straps and associated bits. That way I am not reliant on electrics or engine and can pull in any direction. Normally you drive in and need pulling back out. It can also be used around the garden or to pull the missus out the cake shop.

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My Ultimate,ultimate plan was to get a welder and learn to weld. Then I could make unlimited mounts and relocation brackets and a host of other off-road equipment not available for these rigs. Also I have been mentally preparing myself to cut the doors and fenders so I can fit bigger wheels. But if i cannot get the EAS working reliably, then nothing further will be getting done and she will be downgraded to grocery getter or less..

I hear you on not relying on the electrics. Plus I really dont appreciate the permanent added weight of the winch, mount or available angles such as if I got stuck on a steep hillside headfirst. We dont have tirfors easily available here. But we do have pullers! I use a "More power puller" rated at 3 tons dead lift. I also have a couple snatch blocks, line extenders, tree straps, and a set of Maxtraxs. For the most part...I can self rescue and can go and have been, to places where a lot bigger rigs ask how I got there . A winch is just so much more convenient sometimes when you want to get going quick..

Datatek said:

Speak for yourself, mine has given very little trouble in over 9 years and after the initial expenditure on new airbags, valve block and compressor overhaul etc and a stainless exhaust has cost the best part of bugger all apart from routine maintenance

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Besides the EAS I have actually had a very similar experience. I bought the truck when she was on her last legs..She was obviously neglected.. Almost nothing worked and almost everything leaked(inside and out) also she had these horrible coils for her suspension. The only real thing that was a positive was she had a new aftermarket heated windshield. Other than that I have done heatercore orings, oil coolers and lines, rocker covers, injectors, u joints, drag links,track arms, brakes and rotors, door latches, key fob repair, Hevac motors and fans, shocks, window motors, window glass, and stopped a host of other interior leaks such as from the roof joints, front footwells,and spare tire swimming pool leak. Also changed the interior seats for newer and redid some of my headliner. And of course normal maintenance has brought her up to speed..

Now that Ive caught up with all the neglected stuff. I was trying to "treat her" and put her back to EAS now that shes been problem free for quite awhile. However, I may have made a mistake and I am not sure if I can trust this moody bitch many miles away from any town. But up until now Ive been diligently telling people that LandRovers are no different to work on than any other car when they say "ohh I bet maintenance is expensive"...

P38Rover said:

My Ultimate,ultimate plan was to get a welder and learn to weld. Then I could make unlimited mounts and relocation brackets and a host of other off-road equipment not available for these rigs. Also I have been mentally preparing myself to cut the doors and fenders so I can fit bigger wheels. But if i cannot get the EAS working reliably, then nothing further will be getting done and she will be downgraded to grocery getter or less..

I hear you on not relying on the electrics. Plus I really dont appreciate the permanent added weight of the winch, mount or available angles such as if I got stuck on a steep hillside headfirst. We dont have tirfors easily available here. But we do have pullers! I use a "More power puller" rated at 3 tons dead lift. I also have a couple snatch blocks, line extenders, tree straps, and a set of Maxtraxs. For the most part...I can self rescue and can go and have been, to places where a lot bigger rigs ask how I got there . A winch is just so much more convenient sometimes when you want to get going quick..

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Look up Range Rover Evolution or 996Turbo as he is known on here. Was in France and made some nice mods for the P38. Not seen for a while though. Had some great videos.

No real update today besides shes being a little moody as usual. But at least now shes on the nicer side of things. Everything has been working really well today..After depleting the tank a few times throughout the day, she has danced only a few times, like maybe only 3 or 4 times.. When normally if left alone she would cycle through the dance 7-8x during one fill of the tank. So Ive left her alone for now,I parked her up in the most flat spot available to me and I will measure heights again in the morning. I believe that she was sitting just right this morning too...

Maybe my valve block is starting to settle itself down? As long as she keeps working well, I really dont care! Well see how she feels tomorrow...

Do you have standard height shocks? aftermarket shocks may add to the height a little (5mm point).
I have 32” tyres that work on a 2”lift. That’s about the max you can fit in the lateral gap of the wheel arch before you have to start chopping fenders and lifting way up. It slows it down a little particularly pulling off and does cause more wear to clutch and shafts etc but nothing ridiculous and the extra clearance between diff/ground is noticeable. Ideally il get it up on lifted EAS eventually but like you I have to get it up to scratch before looking for trouble

RangeRoller dt said:

Do you have standard height shocks? These will add to the height a little (5mm point).
I have 32” tyres that work on a 2”lift. That’s about the max you can fit in the lateral gap of the wheel arch before you have to start chopping fenders and lifting way up. It slows it down a little particularly pulling off and does cause more wear to clutch and shafts etc but nothing ridiculous and the extra clearance between diff/ground is noticeable. Ideally il get it up on lifted EAS eventually but like you I have to get it up to scratch before looking for trouble

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I have some standard height Bilsteins now and once I sort this EAS out I have some extended Terrafirmas waiting to be installed. And I believe my tires are just under 32" so I know what you mean especially about the extra clearance.. I was hoping to get into some 33s or 34s with Gen3s but I might have to wait to learn how to weld first haha..

P38Rover said:

No real update today besides shes being a little moody as usual. But at least now shes on the nicer side of things. Everything has been working really well today..After depleting the tank a few times throughout the day, she has danced only a few times, like maybe only 3 or 4 times.. When normally if left alone she would cycle through the dance 7-8x during one fill of the tank. So Ive left her alone for now,I parked her up in the most flat spot available to me and I will measure heights again in the morning. I believe that she was sitting just right this morning too...

Maybe my valve block is starting to settle itself down? As long as she keeps working well, I really dont care! Well see how she feels tomorrow...

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Why are you depleting tank? With tank empty leave drivers door open and start engine. Wait for five to six minutes and close door. Rear should rise first then front, it will then wriggle a bit and should settle at standard height. With empty tank and doors closed of course it will go up in stages as air pressure rises.

P38Rover said:

I have some standard height Bilsteins now and once I sort this EAS out I have some extended Terrafirmas waiting to be installed. And I believe my tires are just under 32" so I know what you mean especially about the extra clearance.. I was hoping to get into some 33s or 34s with Gen3s but I might have to wait to learn how to weld first haha..

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If you fit extended shocks to standard bags you may well blow the bags off their mounts on full articulation. Moral of the story is don't take the bloody thing where it is not designed to go. A standard car will not compete with modified ones.

wammers said:

Why are you depleting tank? With tank empty leave drivers door open and start engine. Wait for five to six minutes and close door. Rear should rise first then front, it will then wriggle a bit and should settle at standard height. With empty tank and doors closed of course it will go up in stages as air pressure rises.

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Yup she always rises just fine in the morning. I can go all the way up to wade height instantly from access right after startup.. During the day today I was just playing with the switch until the PSI drops below 80-100psi because thats usually when she dances a lot with the compressor on/off..But it hasnt happend but 3-4x today...weird day, maybe the calibration finally did it...

P38Rover said:

Yup she always rises just fine in the morning. I can go all the way up to wade height instantly from access right after startup.. During the day today I was just playing with the switch until the PSI drops below 80-100psi because thats usually when she dances a lot with the compressor on/off..But it hasnt happend but 3-4x today...weird day, maybe the calibration finally did it...

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Maybe they tend to work best when set up correctly.

wammers said:

If you fit extended shocks to standard bags you may well blow the bags off their mounts on full articulation. Moral of the story is don't take the bloody thing where it is not designed to go. A standard car will not compete with modified ones.

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Yeah I was wondering about that too...I had thought that I could do something to make it play nice but I dont know if thats possible now..Ill just have to wait and see if Gen3s are in the future. And she handles just fine off-road...I could build an old Jeep like alot of people over here, but it lacks the class and comfort of the Range Rover. Especially now with the EAS working the ride quality on rough roads is superb. I would like to see how far I can take her with the EAS..

wammers said:

Maybe they tend to work best when set up correctly.

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I hope so! Thankyou very much for all your help!

Dont put extended shocks on standard airbags you will have an accident on articulation. You need more modification for those shocks - usually involving coils or even more serious EAS mods.
Any more than +2” with 32’s the shaft angle will be too much and itl handle crap and keep breaking shafts/diffs/gearboxes
For 33”+ you will need serious modifications before they will fit, and more if you want to be able to turn the wheels.

Without proper mods like bump stops that work! If you pop a bag you are in s**t street - and anyone else you crash into

RangeRoller dt said:

For 33”+ you will need serious modifications before they will fit, and more if you want to be able to turn the wheels.

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I’ve managed to stop the front wheels catching arches when suspension compresses under load but still get rubber marks on the panhard rods, and that’s above your maximum height

If you don’t believe me - whack it in access height, lock the wheel (left or right), then drive. Your Landy will tear itself apart
You can probably imagine what will happen if it goes on the highway

RangeRoller dt said:

I’ve managed to stop the front wheels catching arches when suspension compresses under load but still get rubber marks on the panhard rods, and that’s above your maximum height
View attachment 186822
If you don’t believe me - whack it in access height, lock the wheel (left or right), then drive. Your Landy will tear itself apart
You can probably imagine what will happen if it goes on the highway

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She looks great!

This morning she sat almost perfectly level and the fronts have actually lost some air for once. Every corner was down about 20mm in 12hours. And she cycled the compressor only once while filling the tank from 70psi-full.

Lets hope that it continues to stay this way. Im guessing that an oring eventually seated it self to seal properly. Or maybe the little rubber foot on the bottom of the valves finally found itself a new seat?

I dont know what happened... but shes working well and Iam glad I dont have to remove the valveblock again!