P38A Should you lift a Range Rover? Air/Coil?

Marshall8hp said:

Having had 27 Land Rovers and Range Rovers I can honestly say that the most fun to drive are classics, especially on gravel roads. We developed a technique where when heading towards a sharp corner, you get yourself into the right gear, lift off the power as you start the turn which causes the whole car to start to drift sideways. Once it is pointing in the right direction you stamp the throttle and all four wheels bite and it sends you straight forward. Great on ironstone pebbly roads in the bush.

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I like the technique. Something similar worked well for my Jeep and Land Rovers (no pics of the LRs in action though)

300bhp/ton said:

Well the offer is open to you also. If you want to come and help me; quickly, easily and cheaply fix the EAS. Then I'm all Ears and would be very welcoming with a cup of tea and some biscuits...


RRC's vary hugely. Early ones have very soft springs rates. Latter ones less so. Some also don't have ARB's either. A late 300Tdi Discovery runs much stiffer springs for example.

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If you want it back on air and can drive down the road to Aylesbury then I am happy to swap parts from my scrapper until we find the problem. Busy for the next few weeks but should get a day off towards the end of July.

Grrrrrr said:

If you want it back on air and can drive down the road to Aylesbury then I am happy to swap parts from my scrapper until we find the problem. Busy for the next few weeks but should get a day off towards the end of July.

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Thanks for the offer, that is very kind

That was riveting. Not. How do you put up with that ridiculous exhaust?

wammers said:

That was riveting. Not.

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Bit harsh?

wammers said:

How do you put up with that ridiculous exhaust?

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I like the sound of a V8 (like many others). Inside with the windows up it is a lot more sedate unless you are on it.

This is louder anyway:




And this one is no quieter either:


[GALLERY=][/GALLERY]

300bhp/ton said:

Bit harsh?


I like the sound of a V8 (like many others). Inside with the windows up it is a lot more sedate unless you are on it.

This is louder anyway:




And this one is no quieter either:


[GALLERY=][/GALLERY]

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Sorry but it does nothing for me at all.

300bhp/ton said:

I appreciate the thanks. But I think you are being incredibly naive about modified cars and insurance. Firstly, this is not heavily modified, there are far more heavily modified vehicles legally used and insured on the roads. So I have no idea why you find this unusual.

Secondly, most insurers are happy with modifications. At least a great deal many more than you are suggesting.

As for cost, I insure the p38 for under £200 a year. Fully comp, all mods listed and even an agreed value. It was no bother finding an insurer. I could have used one of a great number of options. As it happens I'm using one of the site sponsors. BTW - I own and insure vastly more modified vehicles than my p38. They too are cheap to insure.

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From your answer it seems I have said that your vehicle is heavily modified, and this is unusual - er no, I didn't. As for the rest - one of us doesn't understand price competition, or how insurers make money. Ask your insurers what your premium would have had if you had not modified the suspension... now go and speak to all the other insurers who insure unmodified vehicles. I'm sure it is me who is being incredibly naive.

romanrob said:

From your answer it seems I have said that your vehicle is heavily modified, and this is unusual - er no, I didn't. As for the rest - one of us doesn't understand price competition, or how insurers make money. Ask your insurers what your premium would have had if you had not modified the suspension... now go and speak to all the other insurers who insure unmodified vehicles. I'm sure it is me who is being incredibly naive.

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Sore looser or what???

If you don't think under £200 is good to insure a p38, you must live on a different planet. Maybe you could find some quotes that are significantly cheaper......

BTW - just updated my insurance on a different vehicle to include some mods. Was 100% standard before. The Princely sum of £40 extra. Although nearly £30 of this was the admin fee for making a change to the insurance. Running a Comparison website for the same broker showed there was an £8 difference in premium for stock to modified.

300bhp/ton said:

Sore looser or what???

If you don't think under £200 is good to insure a p38, you must live on a different planet. Maybe you could find some quotes that are significantly cheaper......

BTW - just updated my insurance on a different vehicle to include some mods. Was 100% standard before. The Princely sum of £40 extra. Although nearly £30 of this was the admin fee for making a change to the insurance. Running a Comparison website for the same broker showed there was an £8 difference in premium for stock to modified.

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Which company is that with, i am sure lots of people on here are dying to know.

What's a looser? II was just trying to make the point that folks forget about the incremental insurance cost of the mod that that's supposed to be saving money. Now you've acknowledged there is an annual cost, that's progress.

I have helped out a few forum folks, but I have no interest in helping you go back to EAS, I don't think we would get on very well. Why do you want to go back to EAS if your coil conversion is so great ? i'm confused, but that's because i'm an incredibly naive looser. Nice video of driving round a grassy field.

wammers said:

Which company is that with, i am sure lots of people on here are dying to know.

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For which?

p38 - Adrian Flux
other vehicle - LV

If I ring them and ask for £200 insurance they will tell me to fook off
Perhaps the V8 is cheaper

romanrob said:

What's a looser? II was just trying to make the point that folks forget about the incremental insurance cost of the mod that that's supposed to be saving money. Now you've acknowledged there is an annual cost, that's progress.

I have helped out a few forum folks, but I have no interest in helping you go back to EAS, I don't think we would get on very well. Why do you want to go back to EAS if your coil conversion is so great ? i'm confused, but that's because i'm an incredibly naive looser. Nice video of driving round a grassy field.

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Apologies just a bit peed off with the general attitude when all I was trying to do was share something fun. Not start a bitching war about something that is completely unrelated to the actual topic. If I wanted legal or insurance advice on mods, I'd have ****ing asked for it, not spent the effort taking pictures of my vehicle off road to demonstrate the suspensions capabilities.

Mods are generally for saving money? Certainly not what I've said or meant. I know I opted for a coil kit instead of throwing money at the EAS. But that's somewhat different. Besides I know I couldn't have got the EAS working for the same outlay, even including the tiny tiny insurance difference. And the decision was based as much on frustration and simply wanting to use the vehicle as it was about money.

I'm not wanting to go back to EAS either. Only folks keep telling me it would be super easy, quick and cheap to fix the EAS. I struggle to believe this, but if anyone proclaiming this wants to prove the point by assisting in getting the EAS working again. I would be very open to listening. Although I honestly believe it would not be quick, cheap or easy. Hence why I'm sort of saying 'ball in your court'. Either accept it isn't, or help me prove it is by coming and showing me how.

Apology accepted.

I also understand the "ball in your court" tactic - although it's a tall ask for busy folks to come round and re-fit someone else's EAS for free (even if I do/ have). So on that basis, sure, if you're ever back on bags i'll be happy to chip in with nano and help work out what's gone wrong. If you stay the right side of Wammers we have a fighting chance of getting there too

romanrob said:

Apology accepted.

I also understand the "ball in your court" tactic - although it's a tall ask for busy folks to come round and re-fit someone else's EAS for free (even if I do/ have). So on that basis, sure, if you're ever back on bags i'll be happy to chip in with nano and help work out what's gone wrong. If you stay the right side of Wammers we have a fighting chance of getting there too

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Thanks. Have got a Nanocom and the RWS software and a data cable from Datatek. I think it was something ECU and/or height sensor going on. But all new sensors (and I know it wanted bags too, although these were not the cause of the problems). This all meant spending out, what £600+ and tbh I was seriously considering getting Arnott Gen 3 springs. But this was just to get me back to the point of diagnosing the problem. Not actually a fix.

None of this explains why the line to air tank ruptured twice. Twice is too much to be coincidence. There was another fundamental problem going on.

300bhp/ton said:

Thanks. Have got a Nanocom and the RWS software and a data cable from Datatek. I think it was something ECU and/or height sensor going on. But all new sensors (and I know it wanted bags too, although these were not the cause of the problems). This all meant spending out, what £600+ and tbh I was seriously considering getting Arnott Gen 3 springs. But this was just to get me back to the point of diagnosing the problem. Not actually a fix.

None of this explains why the line to air tank ruptured twice. Twice is too much to be coincidence. There was another fundamental problem going on.

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Line to air tank does not rupture without outside help. Max it will have to take is around 150 psi it will take more than twice that without blowing. Exhaust leak near it is favourite to cause rupture.

Fitted new rear shocks after work.

A little longer closed length:


A little bit longer again open length


Surprised how easy there were to do. Took the wheel arch lining out on the first one, but it seemed to offer no benefits in doing so. So I didn't bother on the other. Hope the front shocks will be as easy.....

Not really had chance to test them yet. Drove across the paddock to the other side and back, but no road use yet. Will to that tomorrow evening.



Looks like I'll be needing some extended brakes lines though. Not sure which ones to go for (probably a thread in it's own right, will start one).


Assume the line in the middle of the pic is the ABS sensor? That is tighter than the brake line, but looks like there might be a little slack if the rubber grommet will slide down a bit further. Something to look at tomorrow.

Road tested tonight. And shocks seem to have made a big improvement, which is good. I don't think the old ones were exactly knackered, but being lifted meant they were probably too easy to bottoming out. Anyhow, thus far pleased with the rears. I'll be getting the fronts on payday.

Last year I had the same with my pipe to tank I re routed it my eas was all over the place but with a lot of help from wammers data and kurt Johnson I managed to sort it and believe me my friend I'm a complete numpty when I comes to repairs and with wammers saying I've people don't listen then he can't help I eventually got there I don't know what the problem was with your eas but mine kept going back to the wrong heights on one side then it was pointed out u could only program it to move a couple of digits at a time on the nanocom I got there eventually thou