Dreaded self-levelling(self-destructing) suspension issues........help!
Posted: Thu Jun 25, 2015 4:52 pm
Hello all,
Here is a picture of my 4.8is
She's bog standard but i like her like that.
Sadly, this picture was taken back in the glory days, before a thing called self-levelling suspension ruined my life.
It all started with the off-side front, getting up in the morning to find her lurched over to a degree that would embarrass the local drunk. After starting her up she would return to normal height, which was fine, but i knew this was not normal operation and knowing nothing about self-levelling suspension i took her off to my local independent specialist.
So, straight off the bat, my indy said it would be the pump. Coming in at over £500(non-OEM) it was a lot of money but their confidence was reassuring so i went for it, turns out that didn't work, so i left it with them. A week later I pop in to see how they are getting on. They told me they've checked all the bags thoroughly and they are fine, so unfortunately, it's looking like it's the ECU. Can't remember the price they quoted but it's probably because my brain has refused to acknowledge the event ever happened. Then, my only bit of luck in this sorry affair came in to play. As he had the autologic gizmo plugged in to the car and he was lifting the car up and down to show it wasn't the bag, there was an almighty rush of air as the bag finally gave out, hurrah, it wasn't the ECU and the bag gave out just before i paid for one........thank god!!
So i ordered a new bag (£200 arnott i think), got it fitted, self-levellling warning cleared, job done. That lasted about 2 weeks then the near-side front bag went which i wasn't too concerned about as it was a straight blow out and super-easy to diagnose. Ordered a new bag, got it fitted, self-levellling warning cleared, job done.
I then went on to have 9 months of perfectly level trouble free motoring until, yet again, the self-levelling suspension warning came on. Back to the indy, who found a rear sensor to be at fault. Ordered a new sensor (a reasonable £70), got it fitted, self-levelling warning cleared, job done. Only a month or so later the self-destructing warning light came back on, so, back to the indy, who is saying that i am now needing another height sensor and a new EHC2 module coming in at around £1200 including fitting and calibration.
I have tried to keep the car standard as possible which i why i have hung in with the air suspension but i cant afford to keep throwing money at it, especially as my indy says that it was the sensor that wrecked the module, so really, i could shell out the £1200, replace the sensor and module only for another sensor to blow the module again next month :evilmad:.
I am now resigned to the fact that as i don't earn 150k+ a year i don't have the funds to be able to keep air suspension in my life, so i'm ripping it out, but i am having trouble finding out just whats involved in it. Most of the posts i read are concerning rear air suspension only, as are the conversion kits i find online. The rear looks easy enough to do so i am going to have a crack at this myself but can anyone please tell me where i can find information on the removal of 4 corner air suspension and also where i can find the replacement parts i require?
As i said earlier i like the standard look so do not want springs that drop her to the floor, truth be told, i actually preferred her during her crazy period when she had jacked herself up even higher but although she looked mean as s**t the ride was also s**t, so i will settle for standard height.
Thanks for reading my post, any information on the above will be most welcome.
Here is a picture of my 4.8is
She's bog standard but i like her like that.
Sadly, this picture was taken back in the glory days, before a thing called self-levelling suspension ruined my life.
It all started with the off-side front, getting up in the morning to find her lurched over to a degree that would embarrass the local drunk. After starting her up she would return to normal height, which was fine, but i knew this was not normal operation and knowing nothing about self-levelling suspension i took her off to my local independent specialist.
So, straight off the bat, my indy said it would be the pump. Coming in at over £500(non-OEM) it was a lot of money but their confidence was reassuring so i went for it, turns out that didn't work, so i left it with them. A week later I pop in to see how they are getting on. They told me they've checked all the bags thoroughly and they are fine, so unfortunately, it's looking like it's the ECU. Can't remember the price they quoted but it's probably because my brain has refused to acknowledge the event ever happened. Then, my only bit of luck in this sorry affair came in to play. As he had the autologic gizmo plugged in to the car and he was lifting the car up and down to show it wasn't the bag, there was an almighty rush of air as the bag finally gave out, hurrah, it wasn't the ECU and the bag gave out just before i paid for one........thank god!!
So i ordered a new bag (£200 arnott i think), got it fitted, self-levellling warning cleared, job done. That lasted about 2 weeks then the near-side front bag went which i wasn't too concerned about as it was a straight blow out and super-easy to diagnose. Ordered a new bag, got it fitted, self-levellling warning cleared, job done.
I then went on to have 9 months of perfectly level trouble free motoring until, yet again, the self-levelling suspension warning came on. Back to the indy, who found a rear sensor to be at fault. Ordered a new sensor (a reasonable £70), got it fitted, self-levelling warning cleared, job done. Only a month or so later the self-destructing warning light came back on, so, back to the indy, who is saying that i am now needing another height sensor and a new EHC2 module coming in at around £1200 including fitting and calibration.
I have tried to keep the car standard as possible which i why i have hung in with the air suspension but i cant afford to keep throwing money at it, especially as my indy says that it was the sensor that wrecked the module, so really, i could shell out the £1200, replace the sensor and module only for another sensor to blow the module again next month :evilmad:.
I am now resigned to the fact that as i don't earn 150k+ a year i don't have the funds to be able to keep air suspension in my life, so i'm ripping it out, but i am having trouble finding out just whats involved in it. Most of the posts i read are concerning rear air suspension only, as are the conversion kits i find online. The rear looks easy enough to do so i am going to have a crack at this myself but can anyone please tell me where i can find information on the removal of 4 corner air suspension and also where i can find the replacement parts i require?
As i said earlier i like the standard look so do not want springs that drop her to the floor, truth be told, i actually preferred her during her crazy period when she had jacked herself up even higher but although she looked mean as s**t the ride was also s**t, so i will settle for standard height.
Thanks for reading my post, any information on the above will be most welcome.