Replaceing air with coils

Hi Guys, new to the site and could do with some advice. Have had my p38 for about a month now and suddenly all the lights come on on the eas system and the below 35mph warning comes up. because i have 20" wheels on it now sits on the wheels themselves.

Have been told its best to have the system changed to coils rather than the air system. Have been quoted 655 for the kit and 350 to fit meaning a total cost of about 1000.00.

Does this sound fair?

They have offered to have vehicle in and do a check on it and see if the air system can be repaired but if not cost effective feel it would be better to go to the coil system.

Just thought I ask the people that know before making a final decision.

thanks in Advance.

can download eas unlock software free off internet, be honest with you would be better this way first. EAS can be repaired cheaply and is a crowning feature in my opinion.
Why remove it. could be just a minor repair such as a sensor or pump repair kit. Be careful that it is terminal before parting with a cool 1k

Keep the air suspension - you will have to change a lot of original bits to spend a grand, and most of it is diy able.
Also if its got coils you can knock a wedge off its value - Most buyers (except the muppets at LRO) don't want to touch something thats not original for fear of it being bodged - and lets face it none of these after market kits really cover every thing about spring rates, related damper rates for coils and corrected Anti roll bar rates. Coils behave differently both on and off road - I wouldn't touch a coil kit with a sticky stick

I know the EAS can be a pain at first. But give it a little TLC and learn a bit more about it and everything changes. I have extensive documentation and videos on diagnosing and repairing different EAS problems.
I also am almost certain that you can get the system repaired and running hassle free for years to come for well under 1000USD. Probably more like 400-600 USD. I bet the air springs are original and need replacing.

I also sell hardware for communicating with the EAS. The software that I wrote is free so hopefully that helps with your decision. Let me know if you have any questions.

Videos;
Range Rover EAS Reset Tools
Prodcuts;
Range Rover EAS Reset Tools

And I buy all my replacement parts from Dennis at;
Range Rover Air Suspension repair, advice and troubleshooting by Rover Renovations.

thanks guys for your advice it is very much appreciated.

The problem was there a little bit when i got the car in as much as it sometimes took a while to get upto height if hadnt been started for a while.

the used it every day and was fine until the day it went wrong. Started raising up even when set in manual adjust.

Then left for long journey home, and was fine set at motorway height. The just going through dartford tunnel the lights all lit up and an eas fault came up on the dash. Drive staid the same so i carried on home. As I got to the Stamford roundabout all the lights came up and the dreaded max 35 mph sign came up. then noticed that it was "bottoming out" over bumps but still not too bad. Pulled into garage and turned off to fill up. Started it up to go but was now sitting on the wheels "they are 20""

Had AA drop it off at Local high quality service garage. they ran it through a diagnostic and said it had several issues "didnt say exactly what" and recommended another local guy to work on it and said it would probably be cheaper to fit with coils rather than repair the gas system.

This guy is collecting vehicle and taking back to his work shop. The understanding is he will find out what is wrong and see if it would be cheaper to repair current air system rather than change to coils. he seemed pretty keen on the coil option.

I await his diagnostic but does anybody have any ideas as to what could be the cause?

Many thanks in advance.

baddad said:

This guy is collecting vehicle and taking back to his work shop. The understanding is he will find out what is wrong and see if it would be cheaper to repair current air system rather than change to coils. he seemed pretty keen on the coil option.
I

Click to expand...

Sorry for being blunt but of course he's going to be keen on coils, he thinks he's got a muppet willing to pay him £350 for 2hrs work (not to mention £200 profit on the coils as well) and he hasn't got to work on the eas.
Please do yourself a favour and check out the links provided above (Malafax), the air system is mostly diy-able, most likely causes are leaks, worn compressor seal, height sensor, drive box.
Follow the vids and check for yourself, it really is easy to find the most common faults.

Hi guys thought Id give you an update.

Specialist has picked up car and taken to his work shop. Put through diagnostic and said that the valve block had gone and also the compressor. Said that the cost of replacing these was nearly as much converting to coils (he had quoted £1000).


I have purchased a emergency manual pump system from ebay which he has agreed to fit to get me out of trouble.


Im going to purchase the diagnostic gear myself (again through ebay) and find out myself what needs doing and then calculate the amount for parts required and shop around for prices to get them installed.

I will ofcourse give the guy the chance to quote for both supplying and installing the parts and will also pay him for collecting vehicle and for the work he has carried out just think £1000 is very steep.

Thanks again for all your help it is very much appreciated, once ive got prices etc i will ofcourse post the details and the out come.

baddad said:

Im going to purchase the diagnostic gear myself (again through ebay) and find out myself what needs doing and then calculate the amount for parts required and shop around for prices to get them installed.

Click to expand...

Well, for £17.50 you can get a valve block rebuild kit here:

Range Rover P38 EAS VALVE BLOCK Diaphragm Repair on eBay, also, Range Rover, Car Parts, Cars, Parts Vehicles (end time 29-Nov-08 07:57:55 GMT)

and for another £93 you can get a compressor rebuild kit here:

Range Rover P38 EAS Air Suspension Pump Compressor Kit on eBay, also, Range Rover, Car Parts, Cars, Parts Vehicles (end time 30-Nov-08 18:08:00 GMT)

Seems to be a lot less than £1000......not sure why you need to buy diagnostic gear, just buy a cable for around £27 and download the free EAS software. You can get the cable and the s/w from here:

Range Rover EAS Reset Tools - EAS Serial Cable

**** the air suspension if you want time off the maintenance.I got THESE and will check for mot n thats it.I have to say the ride on road is a little stiff but i put a 2" lift coil kit on so i can have real tires.All ok now.maintenance free.

Don't discount a coil conversion completely - I changed mine to coils this spring and haven't looked back
The handling and steering response is far better than it ever was on air - I also regularly tow a trailer or a caravan with no issues at all
It makes it more of a drivers car if you want to "press on" cross country - I always found the steering responce and feel a little vague on air
It's kinda nice jumping in to the car in the morning knowing the EAS isn't going to be a problem
I spent a lot of time looking for the right kit and eventually went for this one :- Range Rover 1995 - 2002 Coil Spring Conversion Kit
Don't fit heavy duty or extra height springs - you will kill the handling/ride
The spring rating/height setting is just right, and it's an easy DIY job to fit - I did mine in a few hours on the drive
I also managed to sell all the EAS bits for more than the cost of the conversion, which was nice
If you do decide to rebuild then I have an unused valve block repair kit that you can have cheap and also 10m of air line if its of any use

v8kenny said:

If you do decide to rebuild then I have an unused valve block repair kit that you can have cheap and also 10m of air line if its of any use

Click to expand...

Isuppose 10 miles of hose would las a month or two with the amount of times it breaks:hysterically_laughi

go springs and be done with it.