Hi ‘Saint’ and thanks for responding……I’ll keep this as short and sweet as possible!
TD6 2003 HSE.
Air suspension issue…..in the course of sorting this out since I’ve bought it I have,
Replaced a weak compressor,
Replaced all four height sensors,
Taken off and cleaned all of the block valves ncluding blowing all air lines through, stripping and cleaning valves and checking electric solenoids, all good.
Replaced battery on the vehicle ( first thing I did).
I use an Autel 808 BT scanner which is great for all my needs on this and other motors I have.
I’ve recalibrated the suspension (twice) to be sure and it works perfectly………except!
When I switch from standard height to access mode the rear drops like a stone……but the front axle takes forever, gets halfway down then starts to rise again. If I hold the dash button in the access position it will go down, come up then eventually creep down to where it should be and the dash light shows access height. When I select back to standard or off road height it rises on both axles quickly, evenly and steadily. No fault codes coming up, sensors (voltages) seem to be as they should be and compressor is running up to 11.7 bar and venting through the exhaust port as you’d expect. I have tried EVERTYTHING to get to the bottom of this and just can’t seem to crack it……any ideas please?? Thanks in anticipation.
I have to admit, you have done a very comprehensive bunch of work, more than most would have attempted to try and correct the fault and keep the system in fine fettle, so little else I could add aside from...the only thing that I would next consider is a crack in the valve block causing pressure to leak from the rear as it is dropping into the front keeping it raised and then when the rear has dropped, this allows the front to follow.
Admittedly, this is a 'clutching at straws' answer as everything else you have done and checked appears to be correct and in spec.
Unlike the P38, the L322 doesn't do 'Lower front, then Rear' or when raising 'Raise Rear, then Front' to prevent dazzling others with a 'rear low, nose high' issue should it occur that the front takes longer to lower, as the L322 has auto-adjusting headlights whereas the P38 relied on the EAS to keep the headlamps levelled so as not to dazzle others! So, when the L322 gets the signal to lower, it opens all 4 valves to lower the car simultaneously.
If there are hairline cracks in the valve block leaking pressure to where it shouldn't be, then there is a possibility of the system not lowering or moving as expected - not sure why holding the switch in the access position helps, that is an odd one I admit.
When raising - as the pressure from the tank is going in the opposite direction, the cracks in the block will make little difference as it is there to fill and not vent and as such the system would appear to work normally...if that makes sense.
The Pneumatic diagram in RAVE doesn't show the exact routing through the valve block so it cannot be determined if cracks in the block will do as I suggest above as I don't know how the galleries are routed and if cracks would indeed cause this to happen, but the valve blocks have been known to crack and fail causing a multitude of issues that are otherwise dumbfounding., and from what you have already done, is the final piece in the puzzle if, as you say, have checked everything else.
The system is simple in operation and layout, and the only part left unchecked in your list is pressure testing the valve block or replacing with a known good one.
As I said above, this is very much a clutching at straws answer as you have done pretty much everything else. Can I also assume you have had the EAS ECU out and checked it for water damage or corrosion of the connections and plugs, as this is also a known issue!
Keep us updated on further findings, and I hope the above can assist in some way.
Good luck, Ant