this is common. have on of my customers discos in the front yard right now that I finished a couple of days ago. first, if the lights are going out after cycling the ignition, its not set a hard code YET! good. the most common issues are two fold. #1 the left front speed sensors are common failure items due to the design coupled with continuity issues. the updated sensor is a one piecer with a harness that goes from the left hub, into the engine compartment (just below the master cylinder, and then to a plug. From there it joins the rest of the harness into the firewall and over to the slabs unit which is under the kick panel on the passenger side front. You need to check to see if its still the original sensor. if not, depending on your knowledge of electrical diagnostics, you'll want to check for proper AND consistant signal from the sensor. Its a sine wave and the sensor is sealed via oring in the hub and a reluctor wheel picks up the signal sending it to the slabs unit which overseas the traction control, abs and ride height. Hence the "triad" of lights coming on intermittently. (hopefully intermittently at this point) If its the old sensor, I replace em cause its a safety issue for one, and two, its gonna fail eventually. the new one involves yarding out the old one, running the whole 12 foot harness to the slabs unit, splicing the wiring into the correct pins #1 and #2 of the correct harness pigtail (5 if it has air bags in back) and that's one issue. There are 4 speed sensors but that's the best bet. The second issue on these is the shuttle valves, two of them but only one piece. The ABS modulator assembly is almost $2200 bucks from LR but you can get the shuttle valve part and the valve body half for a lot less. I replace them instead of the whole thing cause that's the weak part. Bottom line though is nothing beats doing the actual trouble shooting first to confirm the codes and the actual issue. Codes aren't answers, just a guide. Oh, and its gonna take more than an OBD II scanner to do that. You'll need test book, rovacom ugh! or T4 for example. Biggest and most important thing to remember, it's safety at its best and saves lives. Don't let it go, you may only truly need it once, but there is only one you. get it. by the way, I drive em home and around the island for a few days after cause just getting to my house involves a dirt road full of fun stuff to activate the system, jog the wiring and shake the hell out of the system. Intermittent ABS issues are best left to the pro's and most of us dont take it lightly. I used to be a firefighter and first responder to car accidents so I've bagged a friend or two and always wonder, what if?? what if someone had just "fixed" that car, coulda been anyone. brakes and traction control are very important, My P38 (may it rest in pieces) saved my butt on ice once and although it was destroyed, I walked away. Had it been another, lesser vehicle, well, who knows. okay, enough of that, but to let you know, its common and its fixable but you gotta have the tools in the box and in the head to get it done right.

 

Mike. I wanted to see if the abs worked when the lights were on. I'm not completely illiterate about mechanics. I owned a shop for several years and was a line tech for many more at a couple of dealers. I'm just new to the LR trucks. Lots of little differences on them. I like to check everything before I spend uneeded money. And thanks for all the help you guve out. I wouldnt have guessed that dust could cause it. One of the little quirks of these things.

Anyway, swaped the shocks and springs this morning. That was the easiest package I ever installed. Took less than 2 hours to do all 4 corners with my 9 year old helping and slowing me a bit. But made it more fun. BTW. What a difference. Lifted it about 3-4 inches in the fromt with the stock height springs. Old shocks were completely dead.

Onto the lights. The brakes are in great shape. The pads look pretty new. There is of course brake dust but not really excessive. So I am going to blow the brake areas out and see if this helps. If this doesnt do the job then I need to look at the wheel sensors which probably means a trip to a shop to pull codes.

I can do the fix once I know for sure what it is. The guy I got the LR from may have the tools needed to check codes.

Thanks for the info Mike and Bandit.

 

Do your brakes squeak, this is a common cause for the lights to come on.
If you go for codes, don't just start replacing parts, clear the codes and drive it some more, if they come back then get back to us and let us know what is showing up.
Mike

 

Update. The lights still come on after a bit of driving. But the other day they came on while it was running but parked in a parking lot. I wasnt moving at all. Does this help with the diagnosis? I havent checked codes or replaced any parts yet.

 

Lets try a new approach to your issue. Take the damm truck to a shop, when the lights are on, that has a scanner capable of reading the ABS codes, get the fault codes read and get back to us. This guessing game gets old quick.
Take care

 

Dang Mike. Have a bad night or something. Your supposedly the guru here on these trucks. I read that if the lights arent on when you restart the truck that a hard code isnt set yet. AND I dont know a shop that is going to pull codes right when you drive onto the lot. They are going to keep the truck all day and check it later when guess what, the lights arent on any longer and theres no guarantee that they will come on if they dont drive it far enough. It runs for 20-30 miles esasily sometimes and more before it comes on. The dealer or shop isnt going to spend an hour diving it. I'll get the normal call for these kinds of things. " we couldnt duplicate the problem "

So thanks for the help.
Take care.

 

No, I had a nice quiet night with some of my Grand Kids.
I just happened to reread all your posts on this sometime frustrating topic and realized that this has been going on for 21 days without getting it to a shop while the lights are on.
Just so you know, if your mechanic has the correct scanner and you let him know the lights come and go, they will usually be understanding and do the 5 minute test without an appointment.
Take care and let us know what you find out.

 

I hear you Mike. I hate these types of problems myself. Sorry if I got harsh, it was a bad day. I just know that you know that we know that you know the most about these trucks.That was good wasnt it. SOO. I wanted to get you all the info I can in hopes it would help. I dont have any local shops were I am that I can just take it to. I own a business and have lots of places to be all the time. So when the lights come on I cant just make the drive to Austin to the dealer in hopes that they can check it on the spot. I could be a couple of hours away when they come on. If they come on. It's really frustrating.

 

Start calling around to some of your local small shops, especially ones that handle Jags and BMW's. Many of these shops will have a mix of mechanics experiences and hopefully a scanner that can read your ABS faults.
If you find one and your lights come on, just don't turn your engine off till they can scan the system.