2006 LR3 105,000 miles....... suspension fault light came on and rear drivers side compressor(is there only one compressor?) kept running did not shut off even with car off.... funny smell from that area and the compressor was now off. The compressor ran for at least 30 min. NOW Amber light is on... suspension fault and no compressor noise at all ever.
What's wrong?
Can I drive it 250 miles to my awesome Land Rover mechanic..... Not knowing much & not mechanically gifted I was thinking I blew a compressor?....I made my husband check all fuses that may be associated with this issue and he thought they looked good.

I am a bit worried.
Thank you to anyone that has some information!!

Cathy

 

I heard if the compressor is shot you can't drive it because it will bottom out and you will have no suspension.

 

I believe it will only bottom out if there are leaks from the valve blocks or you try and use access height (but I think the computers are smart enough to lock you into normal height only if it detects the compressor died).

Message on the dash is usually "Suspension Fault - normal height only"

Probably what happened is the air dryer got blocked up over time so the air flow was reduced and that usually results in an amber light and the compressor gets shut down to avoid over heat and burn out. The chamber the compressor rides in is a snug fit with sound insulation and that could be what you smelt if the compressor reached over heat. Or you have an air leak due to piping or a hole in the air reservoir such that the poor old compressor kept running trying to fill it to the shut off pressure. Normally though after two minutes the compressor is shut down and I don't recall it ever running with the car off. So maybe a wiring short kept the compressor going. Did you recently have any quick fit tire work done - it's not uncommon for the compressor cover and/or reservoir to be mistaken as frame jacking points. They're not.

There is a fuse for the air suspension and I think if you pull that then the height sensors won't attempt to release air but I think you should be okay on an amber light - red light maybe not so much.

Good news is that the newer AMK compressor is a better design (although the price did go up about $120 in the past weeks). I have a couple of refurbished compressors if you're interested in saving some money on parts - I decided to go AMK.

 

Are these troublesome compressors and its accessories vulnerable to off roaders or those who stay on road?

Does this system need to be exercised often?

 

Well if you go offroad mudding I think the advice is to check the compressor area by removing the lower cover (three screws and five clips) to check whether it needs cleaning out as a mud encased compressor isn't going to be keeping cool. The sound insulation that is in there unfortunately doubles up as thermal insulation - a snuggie for your compressor.

The compressor is operated every time the vehicle is started for a period to top off the reservoir so it is really being exercised. There is a dryer canister containing silica gel type beads which depending on climate can get clogged as the beads break down, reducing airflow and this is the usual cause for a warning message "reservoir filling too slowly" when you pull the fault codes. It causes an amber warning on the dash with "suspension fault - normal height only" which generally resets each time you restart the car - when you get it every time then it's time to investigate.

You can replace the dryer as a part separate from the compressor (think its about $160) or you can take it apart and sieve off the dust ( be cautious ) and heat the remaining beads in a warm oven for an hour to drive off the accumulated water. When I did this my beads went from 162gram to 142 gram. There are a couple of DIY posts on the forums if you search.

With the age of the LR3 and the mileage, it's probably the original compressor gasping a final death wheeze.

 

Thanks for that explaination!

I was always under the impression that you can lock it in the height you want. When its constantly correcting and susecptible to outside elements, it makes me wonder about the design flaws.

I wonder how the new Jeep Grand Cherokee's copy cat air suspensions are holding up.

 

Yes, you can lock it at the height you want but there are some over rides - I think over a certain speed it will come out of access level and extended height. The point I was trying to make for Cathy was that unless there is an air leak causing the LR to sink to the stops overnight she should be okay to drive at normal height "only" to get her mechanic to look it over. Obviously if the compressor is suspect, taking it down to access height (by letting air out) isn't going to be recoverable from to normal height because of the compressor being shut down or not up to the job. I think the computer won't let you do that though once the fault is flagged. As some have said in other threads, it's reduced function not crippled and stranded. Unless of course her mechanic is in the middle of an off road bog and she needs suspension trickery to get to him ;-)

 

If the truck is still at normal height, you should be fine to drive it, but I wouldn't recommend for an extended amount of time. If the compressor continued to run after shut down, you most likely had the relay stick, and it shut down when the fuse blew due to it overheating. The compressor may be ok for a little bit longer, but will definitely need replacement soon. The fuse is under the hood, link 10, it's a j-case fuse, not a standard style mini fuse. You can swap the relay from the EAS to another, say the heated windshield, but don't install the one that may be bad from the EAS.
I completely agree with replacing it with the AMK unit, much better system.

 

Ahh yes the sticky relay - forgot about that one....that would explain it.

 

Good stuff guys!