My first Rangey

[ROLO]

Hi guys,

Bought my first rangey a few weeks ago, a 1999 4.0, now fondly known as "the big girl". I wish I'd found this forum before I'd bought, didn't know about all the engine/cooling issues. Funnily enough though, I don't think it would have stopped me, just maybe look a bit closer at what I was buying.

I'm reasonably handy with the spanners and I think I'll have my work cut out. I'm losing coolant at a fair rate, about 1L per week (not doing many k's though), so keeping a close eye on that. It appears to be leaking from the back of the engine, left hand side I think, can't see properly. Also, losing oil from the front, either crank seal or front cover. So I'm planning to tackle both issues in one go. Just now putting together a list of spares and tools I'll need.

Also EAS issues with the height going up and down whenever she's stopped. No pattern to it that I've cottoned onto so far.

This forum is excellent in getting familiar with the problems and solutions, so glad to be a part of it.

One quick question. How do I do a search on the forum to focus in on the info you're after. I've done searches using keywords, but can they be used with " " or + etc to find phrases or groups of words in one thread. I seem to get the same results whatever I try and a lot of seemingly unrelated threads.

Cheers
rolo

[wayneg]

Welcome aboard
The search function is a bit random but you seem to have got the idea. Try searching in the good oil section and diagnostics for more possible hits and dont be afraid to ask here.
Hopefully your water loss is a weeping head gasket, as you have no doubt read on no account let the car overheat as this could be very expensive.
Front crank oil seal leaks seem standard, mine marks its territory in the garage with a drip or two every day but it never impacts on the oil level so I live with it.
The EAS self levels when the car is left so random heights can occur. Check for leaks on the airsprings and valve block with soapy water.

[whisky_mac]

Welcome aboard. It has not been mentioned yet, drop into the shop and by the Rave CD. A complete manual on CD and reading the thing on the shop, the sales help to offset the cost of running the site. I have had my P38 for a couple of years now and feel confident to bend spanners on some things now so have just ordered Rave for myself.

[Craig_Keira]

Rolo, its quite possible that the height is changing according to speed. More than 30s over 80km/h and it drops to Motorway. Under (I think) 55 for >30s and it goes to standard.

There are a LOT of interesting, informative and very unselfishly helpful people here. That said, read the owner's manual before you drive around too much. Otherwise, you will think it has a mind of it's own! There is logic to what's going on. I read mine cover to cover a couple of times and I still come up with some dumb questions. I've had mine 2 weeks now.

[PeterH]

Hi Rolo, welcome to the forum, certainly a great place to find out all sorts of stuff about your Rangie.
Can you describe what the EAS is doing in a bit more detail?
The EAS sometimes does things that can appear to be a fault, when it may be working normally.
When parked, the EAS tries to level itself, sometimes you can hear it go round and round until it finally lowers itself to the ground.

I recently replaced a leaking airspring, (very easy job to do), it had a slight leak, but only when the spring was at certain heights. The rubber on the spring can perish over time and cause slow leaks. In the mornings, sometimes mine was down on the bump stops, other times it was still fully inflated. As soon as I replaced the sping, the problem was solved. If you do have a leaky spring, you only need to replace the leaky one, not the pair.
Here's a really good read about EAS:
Air Suspension Faults, Diagnosis and Repair (http://www.rangerovers.net/repairdetails/airsuspension/index.html)

[RR P38]

Good stuff there Rolo.
If the cooling system is in good order you will not have any issues at all.
I have had my P38 over 10yrs and never had any cooling issues.
Most of the EAS problems once identified are relatively easy to fix.
I see you are in Sydney if you are inner west im happy to have a look at things some time for you and offer up some advice.

[Grumbles]

Hi guys,

I'm losing coolant at a fair rate, about 1L per week (not doing many k's though), so keeping a close eye on that. It appears to be leaking from the back of the engine, left hand side I think, can't see properly.

Also EAS issues with the height going up and down whenever she's stopped. No pattern to it that I've cottoned onto so far.



The coolant leak could be the valley gasket - common on these LR V8s.

The EAS - try driving around with it locked in to standard ride height and see how you go.

[ROLO]

I don't know what just happened. I typed a detailed reply to answer the many helpful responses and it appears to have disappeared into the ether after pressing the submit reply button. I obviously did something wrong. Will try again later.

In the mean time, thanks for all your helpful replies.

cheers
rolo

[Grumbles]

A hint - It's often safer to type up your post in 'Word" and then copy and paste it into the "Reply" panel on AULRO. :D

[ROLO]

Busy weekend so only just getting back to have another go at detailing the issues and following Grumbles advice, I’m doing it on Word in case I lose it gain.

The EAS issues are mainly when parked. Sometimes she'll go down to the bumpstops, other times its high at the back and yet others it lists over to one side, usually passenger side. The latter probably due to me getting out on the driver’s side and taking some weight off. It’s all quite random. I’ve also noticed sometimes if I open a door to retrieve something after beng left sometime, the solenoids start to click and suspension adjusts itself after closing doors again. High speed settings appear to operate normally. I have had an EAS fault message about 3 times when driving, but the suspension does not seem to adjust to bumpstops and it re-sets after switching off for a few minutes. At least one of these occasions I’m pretty sure was due to the tailgate not being properly closed. I have soapy water tested for leaks, all except the rear springs and probably not all connections inside the EAS solenoid valve box.

I hope the coolant leak is only the valley manifold gasket. I’m planning to accumulate a few spares and start taking bits off until I find something. I’m starting to have nightmares about the blown head gaskets, slipped liners and cracked blocks.

One of the reasons I bought this RR was that it has had quite a few things done over the last few years. It’s had head gaskets, camshafts, rocker gear, air springs and compressor all done, so I didn’t expect to be doing this so soon. Anyway, it’s a good opportunity to get to know the old girl. Thanks for the offer RR P38, I may have to take you up on it. I’m in the Shire, God’s country.

One other thing, I managed to get hold of a copy of Microcat but it keeps telling me it’s out of date and won’t open up. Any ideas?

[wayneg]

If you cant find any external leaks and it has not been done before I would seriously look to changing all the seals within the EAS valve block. This might sound daunting however there are great diy instructions available and its quite straight forward if you give yourself time and room to do it. 4 -5 hrs
I would have the EAS software and cable at least to test the system beforehand and after the re-con.
Opening and shutting the doors when parked sets the solenoids off, thats normal. If there is a small leak the car will gradually level itself to the lower corner until its on the bump stops when left parked, Thats not that bad as long as she springs back up once started.
The car listing to one side or corner is not normal so something is amiss.

[PeterAllen]

Sounds like you may have a few issues.
First thing I would suggest is download the Storey Wilson software and either make a suitable cable or buy one from Hard range to connect the EAS to your computer. Use an older laptop with a serial connection to avoid probable connection and communication problems with USB.
Then you can test many components and still be able to reset any faults generated.
I have just fixed mine and had faults in the solenoids , pressure switch and leaking airbags.
If you suspect a leaking bag (sounds like you do) when you pull the airline out of the valve block there is little pressure. I have done tests on mine numerous times now trying to isolate the prob and I do not depressurise the system before removing the air lines (others may not agree with me on this) and found the faulty bag air line had way less air pressure than the good bags. ( note this was done after the car was sitting for a little while)
The O ring valve block repair is not that bad and there are a few more issues with the solenoids then just the o rings to ensure proper operation, in particular the seating of the top rubber cap on the inner solenoid shaft and the bottom rubber seal on its base.
The instruction from Paul at Hard Range are great for the valveblock rebuild and if you check these other areas on the solenoid shafts then you should be able to rule out that area as the cause.
As a by product of this process you get very familiar with the EAS and its operation.
Hope this helps

[mechanic2you]

Rollo

I'm in the shire most days so if you would like me to take a look just let me know

Regards
Peter

[DT-P38]

Do the valve block rebuild. I have been ignoring symptoms similar to yours for a few months and may have killed my compressor (hopefully just another hard range rebuild kit to fix) through it working overtime to over compensate for valve block leaks or sticky solenoids...

Also, if you don't have one get a EAS Manual Bypass kit ( also available from hard range) and give yourself the "get out of jail" card I used Friday night to keep driving and 4 wheeling all weekend after my Compressor and EAS finally **** itself.

[ROLO]

Thanks for good information and advice guys. I definitely intend to do the valve block rebuild and will be contacting Paul at HardRange as soon as the necessary funds allow. I probably need to tackle the coolant and oil loss issues firstly as these are causing me more concern, although this may not be the case if I leave the EAS too long. The missus had another EAS fault this morning, but again re-set after a couple of minutes.
Thanks again and I’ll come back to ask more specific questions as I get into it.

[PaulP38a]

Drop me a pm with your contact details and address. We will work something out ;)
Cheers, Paul.

[serbastion]

before you pull the manifold check the water hose from inlet manifold to heater if this leaks coolant runs along the valley and down the back of engine if you need any assistance im outer west sydney

[wayneg]

Oil and water leaks aside, search Youtube for "range rover eas" You will get several videos on easy tests to see if you can isolate the problem. I would also swap the compressor relay in the fuse box with another the same colour and make sure the compressor connecting plug has a good connection. I have had a failure which ended up being caused by arching within the plug burning the terminals. This was intermittent and took ages to find. If the compressor seal is on its last legs it might not be able to keep up with demand and could overheat which trips a thermal cut out within the compressor. When cooled it will run again. The compressor gets very hot under normal conditions so its hard to tell without an electrical test outlined in one of the vids.
Paul at Hard Range is the place for spares when the time is right

Heres a vid to get you started, look for the ones by RSW solutions

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8Gdsc6880c

[Porchy]

welcome to the forum Rolo. As you have found, the guys here absolutely ROCK!
They have sooo much knowledge and are really friendly.
Having not long purchased our first P38 too and being in a similar basket as yourself with the previously done repairs, I was hoping to not have to do too much either. (Long story that you don't need to hear).
The great thing is that as they guys have alluded to these cars are great to work on and well worth every hour/dollar you spend. Despite the fact that I am still pretty new, I'll throw my limited knowledge in if I can be of help.

Enjoy the experience (car and forum)

Cheers
Porchy

[ROLO]

I totally agree Porchy and thanks for the offer of help. I'm very encouraged that there will always be help on hand when needed. My initial "OMG what I have I done" reaction is subsiding and slowly I have a growing confidence that with a little work and money of course (what car doesn't need a steady injection of maintenance funds) I'll be able to keep her on the road with the help and support found here.

[Craig_Keira]

For emphasis, get the EASUnlock software, a laptop and a cable. It's a start and will tell you what's going on.

Seriously consider a Nanocom too. They're bit of outlay ($540). It will pay for itself in avoided heartaches and dealer trips.

For a few days, I've had 'airbag fault'. Hooking up the Nanocom told me "The drivers airbag has an open circuit - Permanent". So now I know exactly where to go. Especially since I'd recently swapped out a steering wheel. Turns out that wasn't the fault, nor was it the other likely candidate, the rotary coupler (aka clockspring) but in fact a connector inside the dash that just needed a squeeze to fix. How long would I have looked for that if I just had the message centre error to go on?

The Nanocom will do all ECUs in the car and allow you to set a lot of things.