Thread: Disappointed in the D5 / waiting for the Defender

Originally Posted by scarry

Have a look at the number of air suspension threads about faults on this site.

It is pretty obvious they are no where near as reliable as coils or leaves.

When working correctly air suspension is fantastic,but when it isn't working correctly it is often expensive and often frustrating to repair,trying to locate leaks,etc.

Coils or leaves are also much cheaper.

A corner valve failed on my D4,at approx 4 yrs old,50K.No amount of maintenance would have prevented the component from failing.Due to it leaking very slowly,it was very difficult to locate the exact fault.

It depends on what you class as reliable or cheap.Every Asian 4wd requires a suspension change to do what they are designed to do,is that reliable or cheap?.Every leaf/coil vehicle requires compromise,fit stiff springs to carry wieght which then gives poor ride and nervous handling when empty,soft springs give a nice ride but can't carry wieght,they don't last and give sloppy handling so you then have to fit airbags blah blah etc etc.I'd like to know how many faults EAS vehicles have that are actual faults apposed to faults caused by owners not knowing how to operate their vehicle. Pat

Did they borrow the rear design from Ssanyong Musso?

Pat you make some good points but in truth a well set up cooler with simple internal Coilrite or similar helpers are really the reliability ants pants and are not remotely nervous handling wise. Air suspension is great but it's not as reliable NOR as cheap to run over the long run as coils.

I really felt for my mate with his d3 with low ks...way up on the OTT and it keeps throwing suspension faults and dropping down...the truth is coils are most unlikely to give trouble that stops you or causes so much grief and heartache. Cheers

Originally Posted by Roverlord off road spares

Did they borrow the rear design from Ssanyong Musso?

Yes.

Originally Posted by PAT303

It depends on what you class as reliable or cheap.Every Asian 4wd requires a suspension change to do what they are designed to do,is that reliable or cheap?.Every leaf/coil vehicle requires compromise,fit stiff springs to carry wieght which then gives poor ride and nervous handling when empty,soft springs give a nice ride but can't carry wieght,they don't last and give sloppy handling so you then have to fit airbags blah blah etc etc.I'd like to know how many faults EAS vehicles have that are actual faults apposed to faults caused by owners not knowing how to operate their vehicle. Pat

i was talking about OEM airbags,not added on aftermarket systems.

You don't have to look far,do a search on here.There are heaps of them.

I doubt there are any D3s around that are on their original air compresser,for a start.

Asian vehicles upgrades?,i thought this was about mainly LR products.

As an example would rather replace a set of shocks and coils on a D2,the job is done,easy fix,not a massive cost,i did it to mine.

With EAS,it is extremely complicated with many parts that can fail.Not good for remote area travel as quite a few have found out on here.

In fact there are probably more EAS issues with the D3/4 range,as an example, than any other issue with these vehicles.

Originally Posted by ozscott

Pat you make some good points but in truth a well set up cooler with simple internal Coilrite or similar helpers are really the reliability ants pants and are not remotely nervous handling wise. Air suspension is great but it's not as reliable NOR as cheap to run over the long run as coils.

I really felt for my mate with his d3 with low ks...way up on the OTT and it keeps throwing suspension faults and dropping down...the truth is coils are most unlikely to give trouble that stops you or causes so much grief and heartache. Cheers

Exactly,i have had both.In fact my last D2 i went for a 5 seater without EAS for reliability.

The only real issue i have had with my D4,so far, has been the EAS.
And it was a PITA to diagnose the issue exactly,without replacing expensive components,and hoping they would fix it.

There is also a recent thread on here by Graeme who is an EAS guru,having a bit of grief with the EAS on his late model RR.He has a similar issue to what i had,extremely difficult to determine the fault for sure.A frustrating PITA.

As i have said,when it all works correctly,they are fantastic.

Just my 2cants worth,what about we get back to the OP topic

now that D5...we won't go there......

Does anyone think the new Defender will have air suspension?

Originally Posted by ozscott

Pat you make some good points but in truth a well set up cooler with simple internal Coilrite or similar helpers are really the reliability ants pants and are not remotely nervous handling wise. Air suspension is great but it's not as reliable NOR as cheap to run over the long run as coils.

I really felt for my mate with his d3 with low ks...way up on the OTT and it keeps throwing suspension faults and dropping down...the truth is coils are most unlikely to give trouble that stops you or causes so much grief and heartache. Cheers

A mate of mine broke an ARB coil on the rear of his D1 on the canning,he didn't have a pleasant trip either.In truth be prepared, these things happen. Pat