Where's the leak?

[thorgal]

I would look into the Exhaust valve on the compressor .They seize occasionally .

 

[BearishDriver]

I will, as soon as I discover where it is!! (I would massively thank if somebody points me to it)

Anyhow it is really intriguing to hear the pressure venting IF the door is open, I mean as soon as I close the door the pressure does not vent, the compressor stops and the EAS throws the fault, BUT if the door remains open the pressure vents and the compressor runs normally, I don't think the exhaust is clogged because how will the exhaust know when the door is open and when it is closed?

 

[cmb6s]

Bearish,

The exhaust valve and the pilot exhaust valve are both located on the compressor body itself. If you want to PM me your e-mail address, I can send you as much material as I have on the system. Below is a description of each pulled from the LR material.

Pilot Exhaust Valve
A solenoid operated pilot exhaust valve is connected to
the air delivery gallery, downstream of the air drier.
The pilot valve, when opened, operates the main
compressor exhaust valve.
This allows the air springs to be deflated when required.
When the solenoid is energized, pilot air moves the
exhaust valve plunger, allowing pressurized air from
the air springs and/or reservoir to pass via the reservoir
control valve to the air supply unit.
The solenoid has a resistance value of 4 Ohms at a
temperature of 20°C (68°F).

Exhaust Valve
The exhaust valve has three functions:
• It operates in conjunction with the pilot exhaust valve
to allow air to be exhausted from the air springs
and/or the reservoir as described previously
• The valve protects the system from over-pressure
• It is connected into the main pressure gallery which
is subject to available system pressure in either the
air springs or the reservoir
The valve is controlled by a spring which restricts the
maximum operating pressure to between 319 to 391 lb
in² (22 to 27 bar).
The minimum pressure in the system is also controlled
by the exhaust valve to ensure that, even when deflated,
the air springs contain a positive pressure of around 1.0
bar (14.5 lb in²) with respect to atmosphere.
This protects the air spring membrane by ensuring it
can still 'roll' over the piston without creasing.

(All of this is technically for the Hitachi compressor... don't know how much it differs, if at all, for the AMK compressor)

 

[cmb6s]

I was rereading your post and trying to put things together, but not sure I have any great ideas. The one thing I would say is that if your system IS venting, then that probably means that the exhaust valve and pilot exhaust valve are functioning correctly. I mean, if it wasn't venting at all, except in an overpressure situation, then I would suggest to look at the pilot exhaust valve and the hose coming from the dryer assembly to the exhaust.

However, that doesn't seem to be the case here. Normal operation is that air is only exhausted when the door is CLOSED, but you're telling us it will only exhaust when the door is OPEN. I'm wondering if something may be wrong with your door sensor(s) or that "system". Have you tried troubleshooting by opening other doors? Front passenger? Rear door? How does the system behave then? The only software change that I know of between the compressors was the the software for the AMK resulted in a lower residual pressure in the system after shutting everything off. This was done to ease the start of the compressor when the engine was turned on next time.

 

[BearishDriver]

I was rereading your post and trying to put things together, but not sure I have any great ideas. The one thing I would say is that if your system IS venting, then that probably means that the exhaust valve and pilot exhaust valve are functioning correctly. I mean, if it wasn't venting at all, except in an overpressure situation, then I would suggest to look at the pilot exhaust valve and the hose coming from the dryer assembly to the exhaust.

However, that doesn't seem to be the case here. Normal operation is that air is only exhausted when the door is CLOSED, but you're telling us it will only exhaust when the door is OPEN. I'm wondering if something may be wrong with your door sensor(s) or that "system". Have you tried troubleshooting by opening other doors? Front passenger? Rear door? How does the system behave then? The only software change that I know of between the compressors was the the software for the AMK resulted in a lower residual pressure in the system after shutting everything off. This was done to ease the start of the compressor when the engine was turned on next time.

Thank you very much for all the info cmb6s! that's quite a load

I think the sensor on the door is fine because if I try to change the height with the door open the screen says "close door to change height" so it knows the door is open. The only way of venting the gallery after the fault appears is to turn the car off, then open the door and turn it on (while the door is still open). ONLY then I can listen to the valve opening and I can hear the pressure being released followed by the compressor running, I can close the door and the compressor will still run until the pressure is reached.

it is super odd, opening the door is supposed to prevent the car from self leveling right? The car is at proper height tho, I'm stuck at standard height which at least allows me to drive normally until I have time to take it to the dealer.

I just opened the compressor cover, found some weird white dust, will upload picture later

 

[BearishDriver]

here they are, I am cleaning it, will look for some compressed air like the one used to clean keyboards. How it became so dirty in barely a month of use is well beyond me. I will clean everything but just to be clear, that black thing on the 2nd and third picture is the exhaust ? or where is it?
thanks for the help guys!

 

[BearishDriver]

also I was checking the relay and the fuse (they are fine) and I found this unplugged things, I have no idea of what they are, are they supposed to be disconnected??

 

[cmb6s]

also I was checking the relay and the fuse (they are fine) and I found this unplugged things, I have no idea of what they are, are they supposed to be disconnected??

That's the battery vent hose. Should be hooked up to the battery vent port unless you have an AGM battery, in which case you don't need it.

Oh, and the connector is normal. It's blanked off in mine too. Can't remember what it is. It's either for the auxiliary lights or the smog/pollution sensor or something else. Regardless, it's normal.

 

[cmb6s]

here they are, I am cleaning it, will look for some compressed air like the one used to clean keyboards. How it became so dirty in barely a month of use is well beyond me. I will clean everything but just to be clear, that black thing on the 2nd and third picture is the exhaust ? or where is it?
thanks for the help guys!

Wish I could help there. I know what it looks like on the Hitachi (kind of a pancake looking thing), but not sure on the AMK.

 

[BearishDriver]

I think I'm up to something:
so upon further inspection I discovered that the **** mechanic was so lazy that he did not put anything back on its place: the valve was not fixed to the frame but literally hanging from the air pipes. And the wires were floating as well instead of properly secured.
So I started putting the air valve on its proper place and while doing it I heard the compressor suddenly beeped and released air pressure !! I want to think this fault is due to a loose wire or something (which should explain the "signal plausibility failure" message) I do not know if I fixed it tho...
Thanks cmb6s I will check the battery I'm not sure if it is agm

Also, is this one supposed to be hanging? I cannot find anywhere to secure it