Miggit,
They were very popular in 2door form throughout Europe.
I have seen lots in France, Spain & Portugal, but very few in the UK.
I don’t think diesel FF’s became popular until the price of petrol became significantly higher than derv, by which time the 200tdi had been launched.

Of the 4 FF’s I have owned , the VM had the best build quality, and the paint finish was faultless. I loved it 😁😁👍 G reg 2.5VM Vogue Portofino red 1991- 1999
V reg 2.5td P38 Rioja red 1999- 2006
53 reg td6 Vogue Oslo blue 2006- 2015
11 reg 4.4 TdV8 Vogue SE. Baltic blue 2015- date.
https://www.fullfatrr.com/forum/topic56162...tty+affair

Lucas is not the issue with many RRC's - its the substitution with none OEM parts that kills them. So many cheap steppers, leads, dizzy etc etc its all to easy to buy junk.

I actually enjoy the challenges they present - its that 'is she going to start' feeling in my stomach i like most (NOT!!)

My last completed project was a bit temperamental running on LPG. When I'd finished we actually towed our twin axle to Cornwall and back within days. Looking back, that was brave.

The current project is now purring like a cat but it took some effort to achieve.

 405 AB exec seats Baltic and Cirrus
93 RR Classic efi

Remember it's easier to get forgiveness than permission!

Gone in order:
4.4 TDV8 SE - gone to a good home
93 Classic hard dash Plymouth Blue
03 L322 Oslo Blue
2000 Disco TD5 ES Epsom Green
98 P38 Rioja Red
89 Classic Cairngorm Brown

^ I beg to differ with you bud, Lucas and the associated connectors that were used in the RRC are prone to corrosion and all the faults that floating earths and ECU's can cause.... At the end of the day the RRC isn't very waterproof for a car that's branded as swimming in deep water.

Also a lot owners have swapped their Lucas ECU for a Megasquirt system and not only produced a car that will cope with getting damp, but also gained a considerable increase in power from the engine as well...

What you have to bear in mind is that the Lucas system was years ahead of the rest of the world, but it was built on a budget, possibly not the best recipe, as proven by it's track record. Most of the early fuel injection systems had their faults... I remember the Bosch 'K Tronic' wasn't the best of examples.

When it comes to EAS they are still having problems with it... yes it's getting better, but when you try to add height adjustment things get a little tricky. Add in that the air for the system is produced electrically, and you have more problems. The original air ride systems used on busses was totally mechanical and worked well, but for some reason when they started to put it in cars they dropped the engine driven pump, and then complicated things trying to have more than 1 ride height. Yesterday I couldn't spell Engineer... Today I are one!
Inventor of the 'Guide-o-Matic automatic wheel alignment tool'
Former long term L322 owner, Up/Down graded to a Classic Tractor!

Don't convert it to coils Tim, what a waste. They are very nice on air. The valve block and compressor can be rebuilt at home with a new seal kit, the drier is available new and the reset software is FOC on the net. You need a funny 3 pin lead which you can make or buy for about £30. Alot for a lead but there you go.
Yours does look a little low!
I hope you can weld as softies rust like none of the others but they are lovely cars once up and running.
Mine is lovely now but it has cost me. Just back from a new rear diff fitted so now it's silent. Great in this weather with the seats working and the sunroof open!
A few pics of mine and work done over the last couple of years. I don't have any recent ones where its complete which must say something! I'll try and take a few. David

Click image to enlarge

Thanks for the insight Miggit. My experience is OEM parts solved many an issue but I take what you say, at the end of the day these things have a mind of their own anyway. Its true what you say about swimming to. I drove steadily through an 18 inch ford once and the thing just stopped in the middle. Luckily it started and we continued but as you say for a car billed as capable I'm not that confident.

A mate of mine had an LSE and spent many pound keeping the EAS working just by tinkering and fixing isolated issues. Sometimes its better to just start from scratch.

The EAS on my P38 worked faultlessly for years. Was the LSE EAS effectively a trial run so to speak?

David - is that a for sale sign in the rear quarter? Nice colour. I also note the RRR decal on the scuttle. I used to have those on my P38 but they don't do them anymore. I spoke to our area rep a couple of months ago who said the demand had changed to hard badges which is a bit of a shame. 405 AB exec seats Baltic and Cirrus
93 RR Classic efi

Remember it's easier to get forgiveness than permission!

Gone in order:
4.4 TDV8 SE - gone to a good home
93 Classic hard dash Plymouth Blue
03 L322 Oslo Blue
2000 Disco TD5 ES Epsom Green
98 P38 Rioja Red
89 Classic Cairngorm Brown

As far as I'm aware the LSE had a lot in common with the P38 EAS, again possibly not the best setup, let down mainly by the quality of the electrical components used....

I have often wondered if using the totally mechanical height regulator valves from a bus with a solenoid or lever to adjust it's location for different heights wouldn't have been a better way to go...

The problem is that to get the reference height most systems use a potentiometer and an arm.... A potentiometer is the same thing that they used for the rotary volume controls on 60's and 70's audio equipment.... how often have you got a crackling sound for adjusting the volume on your old player? All that noise is bad signals from the pot, add that to a system that's using the signal for accurate height measurements and it doesn't take a Rocket Scientist to see where the problems arise...

Thinking about it there isn't an easy solution, a height sensor needs to act on the wheels so it is more than likely to end up underneath in all the water and muck, an optical system would suffer just as much... the only thing that I can think of is a system that uses magnets, but that would be bulky.. so the manufacturers stick with what is nothing more than a glorified volume control and hope for the best

Got to admit that I'd love to add a reliable air ride system to my classic as they are very useful in the towing work that I do.. Just need to find something reliable before I take the plunge! Yesterday I couldn't spell Engineer... Today I are one!
Inventor of the 'Guide-o-Matic automatic wheel alignment tool'
Former long term L322 owner, Up/Down graded to a Classic Tractor!

ajac8 wrote:

Thanks for the insight Miggit. My experience is OEM parts solved many an issue but I take what you say, at the end of the day these things have a mind of their own anyway. Its true what you say about swimming to. I drove steadily through an 18 inch ford once and the thing just stopped in the middle. Luckily it started and we continued but as you say for a car billed as capable I'm not that confident.

A mate of mine had an LSE and spent many pound keeping the EAS working just by tinkering and fixing isolated issues. Sometimes its better to just start from scratch.

The EAS on my P38 worked faultlessly for years. Was the LSE EAS effectively a trial run so to speak?

David - is that a for sale sign in the rear quarter? Nice colour. I also note the RRR decal on the scuttle. I used to have those on my P38 but they don't do them anymore. I spoke to our area rep a couple of months ago who said the demand had changed to hard badges which is a bit of a shame.

"forum is a dead loss and I'm not a FB user so I've let it go" Exactly!. Why does the world have to revolve around social media!

Anyway - nice car my friend. 405 AB exec seats Baltic and Cirrus
93 RR Classic efi

Remember it's easier to get forgiveness than permission!

Gone in order:
4.4 TDV8 SE - gone to a good home
93 Classic hard dash Plymouth Blue
03 L322 Oslo Blue
2000 Disco TD5 ES Epsom Green
98 P38 Rioja Red
89 Classic Cairngorm Brown

miggit wrote:

Hi ya, you're a braver man than me to take on a Mk1 EAS system! However for all it's faults, they are well known and there are work rounds, and being the original Air Ride RR it hasn't been over complicated!

Are you going to keep it all factory, or are you planning to improve it?

DavidL wrote:

Don't convert it to coils Tim, what a waste. They are very nice on air. The valve block and compressor can be rebuilt at home with a new seal kit, the drier is available new and the reset software is FOC on the net. You need a funny 3 pin lead which you can make or buy for about £30. Alot for a lead but there you go.
Yours does look a little low!
I hope you can weld as softies rust like none of the others but they are lovely cars once up and running.
Mine is lovely now but it has cost me. Just back from a new rear diff fitted so now it's silent. Great in this weather with the seats working and the sunroof open!
A few pics of mine and work done over the last couple of years. I don't have any recent ones where its complete which must say something! I'll try and take a few. David

DavidL wrote:

I'm in. 94 soft dash LSE here. I've had it a few years yet and spent a small fortune on it but its in pretty good nick now. I'll find some pics.
My rear diff has been a bit noisy so that needs replacing - anyone any idea what it is? I think its a 24 spline axle on the later cars but not sure about bolts etc
David

Hi Guys, whilst I love my L322 to bits I still love the Iconic father of all RR's, the classic. I have owned, run as a daily and driven to destruction in Comp safari racing and trials many of the classic models. The old Land rover slogan ' The Best 4x4 By Far' certainly was the best.Here are just a couple of my classics, sadly no longer with me though

This my VM2.5 D Turbo in the French Alps helping a stuck D1 up a very steep hill (picture does not do it justice)


Same VM 2.5 at Les Croisier event 2008

Here you can see..
A favourite track

Cool!

Great shots too.

(Can middle aged men still say cool?) 405 AB exec seats Baltic and Cirrus
93 RR Classic efi

Remember it's easier to get forgiveness than permission!

Gone in order:
4.4 TDV8 SE - gone to a good home
93 Classic hard dash Plymouth Blue
03 L322 Oslo Blue
2000 Disco TD5 ES Epsom Green
98 P38 Rioja Red
89 Classic Cairngorm Brown

Sure you can say cool.. that is what I say in that stream
Define middle aged I am 57.. and won't stop doing this for many years