Recently replaced the front air struts on my 2004 XJ8. With Arrotts. The light has been on continuously. Wondering if the repair shop missed something. Is there a relay that could be causing it. The good news is the car appears to be at the correct height.

 

You didn't tell us what the message is with the light, but I imagine its a CATS error, as only OEM Bilstein struts have the CATS system. I can't find it, a bit jammed for time, but there is a way to put a resistor in the electrical connect that used to go to the strut to make the controller think that CATS is still present.

 

It is a 1K resistor across the two wires which were plugged into the top of the struts

 

I think his replacements are Air, no? If that’s the case, something’s off and best way to diagnose it is with a scanner like the one I just bought (iCarsoft i930) so that you don’t spend a lot of time (and $) guessing around.

Going to scan my tomorrow as my X358 had that Air Suspension Fault message with a yellow light for some time before my compressor finally gave out…I think…

 

His replacements are air, but Arnotts do not have CATS, and there will be a CATS error displayed with a yellow light. My post was to confirm that that was indeed the message he received.

 

Both of mine have Arnotts with no lights or faults.
They just don't have the cat system features.

 

As a matter of interest the solenoids in the Bilstiens are 5.4 Ohms.

 

The replacements are air; The error message is Air suspension fault. I just read online the manufacturers instructions for installation and at the end it states to disconnect the battery for at least 30 minutes. I don’t know the repair shop did this. Could that be causing the error message?
Thanks for all the help

 

How many miles on the vehicle?
Can you hear the compressor running?
Does it run for some time?
Is it loud?

 

there is 132450 miles on the car. I don’t hear the compressor, at least I’m not aware of it running.
I going on an errand now so I will listen intently for the noise and will let you know if there was any.

 

Air suspension fault means a code has been stored in the air suspension module, and you need a Jaguar-capable reader in the OBD-II port to get that code. Without it, troubleshooting is pure guesswork.

 

I had an intermittent "air suspension fault" light on my XJR for years. It would just come and go with no discernable negative effects except in extremely cold weather where I'd get the "car too low" message or something like that. After warming up the car, the too-low message would go away and everything was seemingly good to go. Then one day I noticed that the car was very low to the ground and would not return to normal height so I knew the problem had to be addressed. First I rebuilt the compressor with a kit that cost about $20 that didn't solve the problem but probably needed doing anyway. But, after I replaced the compressor, I heard a small pop noise and saw that the front, driver's side boot on the shock had a hole in it. So, rather than replacing just one, I replaced all 4, and all my air suspension problems are gone. No lights have come on since then but I don't know if CATS works or not, I just assumed all was well but I will do a scan. Below, I listed the cost and source of the replacement air shocks. Good luck!

Total: $703.59
Item ID: 163857507587
Seller: shock*masters

 

Those look like they came from Suncore, and on Suncore's site, a customer posted the question about CATS, and Suncore's answer was, "These parts are a plug and play option, so yes they are compatible!" I don't think that really answers the question.

If there was an electrical socket on top for the CATS connector to plug in to, then maybe. The site does list them as "electronic" struts, but no actual mention of CATS, which feels shady to me.

But 700 bucks for FOUR air struts?!?!? I have to wonder how much "you get what you pay for" there is here. The OEM struts are way more than that each. So good luck...

 

Well the company that sold me these was in fact called Shock*Masters (https://www.ebay.com/str/shockmasterssuspensionparts), not Suncore, and the price before tax was $659.87 for a set of 4, shipping was free. The packages arrived in cushioned, sturdy cardboard boxes, and customer support was great. I initially had a question about the installation and they called me back soon after I left a message. There is an electrical connection and once installed (after resetting the computer) they inflated to optimal height and the amber warning light hasn't come on since. Maybe you think buying only OEM parts that cost 3 or 4 times as much as I paid is a good idea but I don't. When I buy parts either from eBay, Rock Auto, or anywhere else, I check the reviews and/or contact the seller first. I have restored my XJR to the point of it driving like a new car, and if I paid OEM prices for parts, or had the repairs done at the dealership, it would have cost more than I paid for the car itself. Your sarcasm,"you get what you pay for" there is here. The OEM struts are way more than that each. So good luck..." is beneath the dignity of this forum and would have been better to keep it to yourself.

 

Shock*Masters is the seller on eBay. I Googled the part number they show (117J-28-4-2) and it comes to Suncore as the manufacturer.

My comment was not intended as sarcasm; I'm seriously concerned that you're gonna be sorry you went with these, and the "good luck" wish was sincere. I also still feel that the CATS question stands. Do these have CATS, or something that simply emulates CATS back to the controller? Did they even have a connector on the top of the strut for the CATS wiring? The answer from the site, that they are plug-n-play, does not confirm CATS or even CATS emulation, if that's important to you. Until Arnott recently announced that they do have a strut that is completely CATS-capable, the only way to have CATS was with OEM Bilstein struts.

 

I have had the amber light on for some time and wonder if it could be because I've had to change the headlight ballasts that do not support auto leveling. There are no codes. I have an Autophix 7310 J/LR code reader. The only codes I find are strange ones such as FF535800 or FF056700. The cars modules are riddled with these FF codes. Anyone know what they are and how to get rid of them?

 

I had that same fault message in my dash. Scanned the car with my ICarsoft i930 scanner and it literally pointed to the compressor. Switched it out, car is level at a correct height and error code was cleared - hopefully to never return. Hope this helps!

 

#wfooshee
Fair enough, sometimes it's easy to misinterpret someone's (written) words as I did here, my apologies. And full disclosure, I too am very cautious about aftermarket parts that do not conform, form fit, and function to OEM specs. I will admit that in this case, I wasn't sure about these shocks because of the low price but after a little research, I was willing to take a chance. As I stated before, the replacement shocks arrived in very nice packaging and when I compared them to the originals that I replaced, they seemed identical in every way. I personally installed all four (and I rebuilt the compressor) and although the ride height wasn't right at first, it self-adjusted after I reset the Air Suspension Module by pulling two fuses in the rear power distribution/fuse box. Since then, I haven't had any warning lights or air suspension issues of any kind but yesterday I decided to to connect the iCarsoft scanner just to make sure all was well and it reported no DTCs. To be fair, the scanner menu did not list CATS as an option, only "air suspension module" or something very close to that. So in this case, no alarms or DTCs, I'll assume that these shocks are CATS compliant. My final thoughts on the matter are these, my 04 XJR was at 117K miles when the OEM shocks failed and it's very possible that the new ones will not last that long but if they last half as many miles they might outlast me :-)