Any damage to any part of the suit will affect life support, yes! It does not need to be regulated to a single area (except in the case of helmets, which characters do not yet have).

Depending on the damage done the number of days required to repair itself will be different. For now (as a safe bet) assume that 10% damage is 2 days, up to a maximum of 55% damage before life support fails and the character will need a massive kickstart to prevent death.