I would like some advice on an rear air bag set-up for my '49 Ford coupe. I like the way my coupe sits now with 3" blocks, but after s****ing a few more times this weekend trying to get into and out of my driveway I'd like to have option of raising the car 1 or 2 inches or stiffen the rear suspension if I have a p***enger. Because of the '56 Olds wheel surrounds, I can't go any lower anyway since I have about 1" of clearance now to the outter lip. So, I've been looking at Air Ride Technologies AirOverLeaf set-up and it seems to fit the bill. I just want these to to be able to raise the car when I want to from where it sits now. I will be going to traction bars and a heavy duty rear sway bar when I put the 9" in when my nailhead gets installed and I don't plan on street racing this car. . I did a search and I know these are not ideal, but since this is not a heavy car, I'm not looking for much suspension travel and looking for this to ***ist, not replace the rear suspension I'm wondering if I can get away with this as opposed to going to a complete air bag rear suspension. Any advice? I don't know "Jack" about air ride suspensions and was going "old school" but the practicality of the "low slung look" is wearing on me, so any comments/experiences with this set-up would help.
I only know 1 guy who installed the ART air over leaf & he hated it. It's installed on a OT 56 Chevy 2 door hardtop. His complaint was the ride. Took too much pressure to get the bag where he wanted it & the ride was very harsh. He took it all off & is now running a mono leaf & QA1 shocks. Ride was much improved. Now that's 1 guy's experience, yours may be different.
i've run an airbag over leaf springs set up many times. Always liked the results. I usually buy one of those air helper kits for RV's and trucks and then modify them to fit. I would take your 3" blocks out, take out a few leaf springs so it naturally sits where you want it and then run a bit of pressure in your bag to take up the softer suspension. Just recently did that on a 53 belair, rode real nice with about 20psi in the bag, sat in the same spot as it used to with 4" blocks and it would raise up to stock hieght for if we ever had to get a jack under it or change a tire.
Im running one of these setups on the back of my 54 chevy car. I removed a couple leaf springs and im running 4 inch blocks. with no air the rear axle sits on the frame. I run about 35 lbs when driving with no bottoming out. I also have the stock front suspension bagged. Any questions let me know. Larry
I ran a O/T 79 Chevy truck with air over the leaves for about 4 years. Didn't put a ton of miles on but put alot of miles on with a full size car trailer in tow and usually it was loaded. It would occasionally wiggle around with that load but I never broke anything or had any issues with the setup. I could raise and lower at least 4 inches and maybe more like 6. Would have loved to run a 4 link but didn't have the time or the money. Got a set of bags for cheap off Ebay went to the welding shop and got some steel and made some brackets. I think I had less the 500 in my entire setup front and rear including bags, brackets, tank, gauges, switches, valves, and compressor. Be happy to answer any questions if you got em.
I've been running the AirRide Technologies Air-over-leaf kit on the back of my '62 Galaxie for four years now. I removed one leaf, added 2" lowering blocks and the AOL bag set-up. I typically run about 10-15 psi, without anything in the trunk and about 30-40 when it is loaded for a road trip. I've been happy with the ride quality and would use the system again. The only thing I would NOT do again is use the AirRide Tech. electronic control system. They did warranty the pressure sending units once, but the readings are still erratic and I'm never 100% sure of what pressure I'm running at. The ****og gauge system would work just fine and simplify the system. Malcolm
Thanks guys. I know a 4 link would be better and if I planned on putting the car on the ground I'd go for it funds permitting, but since it's only got 3" blocks and i want to be able to raise it a couple of inches or add stability if I have p***engers, I was hoping I could get away with this.
put some small wheels (casters) at the rear of your frame, so when you go up an incline, they will touch ground and roll before whatever is s****ing will, and woolah, no more s****ing, plus its traditional!!
i have AOL in my 64 galaxie... removed 2 leafs (left 3, dont leave only 1 cause it will break in time)... 2" blocks, worked diligently to watch for binding etc.. shocks are KEY with AOL, i cant tell you this enough... find the proper length, etc... ART gives incorrect ones in a lot of their kits, they actually switched up the kit for the galaxie because i complained enough lol, i needed shocks with 3" more travel than they gave! wtf! i plan on possibly getting some QRT or some sort of special adjustable shocks for mine eventually, but honestly mine rides GREAT, even impressed my dad that HATED the air ride idea from the start! if you have any questions give me a PM, or PM me and I can help you over the phone, seems like i know too much about airride for my own good these days.. oh, and dont drive like an ***hole, the leafs are still there and still bind slightly no matter waht..
How much does air over leaf raise and lower the vehicle height? I have a 36 Chevy standard deluxe with a mustang 2 with air bags and haven't done the rear yet. I don't want to lay frame in the rear just let it sit right above the rear tire. Leaf spring and coil over suspension with a coronet rear end. Any advice?
I havn`t really got any advice about the air bag set up. But I would recommend just going with the manual valves, that`s what I have in my car, they are slower but not enough that it matters on a set up like your looking at. They are also easier to install. I ordered some of my parts from Air ***isted, in your area. http://www.air***isted.ca/osc/index.php?osCsid=ee3272crrhnjhcioccop1o75i1 Any pictures of your car? It sounds cool.
You should be able to adapt an OEM air leveling system to your car out of a bone yard cheap. There's a small compressor, Two air ***isted shocks, an adjustable height sensor, some air lines and a wiring harness with small module and relay. Those are set up is the spring is very soft and maintains the car at static ride height. Add some weight and up it goes, groceries, p***engers, fuel to your set height via the sensor. Many out there but 2001 Buick lesaber has a nice system and the shocks are cheap. Its completely stand alone and could be added to any vehicle with minor Fab or adapt work. I would expect equal ride and trouble free operations if i t had similar weight and similar spring rates. Coils or leafs shouldn't matter. You would be able to manually inflate for a steep driveway within a few seconds with some easy wiring.
Air/Ride helper bags (that is what they used to call them) work real well. I have used them before in several vehicles mine as well as others. It sounds like this is what you are talking about. I like your approach drive it at ride height and raise it whe it needs to be raised. It is backward to common modern thinking but it is one of the things that used to be done when they still had minumum bumper height laws. You should easily get an inch out of it when they are charged probably more depending on mounting point of course, and you can drop them off to nothing or close to it when they are not in use. They are not going to make a hopper out of it so you need not expect that but they will do what you seem to need them to do.
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