Just got the catalog today system seems little to radical for me as well as the price tag..... Any thoughts?

Not sure. Could you expound a little?

Well compared to something more tradtional like fat boy.... Just all the extra equipment that you would need like compressors. Wonder if the performance would be worth the money

I hope that you don't have to cut anything. Cutting a frame on a Chevelle is a sin if you ask me. The airride fad will be over in a few. There are only so many Chevelles left. They are all special to me. I know a lot of guys who tubbed their cars in the 80s and 90s are wishing they were flexible enough to kick themselves in the a**.
On the other hand if that's what you want go for it. Just think a lot about it before you do it. Maybe get a frame from a basket case to do it to.
Regret is a bit** you know.
I liken some of the stuff people do to cars to the kinds of tattos I would have wound up with if I didn't think about it more than most. I have none now. I will get a couple before I die but they will be well thought out, lots of years.
Hope I helped out, that's what I was trying to do. I've made a lot of mistakes in my life and I have had to live with a lot of them. Laterman, "follow your heart, that's what I always do"......Napoleon Dynamite" Bye

Its out of my price range... But it all looks bolt on from my catalog cruisen. Was just wondering if anyone had experince with the system.

It isn't really more expensive than a really nice suspension and I have always loved the look of air ride, but I want to pull 1+ g's. I don't think air ride will handle that. You need a belt driven compressor if possible. It would be much better than running multiple 40A compressors. Electrical nightmare. A large air tank is also required, 8-10 gallons, but the larger the better. Also no long tube headers.

It can be done and laying frame would be nice, but only when I can have 2 Chevelles.

They have their place... they offer a VERY smooth ride, and pretty good handling.

You can handle a lot better with a coil-over or conventional spring, but if you want a nice stance, and good driveability, it's not a bad option.

Clint44, I'm sure will chime in. He's got it, and really likes it on his '69 elky.

I too think the airide fad won't last long. Since most of the people doing airride are older and the younger crowd likes the look of stock height and 15in wheels, I really don't see it lasting more than a few more months. Just look at Air Ride Technologies. They haven't released anything new for vehicles in a long time and the company is probably about done. I guess they should have made stock replacement springs. Oh well, I for one am glad and hope I never see another vehicle drug out of a field where it was rotting away that has been cut up just to do air ride suspension.

You guys don't give air ride enough credit. It has been proven to handle extremely well. Air ride even had a track day just to prove the handling capabilities. These guys are making replacement front control arms to improve the geometry. They know what they are doing. However, air ride is more expensive and not for everyone.

To me air suspension are about looks and not the best for handling, they really don't belong on a car for a true corner carvering. Now having said that air ride does have its place on a car that wants to have the super low look and still be able to transverse the highways and byways of this potholed country.

I know what the what the AirRide people are going to say about it being a handling modification, and that AirRide tech did a track day and showed that the air suspension improved a 4th gen Z28. Well if you saw that they took a stock Camaro and then added air ride and BIG WHEELS and tires, it was not an apples to apples test. If that same car had a performance industry suspension on it with large tires and they had put on the air ride and used the SAME wheels and tires I can tell you that the spring suspension would have wiped the floor of the air ride suspension. It is for looks not for cornering.

pist0lpete ask yourself what is your opitimal goal with the car, and make your decision accordingly. I respect those that decide to make a car do what they want it to do for them. Happy modifications.

I agree that Air Ride is not the end all to be all best suspension to make a car handle. I was just trying to say that it will make a car a legitimate handler. I get the feeling people believe that air ride will make a car handle horribly when it could not be further from the truth. However, air ride cannot compare to say a coilover setup.

However, air ride cannot compare to say a coilover setup.
Or a conventional coil spring arrangement. BTW, coil-overs have virtually zero advantage handling wise to a conventional coil spring in the "A" body application.

I have a friend in my car club that has air ride on his '64 Impala and he loves it. The ride quality is alot better than the original equipment. I have some real stiff rear springs in my '69 chevelle and my friend mentioned that Air Ride Technoligies makes a system that doesn't need an air tank. I guess it's on the order of air shocks. I think it's a bolt in. For minnimal costs it might be the way to go. My .02.

I'm going to turn my '69 Chevelle towards a Pro Touring and I want to add air ride to it. I don't like the slammed look but i want the ride quality and handling for cruising not to take it on a slalom course.

Where's the tech here? All I am hearing is subjective opinions :-)

It is all about a spring to hold the car up...

Wound wire or air they all do the exact same thing: hold the car up and let the wheels move independently. So they both can work. To decide between the two for "optimum" you have to look further into nuances of how they work.

The main difference or drawback is in the progression of spring rate: wire tends to be very linear with X lbs compressing it an inch and 2X lbs compressing it two inches. Air springs tend to be progressive with X lbs compressing the first inch and 4X lbs compressing the second inch. Thus air has a tendency to get almost solid, especially if the spring chamber is not large enough.

This was played around quite a bit way back in the 70's on dirt bikes at the beginning of the long travel suspension transition. Problem was that suspension movement was limited because the air pressure increased too rapidly.

You cannot beat the simple adjustability of the air spring though... and why you see a lot of them on big trucks.

This may also be complicated by the built-in shock on Air-Ride? An external shock will allow for more alternatives and likely potential for improved performance for those wanting more.

Tech??? I'll sum up very quickly; air suspension spring rate is not linear. As the spring is compressed the volume is reduced and the spring rate thus increases changing the rate similar to a progressive spring.

The advantage of a coil-over is the reduction of unsprung weight and the increase in motion ratio ON SOME CARS. The coil-over set-up on the "A" body places the spring in the same location so there is no motion ratio advantage.

For "bling-bling" or car show height adjustment purposes go with air springs. For a weekend tourer taking the family out for a country ride, air ride is the way. For a serious street fighter/track whore-stick with a conventional coil spring.

I did not realize that coilovers have no advantage on A-bodys good information. However I did make a valid point and I think everybody is supporting what I say. Air ride is not for a serious handler but it is a nice system with some potential for handling but is definitely not the best option for all out handling.

Tech??? I'll sum up very quickly; air suspension spring rate is not linear. As the spring is compressed the volume is reduced and the spring rate thus increases changing the rate similar to a progressive spring.
That was what I said :-)

Although the rate with air increases much more rapidly than just about any spring. It *might* be possible to make a wire spring progress that much but it would take some serious work. Think linear wire 2-4-6-8 versus progressive wire 2-5-9-14 versus air 2-8-16-32 for examples of load progression. Final numbers for wire are much lower than for air.

Surely someone has built an air ride g-machine by now. I would like to see an Indy style set-up using airbags. I think you could make it very sticky.

There are a few P-T style cars running around. No, you will never see a full out street fighter or track car on air, it is nearly impossible to tune and very unpredictable as the roll stiffness increase is not linear to roll rate.

No, you will never see a full out street fighter or track car on air, it is nearly impossible to tune and very unpredictable as the roll stiffness increase is not linear to roll rate.

How many of those cars do you see running around out there,Dennis?
FWIW,they are very rare on this board. Not everyone wants a ten tenths street car. I know you do but you are the exception rather than the rule,my friend.
My 69 with Air Ride isn't a racecar but it handles,rides,and stops pretty well.
Been the ten tenths route with my Corvettes. They worked very well on the track but weren't worth a flip on the street.

All I'm saying is be careful what you wish for,guys.

I think air ride can be made to handle pretty well. Go to the air ride web page, they did a test which Boris Said tested a camaro with out and the with air ride and was very impressed.

Yeah, Boris tested a whooped on worn out Camaro then with all new bushings, sticky tires, and air ride...what a suprise it handles much better. :rolleyes:

The air ride test is one of the most biased product tests I have ever seen.

Clint, I was just replying to the question asked by 1off. no offense. I will be the first to admit at times the spped bumps, and railroad crossings get old....until the next 35mph corner. :D

Isn't air ride safer than a coil spring? A lot easier on the old pattutie. If you know what I mean? :) Hey Guys....what about a straight front axle?

I too think the airide fad won't last long. Since most of the people doing airride are older and the younger crowd likes the look of stock height and 15in wheels, I really don't see it lasting more than a few more months. Just look at Air Ride Technologies. They haven't released anything new for vehicles in a long time and the company is probably about done. I guess they should have made stock replacement springs. Oh well, I for one am glad and hope I never see another vehicle drug out of a field where it was rotting away that has been cut up just to do air ride suspension.

I think the "Younger" crowd actually prefers a lowered/big wheeled vehicle. That's why all the new Infiniti's, BMW's, etc, all have 18's and like 5" of ground clearance? :confused:

Not trying to be a smart a$$.. Just saying.

I think the "Younger" crowd actually prefers a lowered/big wheeled vehicle. That's why all the new Infiniti's, BMW's, etc, all have 18's and like 5" of ground clearance? :confused:
No, actually the 5" of ground clearance and big wheels is how luxury sedans pull near 1G on the skid and still maintain their ride quality. It has very little to do with aesthetics. The lowered height also helps with fuel economy, air management for cooling systems, and higher speed stability.

I think the "Younger" crowd actually prefers a lowered/big wheeled vehicle. That's why all the new Infiniti's, BMW's, etc, all have 18's and like 5" of ground clearance? :confused:

Not trying to be a smart a$$.. Just saying.

LOL Sorry, I guess some people can't see the blatently obvious sarcasm of my post. I do appologize and will try to refrain from doing it again. I have 2 vehicles with air ride and love it!!! This is my daily driver.
http://fordtruckworld.tenmagazines.com/gallery/1offwizard/431545.jpg

Most air systems are more for looks then performance. The fact that they work well and are touted as performance systems is as other said because of an apples to oranges test.

There is a lot that goes into making them perform well. Here's an article about a system for WRX's and M3's.

http://www.caranddriver.com/article.asp?section_id=4&article_id=9746

It was only slightly better then the stock M3 setup but cost $4k. I'm sure you can get a nice coilover setup for an M3 that will out perform the air setup for less then $4k, but it is nice being able to select the "mode" you want. There are other toys that I'd want for $4k then to be able to pick one of 3 modes and have only slightly improved performance...

David

BTW here's the kit.
http://www.tirerack.com/suspension/suspension.jsp?make=Praxis&model=Adaptive+Perf+Susp+Sys&group=Adaptive+Perf+Susp+Sys

LOL Sorry, I guess some people can't see the blatently obvious sarcasm of my post. I do appologize and will try to refrain from doing it again. I have 2 vehicles with air ride and love it!!! This is my daily driver.

Actually, You're right, I never did pick up on it.. :clonk: :o


Dennis, I was just using that as a quick reference, I know it's more then just aesthetics...



-Todd