air ride suspension

[dustya_383]

has anyone used air ride on their a bodies???If so where can i find the conversion kit wanna get rid of my leafs, and add bigger and wider rims, want it to have better handling i pretty much want it to have the same stance as this demon minus the alterkation kit, even though that will come in the far future haha and i know some people say the ride will be rough and all but that doesnt really bother me thanks

 

[dustya_383]

Bump

 

[bjkadron]

On the front you can just keep the stock suspension and add airbags like ridetech does for the B/E bodies. But if you want to get rid of the leafs you are looking at a custom link setup then using the airbags instead of coilovers. Not super expensive but not the easiest or cheapest either...
And whoever told you that the ride would be rough is nuts and doesn't know what they are talking about! Air is one of the smoothest rides available.
Nobody makes a kit for A-bodies though.. Call Ridetech and they will help you figure out what you need. Or you can message me and I'll help you figure out what you want to do.

Benjamin

 

[SRT_DSTRHOLC]

from the article....
With the major suspension design tackled, we decided on Air Ride Technologies ShockWave assemblies at the front and rear, with ride height sensors. The 4100I system had everything we needed for a clean and reliable air suspension system."

 

[1968FormulaS340]

If you look at the pics in the front tire to fender area…. My guess would be that is a parked only stance.

Cool thing about air… You can lower the car when parked.

The tire is turned very little and is clearly against the fender…. Also….. I hope the roads in your state are perfect because I see maybe 2" of ground clearance.

 

[wazoo64]

I have bags on all fours. After you get over the cool factor it really is a waste of money IMO. The only reason I need them is for the adjustabilty on the fly. Speed bumps and the like. There are many points of failure in these systems....Unlike coilovers. Something most people dont realize is that the system, even the new ones, are not that accurate and once you change ride hide your alignment is out. Lot's of fiddle factor to get the ride height exact so alignment is back to perfect.
If you want to run bags on the front stock suspension then you must leave the torsion bars for support. Just an FYI.
RMS has a system for A Bodies to run the air ride on the front and back. My guess is Bill would tell you that coilovers handle better.
For the rears you definitley want to run a four link. Air ride has a custom four link you can fab in our just go to RMS for the bolt on kit.
One other thing if you are thinking of an air ride system...make sure you order the bags that fit your ride height. You want the bags to be at their most optimal position when you are cruising down the highway. There are many size options and if you get ones that are too long or too short you wont be happy with the ride.
Hope that helps.

 

[dustya_383]

I have bags on all fours. After you get over the cool factor it really is a waste of money IMO. The only reason I need them is for the adjustabilty on the fly. Speed bumps and the like. There are many points of failure in these systems....Unlike coilovers. Something most people dont realize is that the system, even the new ones, are not that accurate and once you change ride hide your alignment is out. Lot's of fiddle factor to get the ride height exact so alignment is back to perfect.
If you want to run bags on the front stock suspension then you must leave the torsion bars for support. Just an FYI.
RMS has a system for A Bodies to run the air ride on the front and back. My guess is Bill would tell you that coilovers handle better.
For the rears you definitley want to run a four link. Air ride has a custom four link you can fab in our just go to RMS for the bolt on kit.
One other thing if you are thinking of an air ride system...make sure you order the bags that fit your ride height. You want the bags to be at their most optimal position when you are cruising down the highway. There are many size options and if you get ones that are too long or too short you wont be happy with the ride.
Hope that helps.

Yes this does help thanks, so coil overs would be the better route??. I'm mainly looking for better handling Where is a good place to get coil overs For abodies?? Also, want to lower the rear,how could I do that? Without a four link for now. ., would regular ol air shocks work?

 

[mopardude318]

Yes this does help thanks, so coil overs would be the better route??. I'm mainly looking for better handling Where is a good place to get coil overs For abodies?? Also, want to lower the rear,how could I do that? Without a four link for now. ., would regular ol air shocks work?

If your looking for better handling, don't waste your money on air bags. A good stock type suspension rebuild would be all you need. The only coil over system I would ever consider running is Bill's stuff at RMS. I have both his front and rear kits on my 70 Dart. His setup is the absolute best coil over suspension on the market.

Now for your car, if you can't afford the RMS stuff, just rebuild your front end with quality parts. Get a factory disc brake kit if you don't already have one, add a front sway bar from hellwig, get some just suspension 1.0" torsion bars, and you will be on your way to a good handling street car. If you want to splurge a little more, get some tubular uppers and strut rods from RMS, and some QA1 adjustable shocks. you won't be disappointed.