Yes...I have searched, and the threads I found were not answering my question. And I do realize that this topic and my idea may bring me some flack....but please hear me out. I am trying to build a budget friendly mild Kustom. I am currently running 2" blocks in the rear and 1 coil cut from the front. It rides low-ish, but not as low as I'd like. And with that, I do still scrape backing out my drive. Which I realize is the sacrifice of owning a Kustom. That being said, for the look I am going for, it needs to be lower. And I absolutely do not have the budget for bags, c notch, etc. Not trying to lay frame. Just achieve a lower look and still be able to get in and out of my drive. I was thinking of an alternative,and here is my thought. I am thinking about getting 3" blocks, and then converting over to air shocks. With them aired up, it would help me in and out of the drive, but doesn't help me once I am parked. I was thinking of getting a small portable compressor that could run off a power converter so when I park, I can let the air out, but to drive home, could fire up the portable compressor and air the shocks back up. I am converting to 12V with my 283 SBC swap, so I could run the converter. Ghetto? Certainly. Could it work? I am curious on input. Let the public ridicule begin....
The routine of airing up and down would get old in a hurry. Either do it right or move to a house with a different driveway.
LOL. I hear you. I wish "do it right" was cost effective. I might need to find used bags and figure how to do it myself without an expensive kit.... Posted using the Full Custom H.A.M.B. App!
I've seen this done with the air shocks connected to an air tank (that could be connected to the compressor)... You could actually have a valve (placed to your liking) that would fill the shocks directly from the tank so you don't have to wait for the compressor every time.
Nothing wrong with this idea. Lots of luxury cars come this way. Air shocks in the back and an onboard 12v compressor. The only thing you are missing is a valve with linkage to the rear axle, to automatically raise the rear when necessary. It's called Load Leveller or something similar. Lots of old Caddies, Lincolns and Chryslers in junk yards have the compressor under the hood. No reason you can't install something similar on your car with a control switch on the dash board. If you buy everything new expect to pay around $500.
What your wanting to do is Age Old tec. Air ride factory has been around since the 60's. Us Hot Rodders have just been modifying it to suit our needs. The other option is Hydraulic's , Oh ya, Air ride was the option to Hyd. What a circle. The Wizzard
One thing to remember is ... How rugged are your shock mounts? When I was really young I remember the older guys all having hi-jacker air shocks aired up to maximum to fit 15x10 wheels and n50 tires under whatever it was... When I got older I remember seeing a lot of cars with broken shock mounts
90's buick park avenue had air ride w/onboard compessor , problem is , when they got older , the bags/lines leaked & burned up the pump motors. dave
1994 through 1996 Buick Roadmaster's had load leveling with an onboard compressor. Cadillac Fleetwood of the same era did, as well as a lot of earlier Cadillacs.
Bags and a portable tank with a Schrader valve to fill up and then control bag pressure with a manual valve. Simplist way to air up and down. Swap the air tank for a smaller c02 tank if you need space.
You'll pay that much just for the sensors and the control module for the auto leveling systems, not including the bags, mounts, and lines.
I'm under the impression he just needs something to raise the car temporarily , driveway, speed bumps ect ... Air shocks, compressor, tank and a manual valve
You can do a very simple manual airbag setup for around $300. Small nitrogen tanks that us A/C guys use are a cheap alternative to tanks and compressors also. I have even used them for train horn setups very easily.
My friend had that setup on a 60 fury. Found some small 1/8 inch solenoids and a small tank and compressor connected them to the air shocks and worked great! He just needed to get over speed bumps and driveways
GM minivans (90's or newer) have a rear, onboard compressor and air shocks to level the ride. They use a simple lever switch mounted in rear.
If you can find an old craftsman pancake air compressor at a pawn shop, that might work with an inerter. Then use a manual paddle valve,you can find them on ebay, they run about 30.00. 1\4" line to the paddle valve, 1\4" line to the shocks.
Castors, or maybe a couple of hitch balls upside down on the frame to scrape instead of your body. The rest is a do it right or wish you had soon situation.
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