I bought a 60 Impala a few years back which already had an air-ride suspension installed. Last weekend I realized the rear solenoid valves were leaking. Drop it to the ground with a full tank and 20-30 minutes later it's up in the air again. These seem like simple systems but I don't really know anything about them, and worse yet, I can find no markings that identify the equipment, and I've spent a lot of time searching online hoping to just run across something that matches visually, with no luck. Hoping to get it fixed for a show on Saturday. The controller (and from pix online, I think the compressor as well) are EasyStreet, which I think was an Air Lift Performance product line. Edit: Found pix of the exact same system on another site, the whole thing is an EasyStreet AutoPilot system. Looks like they aren't being made any more, can't find them for sale anywhere... So, three questions. One, any tips for troubleshooting/repairing, or just plan to replace the solenoid? Two, by some stroke of luck does anyone recognize these solenoids? Three, do I have to replace them with the same brand/model/whatever? Only the right set was marked -- one side says to front bags and the opposite side says FL/FR dump. I guess it dumps out of the unplumbed opening on the front face where somebody wrote "dump"? Hmm, those little screw-caps on top of the solenoids are marked differently though -- looks like the fronts are actually on the left and the rears are on the right.
To answer your questions... Usually when valves leak, there's dirt or something keeping them from closing all the way. 1. You can try taking the valve manifolds off and taking them apart to see if rust or dirt has got in there. 2. No idea the exact kind those are. 3. the wiring would be the issue here. It *should* be the same. You should check out the accuair manifold, it's what I'll be personally using on my car and not to mention is super simple to set up.
Thanks both of you, I'll take a quick look to see if they come apart at all, and failing that, I'll check out Accuair.
You need to see if you have a moisture trap, and a auto drain all Compressors generate a lot heat and as the air enters the tank it cools, condenses and you get moisture, all air systems need this , Big Rigs have them you hear the auto drain when it triggers" PSST" going down the road or your local School Bus ,Rust is your enemy it only takes a small particle to start havoc on your system. I worked with the 1st systems to flood the Air Suspension market years ago there were good ones and cheap ones, PARKER Valves was a heavy hitter in this they were one 1 of the biggest supplier of industrial and commercial pnuematic valves then other companies started steam lining there own valves for size and into modular set ups,of course most "Kits" if not all did not offer these 2 key components ,if its a trailer Queen for shows you may be able to get away with out them.
I couldn't agree more accuair is the cats meow e-level setup it where it's at no gauges or any of that nonsense
I use the manual paddle valves. No electrics no problem in 5 yrs. It does not go up and down fast but I'm kind of slow myself
Yeah I did some reading about that e-Level thing, it sounds pretty cool. If/when it reaches the point that I just want to replace the whole setup, that's where I'll go, most likely. The possibility of rust has me concerned. I'm thinking I'll replace the manifold if I can't clean it out, then plan to replace the tank shortly, too, just in case. If this manifold can be disassembled at least I should have some indication of whether rust is at work here.
Well, the good news is that I found new-in-box replacements on eBay for the manifolds. They were even reasonably priced at just $150 apiece. Normal retail is $280. On the off chance anybody else ever needs to know, the model number is Air Lift 25009. The bad news is the fine gentlemen who installed the system on the car apparently thought the air hoses were load-bearing structures. First fitting took 45 minutes to break loose. Second fitting took almost two hours. Writing this as I'm taking a break after working on the third fitting for almost an hour without any signs of a budge. Aren't these things supposed to be "finger tight plus one turn"? I thought I read that somewhere. If it were physically possible, I'd suspect they ran an impact on these. I thought at first it might just be surface corrosion (brass fittings, aluminum body) but I don't see any signs of that on the two I've already pulled. However, I'm concerned about stripping the brass fittings, and I can't get a line wrench on it because there is a larger-diameter fitting in front of it.
Yeah, looks like I'll be getting a new (stainless) tank, too, so easy enough to order up a pile of fittings while I'm shopping. The water that came out had a lovely thick caramel color and consistency... Kind of interesting how the relays mount on top of these manifolds. Those screw caps are just hold-downs. No idea how I'll get the manifolds separated from the tank yet, they're seized on there pretty solidly and there isn't anywhere to put a wrench or anywhere to get a good grip. The small holes at the bottom are for mounting brackets so maybe I'll make something to grab. I'd still like to open them up to see if I can clean them out and store them as spares. Anyway, I appreciate all the feedback. Looks like I should be road-worthy by next weekend.
About fittings ... the site where I ordered them only sells air suspension parts but they do not list the PSI ratings of the NPT fittings. Elsewhere it looks like they're normally just 125 PSI. I went looking for stainless fittings and found some rated at 150 PSI which were about 3X as expensive as brass, or some very high rating, 1200 PSI or some such, I forget exactly -- about 12X the price of brass fittings. If they are underrated, I imagine there is a lot of leeway in that spec, but it does make me wonder.
You probably already know this, but you can spray some soapy water around to find any small leaks. If there is one, it will make bubbles. Dish soap is the best.
So hopefully one last question. The corrosion was pretty heavy between the brass fittings and the aluminum manifold, so I thought I'd replace all the fittings with stainless while I was in there. I thought the whole system was NPT, but unfortunately the air line sleeves are not. The air line has a flare insert and a sleeve that tightens over it, like a brake line. I assume this is probably a standard air line setup but I don't know for sure. The old 3/8" brass hex coupler (which got badly chewed up due to being locked into place so tightly by corrosion) has some kind of straight thread on the air line side (the manifold side is NPT), and it looks like there is a shoulder inside which mates against the face of the flared insert. I thought maybe that side was NPT's straight-threaded cousin NPS, but the sleeve threads don't capture NPT threads and as far as I know, NPS and NPT are supposed to be thread-compatible (the difference is in seating). Also, that shoulder inside makes me think it's something else entirely. So the three $64,000 questions are: Is this a standard coupler? Is there a name for it? Anybody know where to find them in stainless? Thanks again everyone.
A friend reminded me the brake-line style flare-and-nut is a compression fitting, so I think this is it... http://www.mcmaster.com/#52245k824/=11esozp
Looks like the compression fittings they sell at Home Depot. Used those a few times on air set ups. I'd look into push to connect fittings. Those are the easiest to work with and if a line blows or leaks, super easy to repair.
See if you can locate a parker fitting store nearby, i have done quite a few air ride installs and always used the parker push to connect fittings, great quality fitting
Those look like standard DOT air line fittings available at any truck parts supplier including many auto parts stores. https://www.imperialsupplies.com/pdf/Section_G.pdf Many people think that brass fittings don't require sealant on the threads but most DOT fittings come with a silicone sealer on the threads. If fittings without sealer are used, they tend to leak and are often over tightened to try to stop the leak. The sealer also prevents the fittings from galling and locking into the threads. The inserts that go inside the plastic tubing to prevent it collapsing under the ferrule come in 2 different types. One is pressed into the fitting to make assembly faster but they need to be wiggled to come out. The other has a flat end and makes disassembly much easier.
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