So the '49-'52 Olds 88s racing NASCAR back in the day seem to have been using air bags in their coil shocks produced by (and often being sponsored by) Airlift . I'm keen to replicate that mod in my '50 to drive around the world, and I'm guessing that one of the various 'universal' kits put out by Airlift would work, but I'd be keen to find out if anyone has ever heard of any NOS or used kits from that era being available? Similarly, does anyone on the forum have any connections with anyone sufficiently senior in the Airlift organisation to have a hope of persuading them to go looking for some in their dusty back rooms of the factory? Cheers Erik
Interesting history on Airlift/Oldsmobile. An engineer at Olds came up with the idea, took it to his superior. The boss told him it was his idea & he should patent it under his name - not Oldsmobile.
Good story but anything invented or patented by an engineer is his employer's property. This is a standard provision of every engineer's contract. They don't want to pay someone to invent something then not get it.
^^^ This happened in the late '40s. Greed and corruption weren't as well developed then. It's detailed in the "Setting The Pace" 100 year history of Olds.
I thought it was odd/interesting that they were both Lansing enterprises and Airlift seemed to sponsor a lot of Olds at that time. Makes more sense now.
The Jalopy Journal
