Speedway Tech Talk - Air Ride Setup
Pat brought in his 1964 Chevrolet Impala to show how his air ride system is set up. Once he opens the trunk, he points out his wood working skills, shown by the wooden stand he built to mount his compressors to. Pat says he did this because he did not want to drill several holes in the floor of his Impala. By building the stand, he only needed four holes to mount that to.
Pat starts by showing us the pair of 380c Chrome ViAir Compressors, and connected to those are a set of AVS Water Traps, something that is very important for anyone operating in a humid climate. These traps prevent water from collecting in the air tank, which could cause corrosion depending on the style of tank you use. The traps also have a valve on the bottom that you can drain the collected water from. Pat suggests doing so every week or two to be safe.
Pat's system has the AVS steel 5 gallon tank, which Pat loves because it comes built with all the ports he needed to hook up his system. The tank includes a fitting on the top for an air pressure gauge, and a petcock on the bottom to drain any accumulated moisture that makes it past the Water Traps.
Pat runs 1/4” air lines to his gauges, and 3/8” line feeding the air bags. Pat suggests using a liquid thread sealant when you assemble your solenoids and lines. He first built his system using Teflon tape, and may have not used it correctly, because the air bled out of the system overnight. He also suggests mounting your dump valves away from the exhaust, and any moving or sharp parts. Melting or cutting a line and losing all air pressure while you’re driving could be an unpleasant development.
Moving into the inside of the car, Pat shows us the simple 7 button AVS controller that he uses to control the ride height of his Impala. He set his up so it is hooked up under the seat, hidden and out of the way.
To view the full lineup of air ride suspension components available at Speedway Motors, click here.
