Let's talk about air suspension

[Fastphil]

First off, if you have any negative opinions about air suspension, especially in relation to Mustangs or Cobras, you are free to share them, but I'm not interested in being flamed for discussing this topic.

I've been researching air suspension, and I am becoming more and more interested in it as the next project on my 03 Cobra convertible. As far as research goes, there is precious little information to be found about air suspension specifically on SN95 Mustangs, and virtually nothing on Cobras with IRS. Most of what I've read up on is generic air suspension information, and more specific install-related stuff from mini-truck, fullsize truck and import/euro applications. This is a good start for someone like me, who knows nothing about air suspension. That is, besides the fact that my Volvo rig that I drive every day is on airbags.

On this site, there is also virtually nothing that is related to air suspension, and that is why I have created this thread. I do understand that SVTPerformance is geared more towards performance, as the name implies, but as all of us here know, there is no better site to turn to when it comes to Cobra-specific knowledge.

In my research, I have discovered a few things that are very interesting, and while they may not be what everyone wants or can afford, it is a good place to start a discussion. Once we get some more interest, we may be able to ask and answer questions in this thread.

There are lots of air ride companies out there, but as far as I can tell, Accuair (AccuAir - Air Suspension) is far and away the most interesting one. They offer a full line of electronic controllers that are basically set-and-forget. What they don't offer, though, is the actual suspension bits (airbags, mounting plates, shocks, etc.). For that, I've only found one company that offers Cobra-specific parts, and that is Ride Tech (RideTech.com - Air Suspension Specialist). The front suspension bits are the same for all 94-04 Mustangs (CoolRide Front System), but they have a listing for IRS bags: CoolRide Rear System

They also have a complete CoolRide system with tank, compressor, lines, etc. but I am interested in Accuair's E-level kit because it has the height sensors and the cool, compact touchpad controller.

So that's where I'm at at the moment. If you have any information to add, please do. If you have any questions, I'll try to answer, or maybe someone who has answers can chime in.

Phil

 

[Fastphil]

Obviously this topic isn't of much interest to anyone here. Here is a pic I just found of a bagged 2003 Cobra (disregard all the other tasteless mods):

 

[Jimmysidecarr]

Obviously this topic isn't of much interest to anyone here. Here is a pic I just found of a bagged 2003 Cobra (disregard all the other tasteless mods):

Unfortunately I believe you are going to find, that there is a high percentage of air suspension users with a very similar mind set and mods list as that poor disfigured 03 Cobra in that photo.

It seems to come with the territory.:nonono:

Extreme drops and excessive tasteless blingage seem to go hand in hand.

 

[d-nice]

I was interested in this when I had my 97 Cobra. I changed the entire suspension on that car with all MAC stuff and after it was all installed, I had a car that was a much better handling car but had to deal with the harder ride. This was about 10 years ago. For the money that I paid for the springs, shocks, upper and lower control arms, sway bar , etc.. I could have gotten the Air Ride system and had a much softer ride along with the upgraded performance. I also liked that you had the option to change the ride height as you see fit with the touch of a button and not have to do it manually.

YouTube - ridetechtv's Channel

 

[moot09]

Please no. Nothing beats the stance of an 03/04 Cobra with coil overs.

 

[Jefe]

Bumping this up, anyone running any sort of air ride in the rear or on all 4 corners? Seems a few people like the Laurel Mountain Airbags

Found this as well: Air Lift Company | Trusted air suspension specialists since 1949

 

[Fastphil]

Jefe, I left this thread to die because I felt people here were too elitist or something for this type of thing. Check this out:

[ame=http://www.stanceworks.com/forums/showthread.php?t=18585]2003 Mustang Cobra convertible getting e-level setup! - StanceWorks[/ame]

If you have any questions, let me know.

 

[Jefe]

Wow! Great thread. You went all out! Any complaints? I was wondering how big the tank would be...I haven't heard back from Air Lift yet and I'm wondering what these other companies use.

 

[hunterp]

Jefe, I left this thread to die because I felt people here were too elitist or something for this type of thing. Check this out:

2003 Mustang Cobra convertible getting e-level setup! - StanceWorks

If you have any questions, let me know.

Don't know if it has anything to do with being elitist, just not much experience on the subject matter.

 

[d-nice]

Jefe, I left this thread to die because I felt people here were too elitist or something for this type of thing. Check this out:

2003 Mustang Cobra convertible getting e-level setup! - StanceWorks

If you have any questions, let me know.

Please no. Nothing beats the stance of an 03/04 Cobra with coil overs.

How about this stance...
Take a look at these pictures of the car the above thread. Looks good to me.

 

[Fastphil]

Thanks guys. I'll answer questions later, I'm in a hurry. In the meantime, hit up Mike at Accuair Suspension (He replies as AccuMike in the link I posted, check out his contact info there). He'll hook you up with anything you need. tell him Philip Law sent you!

 

[wvmystichrome]

I have been thinking of this lately also. Since I am kidded upon the forum for my factory 4x4 look, I have really thought about this. My car has to stay at stock height to get into my garage. No ifs, ands or buts. A buddy came over when I pulled her out one day and he freaked out because he thought I had rubbed the front end on the ground. I had not. The car looks great and I would not mind looking that way also.

 

[Fastphil]

Wow! Great thread. You went all out! Any complaints? I was wondering how big the tank would be...I haven't heard back from Air Lift yet and I'm wondering what these other companies use.

So far, I have no complaints, and I don't expect to have any either. The parts are all top notch in quality, and everything functions just as it should.

The ride is better than it was, and better than I expected. The ride is a lot less jiggly now. A couple of examples: You know when you botch your clutch engagement from a stop and it causes the car to "hump"? When that happens now, it feels almost like the suspension is soaking it up. And there's a set of double railroad tracks right by my house that I have to cross every time I come or go, and now I can cross them without slowing down from about 25mph. I used to slow to idle in first or second gear because it was too rough.

Overall it's just better than it was. I can't comment on the limits of handling, because I don't have the opportunity to test that around here. The limits are way too high in this car to be attainable anyways, so what's it matter if a bit of at-the-limit grip is lost?

If anyone has any questions, please don't hesitate to ask. If you're interested in contacting someone to make a purchase or get more in-depth information, hit up Mike Alexander at Accuair ([email protected]) and tell him Philip Law sent you. He can hook you up with a great system that will give you exactly what you want. I have nothing but good things to say about the product and customer service at Accuair.

 

[Jefe]

Ya I was mainly curious how the ride quality changed compared to stock springs or lowering springs. I bet its night and day. After doing some more research it seems most of the companies make a kit for Mustangs but very few are Cobra or IRS specific. I would love to ditch springs for the airbags but also don't want to drop a lot of coin into the setup. I cant slam the car like yours because every other road here is just awful but I mainly want to be able to lift the car 1.5-3" with the push of a button and there seems to be some cheaper kits out there that will allow that. I guess when parked I could slam the car haha

I might of missed it, are you still running Bilstein's?

 

[Fastphil]

Ya I was mainly curious how the ride quality changed compared to stock springs or lowering springs. I bet its night and day. After doing some more research it seems most of the companies make a kit for Mustangs but very few are Cobra or IRS specific. I would love to ditch springs for the airbags but also don't want to drop a lot of coin into the setup. I cant slam the car like yours because every other road here is just awful but I mainly want to be able to lift the car 1.5-3" with the push of a button and there seems to be some cheaper kits out there that will allow that. I guess when parked I could slam the car haha

I might of missed it, are you still running Bilstein's?

Yes, the car still has the original Bilsteins. They actually do a good job with the air ride, so I won't be changing them just yet. I may go with something adjustable eventually, depending on my budget. The beauty of air suspension is that you don't HAVE to have the car slammed all the time. And you don't HAVE to have it at 4x4 height all the time either. In fact, I drive mine around at a height that is slightly higher than when I was on the cut coils. I will adjust it downwards a bit soon though. When you are on shitty roads or going over speed bumps or driveways, you can raise it up then drop it again once you're clear. If you're pulling into a parking lot or driving slow down a street that is nice and smooth, you can air it out. All at the touch of a button! And as an added bonus, if you don't WANT to adjust the height all the time, the e-level system is set-and-forget.

 

[RDJ]

I have been thinking about doing this on my 04. I like the look of it lowered but there are times when I want a higher stance for only a few minutes or miles so you really can't do that when you are running coil-overs. I had coil-overs put in but may sell them and go with something like this setup.

one question - can you adjust the front and back separately so you can rake it?

Edited to add: just looked at the other thread you posted and that looks awesome. What was your final cost if you don't mind my asking

 

[Fastphil]

I have been thinking about doing this on my 04. I like the look of it lowered but there are times when I want a higher stance for only a few minutes or miles so you really can't do that when you are running coil-overs. I had coil-overs put in but may sell them and go with something like this setup.

one question - can you adjust the front and back separately so you can rake it?

The e-level system I bought has independent up-down controls for all 4 corners, as well as controls for the front and rear pairs. Check out their website for info, and watch the vids on their customer rides page, there's some neat stuff there!

AccuAir - Air Suspension

 

[50 Deep]

awesome work bro. i plan to dump my cobra also but will be coing the coil over route. Looks like you got a lot of engineering and time into that setup

 

[d-nice]

In the video was that humming sound the compressor?

 

[Fastphil]

In the video was that humming sound the compressor?

Yup. So far, I've noticed that if you don't play with the height while driving, the compressor never has to run. As soon as you raise the height of the car or as soon as you turn the key on, the compressors will run until the tank pressure is back up to 150 PSI. At first it sounded loud and annoying, but it's really not that bad. I have a pair o Viair 400C's. Any copressor will do the job, but I don't know if there are any that are quieter and/or will not run as long.