So about that Bagged Cobra... PICS

[DVJ38]

haha that's cool you saw the other thread. Props to you for doing air ride, I never thought it was bad in the first place. I'm sure it rides great too!

I thought I remember Maximum Motorsports doing an Air Ride install on their old project ice box maybe... pretty cool stuff.

 

[Fastphil]

How would you have done it without your buddys manufacturing of those brackets?

JW to those of us without welders and/or torchs in the garage. Is this stuff accuair or anyone sells?

Also how much cutting/unrepairable sacrifices did you have to do? (i.e. hammering or cutting or drilling that you simply can't undo if you ever sold the car or went back to coils)

Lots of questions but hopefully you planned for that posting up the first bagged vert :beer:

Would it have been easier/harder if done on a coupe?

You're probably scanning and updating tens of threads but.....its cause its worth it!

There wasn't any cutting of the car involved, but we did drill a good number of holes. Most of the hardware is designed to be bolt-in, but you still gotta get the air lines and electrical wiring from inside the trunk to under the car somehow. The whole thing is removeable with basically no gaping holes to cover up. A few rubber plugs would do the job unless you're looking for a 100-point restoration to concours levels. None of the holes are visible unless you pull out the trunk carpet or crawl under the car. Our aim was to make the install as clean as possible, and as far as any custom work goes, some sacrifices need to be made. In our case, we decided to drill holes that nobody would see.

As far as fabrication goes, probably none of it is absolutely necessary. Neither my friend Michel nor I are engineers or fabricators. We decided to do the brackets because that's the kind of stuff that Michel likes to play with, and we had enough scrap metal laying around. The brackets make every component even more removable that it would otherwise be, but they are not necessary. i.e. We could have bolted the compressors and tank onto a wood board that would be removable, but that requires fabrication too. As an alternative, AccuAir does sell a manifold and compressor mounting system called eXo Mount that greatly simplifies mounting these components. They're ideal if you want to show off the whole system, but our goal was to hide away as much as possible to avoid a cluttered look and to maximize usable trunk space.

I had a 01 Cobra coupe previously, but I never dug into it so I'm not 100% sure of the differences between a coupe and a convertible. The major challenge was fitting all the electronics and the manifold into the space where the amplifiers are, and making sure the top still has full travel without any interference. The positioning of the air tank also had to be carefully chosen. In that sense, it may be easier in a coupe because the trunk is deeper, but then there may also be less hidden space to tuck things away in for the same reason. Overall, the challenges might be different in a coupe, but I don't think it would be any more or less difficult.

If you are seriously considering an air suspension setup, I highly recommend researching how people install them on ANY kind of car, not just Mustangs. You may see certain things that you do like, and others things that you don't like. By doing this, you can build a list of things you'd like to incorporate into your own install when the time comes.

It's my pleasure to provide as much information as I can, but I do tend to take the time to compose responses that are clear and thorough. As usual, if anybody has any questions, don't hesitate to ask. However, some questions may be more appropriate if asked in the build thread. I know it's on another site, but it's free to register. You may also find the build thread on a site that you're already registered on too. I used the same title on all the sites, and my screen name is always either Fastphil or Fastphil96.

Phil

 

[Fastphil]

Also....can't wait to see vids of the air in action. I know some bags have 2-3 second time travel where others are 5-7 or 9-10 if their real slow compressors.

I don't have a video of the car airing up, but here's one of it airing down from ride height (preset 2):

[youtube_browser]wWJmRe8U_Gw[/youtube_browser]

Air-up and down times depend greatly on the size of the valves and/or manifold, the diameter of the air lines, the weight of the car and the pressure you're running in the tank. Mine is set at 150PSI, but others use 200 or even more. I didn't want a car that would crash to the ground or jump off the ground, and the up and down speeds are fine for what I need.

EDIT: That may be preset 3 in the video, looks a little too high for preset 2. Either way, it doesn't matter much because it's fun to watch!

 

[69clark]

As an alternative, AccuAir does sell a manifold and compressor mounting system called eXo Mount that greatly simplifies mounting these components. They're ideal if you want to show off the whole system, but our goal was to hide away as much as possible to avoid a cluttered look and to maximize usable trunk space.

The eXo Mount is a pretty cool looking setup, not that expensive either, I was checking it out when it first came out. That is the kind of stuff that separates Accuair from the others. But like you, I planned on hiding everything so something like that wasn't needed.

 

[mckpat03]

Your car is absolutely gorgeous man! I love it!

 

[5spd07gt]

The eXo Mount is a pretty cool looking setup, not that expensive either, I was checking it out when it first came out. That is the kind of stuff that separates Accuair from the others. But like you, I planned on hiding everything so something like that wasn't needed.

I am running the eXo mount on my car...

 

[SnakeForce]

Nice car bro love it!

 

[50 Deep]

Sick ride as always phil

 

[VenomousDSG]

I love those wheels, but 295s on an 11 inch wide rim?

 

[32ValveRom]

I've actually learned alot since I saw the other thread. Airbags are definitely something that I'm considering now for my car. Before then, I thought it was a pointless idea because, well... it wasn't a truck and it would hinder performance. So it's a good thing that thread came my way. Btw, how much space does it take up? The above pic from 5spd07gt makes it look like it takes up alot of space which I don't have too much of being that it's an sn-95 vert

 

[BM1]

Kinda neat. Not much into the slammed out look though.

 

[semperfimrn1]

Who cares what other people say?! It's your car and sick the way it is! Only thing I would do is polish that exhaust and maybe upgrade the stereo. Then it would be complete! I like it, but all that matters is that you like it. :rockon:

agree:dancenana:

 

[th1zzl3r]

looks good ignore the haters

 

[5spd07gt]

I've actually learned alot since I saw the other thread. Airbags are definitely something that I'm considering now for my car. Before then, I thought it was a pointless idea because, well... it wasn't a truck and it would hinder performance. So it's a good thing that thread came my way. Btw, how much space does it take up? The above pic from 5spd07gt makes it look like it takes up alot of space which I don't have too much of being that it's an sn-95 vert

Don't feel bad. Its a common misconception. People hear air ride and immediately see it as a show item only. It's nice to see you actually took the time to do a little research.

As far as taking up space it just depends on how you mount everything and what kind of a setup you choose. I am running two compressors and a 5 gallon tank. Some people just run a single compressor and a smaller 3gal tank. Mine actually doesn't take up as much room as it appears. Zporta made a shelf for it to mount to and allows everything to be pushed up against the rear seat. I can still fit my wifes huge suitcase back there if needed. Some people use a rear seat delete and mount it to that. There isn't just one way to mount your setup. You can get as creative as you want. My setup allows you to show your setup in a neat manner but still be able to use your trunk.

 

[mckpat03]

Posted this over on tristatetuners.com BTW.

 

[95riosnake]

As I said in your thread on Corral, I love it. Air ride is on my "maybe someday" list of things to throw at mine, maybe then speed bumps wouldn't look like mountains to me.

Have you ever gotten any more than just the two replies on Corral? lol.

I always thought the only options for us were the Ride Tech shockwave and coolride kits, but it's nice to see there are other options.

Btw, that 2nd pic is badass. (if you have a high res/wallpaper size please pm me)

 

[TBCobra]

glad you have a car built to your tastes and you like it.

Not my thing.

+1

 

[tommygun]

I think its great. Would love to run bags on a standing mile car...just lower it down as u go down the track for better aero.

 

[Ratchet]

Well I personally think it looks badass. I am 50/50 wanting to do it. Gonna read thru the whole install thread in a bit... I thought I was almost done modding my car... just wheels.. then done... till I saw this. Got me thinking. :banana::beer:

 

[Fastphil]

I love those wheels, but 295s on an 11 inch wide rim?

Anyone running a wider tire on an 11 inch rim that tells you they dont rub is straight up lying. As it sits, the tire touches the bumper where it meets the quarter panel under full compression. On the inside, there is probably less than a quarter inch of clearance under full compression. It would be silly, if not impossible, to run wider tires because the tire would no longer tuck into the fender opening.

I've actually learned alot since I saw the other thread. Airbags are definitely something that I'm considering now for my car. Before then, I thought it was a pointless idea because, well... it wasn't a truck and it would hinder performance. So it's a good thing that thread came my way. Btw, how much space does it take up? The above pic from 5spd07gt makes it look like it takes up alot of space which I don't have too much of being that it's an sn-95 vert

As 5spd07gt pointed out, it all depends on how you choose to mount the components. At first glance, I would have said his setup takes up way too much room, but if he is happy with it, then who am I to complain. In a convertible, trunk space is at a premium to begin with, but you gotta admit that front part under the package shelf is pretty useless anyways. Here are a couple of shots of what the trunk looks like (note the trunk panel in front of the tank is missing, but that doesntt change anything for the purpose of this discussion):

Posted this over on tristatetuners.com BTW.

Thanks for the heads-up. Doesnt seem to be their cup of tea so far.

As I said in your thread on Corral, I love it. Air ride is on my "maybe someday" list of things to throw at mine, maybe then speed bumps wouldn't look like mountains to me.

Have you ever gotten any more than just the two replies on Corral? lol.

I always thought the only options for us were the Ride Tech shockwave and coolride kits, but it's nice to see there are other options.

Btw, that 2nd pic is badass. (if you have a high res/wallpaper size please pm me)

Corral is another site where I figured I wouldnt get much love, and so far I am correct. I havent checked lately but as far as I know, there still are just the couple of replies.

The bags I used are in fact RideTech CoolRide units. They are the only option for IRS Cobras. If there are others out there, they were impossible to find.

Well I personally think it looks badass. I am 50/50 wanting to do it. Gonna read thru the whole install thread in a bit... I thought I was almost done modding my car... just wheels.. then done... till I saw this. Got me thinking. :banana::beer:

LOL glad you like it. My goal was to show others that it can be done, and to educate people who didntt know anything about air suspension to begin with. That is why I dont mind providing answers to peoples questions. If you prefer, I can obviously be reached via PM as well.

To all the others who have replied in this thread, thanks a lot for looking and taking the time to tell me how you like it. I never expected it to go over so well, and I also never expected that everybody would like it. I take no offense if you dont like it.

Phil