Factory Air Suspension?

[2.216VTurbo]

I think of myself as pretty well TD informed but yesterday I was poking around at a couple J-yards and saw something I'd never seen before. Ok, so it was a 3.3 Chrysler Fifth Ave Mark Cross edition, never really did any tuning on one of those rocketships:) but the dang thing had rear shocks with air lines going to them AND a little on board compressor:thumb: The bladders were shot on the shocks (previous owner had done a marvelous duct tape fix:confused: ) and there didn't seem to be any way to disconnect the lines and reconnect them (no compression fittings) so serviceability is probably nil. Still it would be kind of cool to vary the rear ride height on the TC:eyebrows:

[GLHNSLHT2]

My 87 Chrysler New Yorker (Ebody??) The stretched Kbody new yorker has that setup. I've heard they're on earlier years too. Someone had replaced the shocks with regular shocks when I bought it. So I bought a set of air shocks from napa and plumbed them in. I shouldn't be too hard to wire it all up. The ride height is determined by an arm attached to the axle or panhard bar. I can't remember off the top of my head. I cut mine in half and threaded each end then put a coupler on it so I can raise the rear at the track if I want. I think my pump is going out though because I can only get about 12psi into the shocks. I just haven't stepped up and blown the $100 or so for a new pump. But at 12psi or so the car sits level around town so I'm not too worried about it yet.

[Vigo]

yeh its just a self-leveling suspension. think of it as airshocks with a bunch of problem-prone hardware attached.

[dodge89shelby]

well there is a guy in wva that has a 91 Chrysler Daytona VNT! I SWEAR IT! i've seen the title and the best that i can figure it is a one off car. b/c it is a chrysler! but anyway, it has an air setup but on the center console has 3 buttons. stiff, firm, and soft. press whichever one you want and wham you have a different suspention setting!

[dodge89shelby]

o and just in case you dont belive me. this guy owns over 200 daytonas and has a few of teh daytonas used in for some racing leage that was put on by hardees. ownes the "car farm" and has some weird hours but has anything anyone could possibly need for a daytona #304.327.9160 his name is Johnny

[JDAWG]

where is he located?

[2.216VTurbo]

o and just in case you dont belive me. this guy owns over 200 daytonas and has a few of teh daytonas used in for some racing leage that was put on by hardees. ownes the "car farm" and has some weird hours but has anything anyone could possibly need for a daytona #304.327.9160 his name is Johnny


Man, and I thought we had some Daytona obsessed members here:lol: Johnny puts them to shame:amen:

[dodge89shelby]

he is in bluefield WVa

[ShelbyMotorsports]

but anyway, it has an air setup but on the center console has 3 buttons. stiff, firm, and soft. press whichever one you want and wham you have a different suspention setting!

Thats not an air suspension it is the Monroe electronically controlled suspension that was going to be used on the 1990 CSX before the car was cancelled.

Air suspensions like Alan posted about are a load leveling thing so that when you put three people in the backseat or fill the trunk up with stuff the rear suspension will automatically level itself back out.

[puppet]

I think an air ride set-up would be cool. Ride height dependant on speed. Faster you go the lower he drops.

[dodge89shelby]

well ill take your word on it. i havent looked at the car super close to see. but im sure your right.
i know about the air ride though. it came on a lot of chrysler cars in the earliy 90's new yorkers, dynasty's, and some more i think.

[Vigo]

just so you know the chrysler daytona vnt thing just means it was originally canadian car.

[Directconnection]

well there is a guy in wva that has a 91 Chrysler Daytona VNT! I SWEAR IT! i've seen the title and the best that i can figure it is a one off car. b/c it is a chrysler! but anyway, it has an air setup but on the center console has 3 buttons. stiff, firm, and soft. press whichever one you want and wham you have a different suspention setting!


Yes, the adjustable suspension was suppsoed to be available of the '90 VNT daytonas I believe and the Lebarons. But, it was cut just before production. I have a Dodge "performance report" which was a small brochure advertising the new dodge performance lineup for 1990 (VNT Shadow, and VNT daytona along with a couple others) and it lists the Daytona with ----pit adjustable suspension. Over the past 10 years, I have seen a few people that have found this suspension that made it into a couple of lebarons that they found in the junkyard...all 3 or so of them were vnt cars as well.

[R/T]

Town & Country wagons had the load leveler airshocks in 86 / 87 / 88.

[Reaper1]

The VNT Daytona you speak of is probably the one that I remember from MANY years ago when I was on the SDML. This car was a factory test mule and is a 1990. It didn't come with the VDS, but the owner of the time found a car in a j-yard up in Michigan someplace that had it. He snagged the entire set-up and insalled it on the VNT Daytona.(there uesed to be pictures someplace) BTW, 1990 Daytona's and LeBarons actually have the plugs in the back of the car and the center console for the VDS...so if you ever find one, all you have to do is drill the holes for the electrical connectors to go through in the rear and plun-n-play!(ONLY for 1990 though). Reffer to the FSM for more details...

I talked with a guy up at Carlisle a few years ago that had an uncle(or someother type of family member) that worked at the plant that produced the VNT LeBarons. We got to talking about the VDS system and he said that said family member remembers a few of those cars leaving with the system. Nobody knows how many. ALL of the cars that got it were VNT cars, and suposedly all were LeBarons. Well..except for the prototype 1990 CSX that not only has the VDS, but also a 16V engine with I *think* a VNT on it...SWEET car!! At any rate it seems to me that it's a cool option to find, but in the end just a novelty due to NO parts!

As for the air-ride suspension...I pulled one off of a y-body a few years back, A friend and I had a great idea that we were going to use this to adjust spring rate and ride hight on the fly on his SL. Well...we never got that far because the d@mn yard was being complete idiots. Thye kept wanting to call the rear shocks "struts" because they had the air spring on them so they tried to charge us WAY more than what it was supposed ot be. BTW, to get the lines off you push them toward the unit, I believe there is a release collar you either have to hold or push in(can't remember, but it is in the FSM) and then just pull the line out. No biggie. I don't know if our idea would have worked or not, but it seemed cool....

[JDAWG]

I think an air ride set-up would be cool. Ride height dependant on speed. Faster you go the lower he drops.

that really wouldnt be hard to do, it would be manual controlled though, at any speed, minitruckers have been doing this for like 10 years or so

[BLUEBALL]

90's Imperials had the air suspension on front also. But as stated already,can be pain in the ---. In the day it was kinda expensive to have repaired. Good times those were.;)