Suspension questions - upgrading pump...

John Hubertz

John Hubertz

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I've seen some wonderful and very attractive 100% duty-cycle air ride pumps in "Lowrider" magazine that would be a HUGE performance improvement vs our stock pump.

How difficult would it be to integrate a different pump into the factory control system? The pump control is simply on or off... so couldn't I just patch the new pump into the existing power wire for the old pump?

Mine works fine, but is audible and of course, 13 years old.

streetbeatcustoms_1943_1283587014


(man does that polished one look cool or WHAT!...)
 
...thanks for the prompt and informative reply....Geez I feel guilty for flaming you in the wheel post :)
 
You might have to find another location for it. I don't think it will fit in the fenderwell it is tight in there.
 
This sounds like a good idea. Not sure about that exact pump but, a lot of us have removed the intake snorkle/resonator, and that gives us a lot more room to work with.

I temporarily have a Town Car pump that I rigged in to my Mark VIII (not recommended). Although it's a little smaller, it works fine, slow but fine. I wonder if our systems would have trouble with a faster pump?
 
We could always throat down the air outlet to restrict flow rate.... also the addition of a storage tank would almost completely eliminate gradual leakdown issues.... trunk mount both perhaps and plumb to the original mounting location with some nifty aftermarket line or hose.....hmmmmmm....

I bet it would easily fit in the spare tire well - good isolation and it is easy to find a matching cover for the donut spare to mount it in the trunk itself... or maybe even run-flats.....
 
Would not really be that worth it due to the extremely small lines that are on the car from the factory. The compressor that is in the car now is perfect for what it does....not too small and not too big. If you change out the compressor to a bigger one you will be wasting money even if you put in a tank. The stock lines are what are the restrictive part of the entire system. Now, if you are worried about the pump and the like then purchase a rebuilt one from Eddie at americanair for like $150....you can not go wrong with that.

Also, no matter what if you have a leak in your system the tank will not help. It MAY help while you are driving so that the compressor can kick in and refill or keep the tank full, but without completely changing out all the lines and the size of the inlet valves on the bags a bigger compressor is not worth the extra money, time, or effort. You will be lookin at close to $300 to put in a bigger compressor with a reserve tank and the appropriate mounting hardware to put all of it in the trunk, and then the necessary lines to plumb it into the factory system. And ALL that work and money is almost useless due to the factory lines are the smallest air lines on the planet....hence it being slow to pump up when fully aired out.

Hope that helps, and saves you some time/money. :D
 
I agree with Ray on this. It would be the same as a high powered fire truck using a garden hose rather than those big hoses to deliver water to a fire...or a big block Ford with small tube exhaust....or even dial-up compared to DSL. It'll only flow so fast with the restriction.

BTW, these cars are already prone to moisture problems. Installing an aftermarket compressor would require some sort of moisture absorbing/arresting device in the system somewhere, as well as a vent solenoid installed somewhere.

All this is really no biggie for someone serious about making a true fast-bag system, but unless the rest of the car is hard-core, I think its severe overkill!
 
American Air-1 said:
I agree with Ray on this. It would be the same as a high powered fire truck using a garden hose rather than those big hoses to deliver water to a fire...or a big block Ford with small tube exhaust....or even dial-up compared to DSL. It'll only flow so fast with the restriction.

BTW, these cars are already prone to moisture problems. Installing an aftermarket compressor would require some sort of moisture absorbing/arresting device in the system somewhere, as well as a vent solenoid installed somewhere.

All this is really no biggie for someone serious about making a true fast-bag system, but unless the rest of the car is hard-core, I think its severe overkill!
Click to expand...

Yep, as always, you guys are right.

I just realized that I proved this to myself before.

I pumped up my airsprings using my spider valve and home compressor (30 gallon tank). It pumped up just as slow as the original Mark VIII pump.:(
 
Ummmm... its called air-pressure guys. Its not like I have a degree in thermodynamic and physics :) The line size is an issue if its too large, not too small. Large lines on a small compressor would be inefficient since line pressure would take longer to pressure and equalize the system. The smaller the lines, the faster the system can equalize and flow.

The most restrictive location would probably be the solenoids.

And to prove that a higher CFM compressor works just hook up any compressor to a spider valve from Eddie and you can see just how fast the system becomes!

To add an after-market compressor is VERY doable but as mentioned, a dryer would have to be added unless you mount the compressor in the trunk as I will. I will probably replace the lines, but I may also use the lines that were for the rears originally to pump up the fronts and just get new ones for the rear bags to trunk. I've been looking at 12v compressors for quite some time, just trying to find the highest CFM rated one I can get.

The vent valve? A spider would work fine.
 
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