Where to buy new Air springs?

R

rhauf

LVC Member
Joined
Jan 25, 2012
Messages
11
Reaction score
0
Location
ojai
Im sure this has been asked before, but when i searched all i could come up with was threads on people doing spring conversions.. so i ask again :)


anyway, my '98 mark viii is in need of new airbags, i was able to find a new set for the rear at a decent price and ordered them a couple months ago.. but i can't seem to find the front ones anywhere at a decent price..
Autozone has them listed for $215/ea but they say they can't get them anymore.. so, to those who have replaced their air springs, where did you get them, how much did you pay?


thanks!
 
rhauf said:
Im sure this has been asked before, but when i searched all i could come up with was threads on people doing spring conversions.. so i ask again :)


anyway, my '98 mark viii is in need of new airbags, i was able to find a new set for the rear at a decent price and ordered them a couple months ago.. but i can't seem to find the front ones anywhere at a decent price..
Autozone has them listed for $215/ea but they say they can't get them anymore.. so, to those who have replaced their air springs, where did you get them, how much did you pay?


thanks!
Click to expand...

[url]http://www.amazon.com/Motorcraft-AVS16-Spring/dp/B0011DSB6K/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1357419855&sr=8-1&keywords=AVS-16[/URL]

[url]http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_1?url=search-alias%3Dautomotive&field-keywords=AVS-17[/URL]

These are Motorcraft OEM and are brand new and you will not find them new anywhere else for any cheaper. Next year, you might not even find them at all. They stopped making them in 2010. These fit Gen 1 and Gen 2 with no modifications. Good Luck!

Your new box will look like this. One is AVS-17 and the other is AVS-16

2012-06-AirShockBox.jpg


Your new air shock will look like this.

2012-06-AirShock.jpg
 
ordered.. bank account is empty. but soon i'll be riding on air again hah.
 
Well, I just joined the party too! I just ordered new Motorcraft fronts for mine. I am sure the ride will be much better than the 20 year old shocks that are on it now! :eek: Plus, mine have started to go down with the cold weather.

Damn you Terry! Always coming up with ways for me to spend money. :D:D
 
Duck said:
Well, I just joined the party too! I just ordered new Motorcraft fronts for mine. I am sure the ride will be much better than the 20 year old shocks that are on it now! :eek: Plus, mine have started to go down with the cold weather.

Damn you Terry! Always coming up with ways for me to spend money. :D:D
Click to expand...

You'll love the ride when they're on Duck. I was amazed when I put mine on. Hey, feel lucky about your buy because I didn't have this deal when I got mine. I paid $723 for the both of mine but it's done and over with and I love the ride it has now. You'll be good to go now for another 15 years easy, maybe longer. Keep the rubber conditioned about every 3 or 4 months. Zymol is what I use on mine. :)
 
NoLimit95 said:
You'll love the ride when they're on Duck. I was amazed when I put mine on. Hey, feel lucky about your buy because I didn't have this deal when I got mine. I paid $723 for the both of mine but it's done and over with and I love the ride it has now. You'll be good to go now for another 15 years easy, maybe longer. Keep the rubber conditioned about every 3 or 4 months. Zymol is what I use on mine. :)
Click to expand...


Yeah, can't really bitch about something lasting 20 years. Yes, $595.77 with free shipping is really not a bad deal.
 
First off, they don't make them anymore. Second, unfortunately (because I have Arnott front shocks on my car), they are not known for their quality or durability. The first set I bought for my '96 back in 2002 or so lasted just over 1 year. Just long enough for the warranty to expire:rolleyes: The second set I bought was for my '97 that I have now. They are the newer, improved design and so far (with the exception of one that had a factory defect and was replaced under warranty) they've lasted almost three years so far. And I'm knocking on a LOT of wood here! Another thing about the Arnotts is that the shocks are very soft compared to OEM. The front end will have more "float" and "bounce" with Arnotts compared to the stiffer OEM shocks. The shock in the Arnott units is also prone to malfunctions. After a couple of years they will start making a "clunk" sound which usually means that the shock is failing. Then the air springs themslves have a tendency to start leaking for no apparent reason. This is what happened to my '96 back in '02/'03. My wife called from McDonald's and said she heard a "whoosh!" and the front end dropped to the ground. So every time I drive my car I cross my fingers and hope that the front end doesn't drop to the ground on me. But honestly, so far the latest updated design Arnott air shocks seem to be much better and more reliable than the old style. And at $186 each, they were a bargain. But as the old saying goes, you get what you pay for...
 
thanks t-wood...my $700 '96 project car (the white one) needs new suspension...and with only 109k miles I'm seriously considering staying with air vs. coils like I recently did to my other '96...the brown one...new front and rear bags...about $1k for parts?
 
On a side note, Arnott rear bags I did and would install again. Rear bags are MUCH less prone to any issues.
 
Duck said:
Yeah, can't really bitch about something lasting 20 years. Yes, $595.77 with free shipping is really not a bad deal.
Click to expand...
where are you seeing 595.77?
I'm showing 716 for both on that amazon link
:confused:
 
when I bought this '96 a few weeks ago it was holding air fine- I turned off the air ride and drove it, and the seller drove it 45 miles to my house!.....the next day it looked like this...more work
P1060112_zps8f0d18d5.jpg

P1060113_zps2ae27ae4.jpg
 
i feel you're pain! i just bought a complete new air pump. now i need 2 fornt shocks/bags
 
dnsherrill said:
when I bought this '96 a few weeks ago it was holding air fine- I turned off the air ride and drove it, and the seller drove it 45 miles to my house!.....the next day it looked like this...more work
Click to expand...

From the looks of it, you could probably get by with just the drivers side. It looks the lowest and yes, I see it's on a slant but the car itself is lower on the drivers side. When one leaks, the other has no choice but to drop down too because it can't hold the weight of the front end alone. autopartstomorrow

Go here and if you have to, enter AVS17 into the search. This is the place that always has them the cheapest. One of mine came from there but they are currently out of stock. They have a box to click and notify you when they are in stock. The price looks a little too low but who knows, you might get lucky and the AVS17 is the side you need. Drivers side / left. AVS16 is the passengers side.

[url]http://www.autopartstomorrow.com/part_numbers/329555-front-shock-absorber[/URL]
 
so NoLimit, you would try replacing just LH side first?...
what SUX is that when I did coils on the brown one about 7 mos ago, (it never slammed but just dropped about 4'' in the rear overnight)... I held onto the front struts for awhile, then threw both right in the friggin dumpster...
I was not planning to get another Mark VIII back then...Damn you LVC, I'm hooked!!!!
 
dnsherrill said:
so NoLimit, you would try replacing just LH side first?...
what SUX is that when I did coils on the brown one about 7 mos ago, (it never slammed but just dropped about 4'' in the rear overnight)... I held onto the front struts for awhile, then threw both right in the friggin dumpster...
I was not planning to get another VIII back then...Damn you LVC, I'm hooked!!!!
Click to expand...

If your rears are holding up, yes, I would do the drivers side first. I think you'll be fine with that until you can get the passengers side but keep in mind, the pass side is always higher with most places. American Air has both at the same price but damn, look at the price for each one... $435 I think, IIRC. Anyway, yes, I would do the drivers side first which is the AVS-17 or some use the part# as AVS17 with no - in the middle. About 6 months ago, I gave away my drivers side for shipping only and it looked to be only a few years old. Nothing like what my pass side looked like. I knew it held air when I promised it to the guy but didn't realize it's condition until I got it out.
 
I was not planning to get another VIII back then...Damn you LVC, I'm hooked!!!!

now thats sig line material right there!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Members online

No members online now.
Total: 113 (members: 0, guests: 113)
Back
Top