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Ok I have a question that I havent come across an answer for yet. How about the alignment and the Camber of the wheels, how does it stay aligned correctly at all times?.

I will tell you why this is a big thing for me. Where I live I am on whats called a Peninsula that is a piece of land surrounded by water on three sides. So in order for me to go too far from home it requires me to travel across a ferry, my problem that I have right now is, that I have to be very careful when getting on and off the ferry not to scrape the kit, and I am still riding at stock height, with 15's. Now if I was to get an Air ride suspension I would be raising it to get on and off the ferry and then have it droped back down the rest of the time, now how does the suspension keep itself aligned and in spec?
Can someone help answer this for me, and tell me how reliable this would be?

Thanks

Crashoveride

 
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When you get the air ride installed drive around to see what height you are going to drive with. When you have your height set remember how much air pressure you have and get it aligned. Everytime you raise it back at that height your alignment returns.

 
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But I how can you get the air pressure back to where it was previously, without having to play with it. Is there a component that set the system back to that pressure or is it all skill to get it back to where it was?

I am just curious about this because I dont know much about them and have given them some though.

Thanks

Crashoveride

 
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With air ride kits you get gauges (digital is better) and the best way to get it back to the right hight is to lift it all the way up and then lower it to get the right setting. Its pretty simple all you have to do is remember to write what PSI is your perfect ride hight then you can always get the right one.

 
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Thats what i thought, but I wasnt sure, because they were saying a ways back that if you didnt like the ride quality of the car just add more air the the bags, but then wouldnt it throw it out of allignment?.
I dont know if all this sounds dumb or not, I am just trying to get a better understanding of it all.

Thanks again

Crashoveride

 
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ya spanky basically answered it, but to add.. its not like your always going to ride it slammed or raised. and even driving around for 500 miles slammed isnt going to mess up your tires, i doubt you would have to ever drive your car raised like that anyways...
-only alignment it throws off is the camber.. and camber varies by the height adjustment... anytime you lower your car, your going to get negative camber, anytime you raise you get positive.. so you get an alignment when your cars dropped 2" then thats the height you should try to drive with.. its not very crucial if you drive with a 2.5" drop cause its only a .5" differece. but if its a 4" drop then you should worry but chances are your not going to drive that low anyways. but ya as long as you get an alignment at 2" and drive at that height, your alignment should be fine..

SPANKY, i'm very interested in your kit. i'm in LA so we could meet up or something.. i would like to know more about the kit tho. is it strut bags all around? cylinders all around? who fabricated it or what company is it from? what kind of compressers? what size tanks? what size lines? what kind of valves? everything... i currently have neuspeed sports on stock struts but i do have the stock springs in my garage. but ya let me know... oh and do you have pics of the front as low it can go? cause all the kits i've seen cant go low at all..

 
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You havent seen the roads around where I live ...........

Seriousely though, thanks for the info, I think I've got the idea now.

Later

Crashoveride

 
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Hey spanky where did you get your kit and how much was it. Also who made it and how the ride with it?

 
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It was from the hack shack and i payed like 2700 for everything. Its a real good kit mine was the first 2002 civic on air with cylinders in the front and that hops 12inches off the ground in the front. The kit goes front back side to side and i like it but its just that im getting a H2 and im trading in the civic thats why im selling it. [IMG]i/expressions/laugh2.gif[/IMG][IMG]i/expressions/laugh2.gif[/IMG][IMG]i/expressions/beer_yum.gif[/IMG]

 
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You can hop it 12 inches off the ground

 
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Do you have any pics of how low it can go?

 
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hey spanky can you send me pics with your kit. i heard that is takes air struts in front and hybrid struts in the rear is this true send me pics at lst_2001@yahoo.com thanks

 
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yah i can hop 12 inches with nitro or c02 ill get more pics and ill send it to you.

 
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Hey send some to me at toolowcivic@yahoo.com

 
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Air cylinders will give you a very rough ride. Not to mention, the tanks take forever to fill, the compressors are very loud and annoying and will kill your altenator, you don't get that much lift and will only get a few good hits before the compressors are on a long journey to fill the tanks back up, and the cylinders will leak within a couple years and need to be replaced. I have had 2 vehicles on air, and will not go back unless using a belt driven compressor which is not possible under the hood of an import. Also, there are no air cylinders that I am aware of that have the steering arm. I have talked to 1 RSX owner (same suspension) on air cylinders and he had to cut into the suspension to get them to work, and said his car steers like crap. Our struts are like 2.5" in diameter in which air cylinders are 4"+.

Anyway, I went with a ProHopper 2 pump, 4 dump hydro setup with 4 accumulators.





Fully hit up!

 
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ey whussup faint
just to fill everyone, he's from clubrsx.com. he knows alot about suspension specifically in the air/hydro area.

some compressors can fill up a 3 gallon tank in like 2 mins.. its not that long, but ya its long enough so that you cant really "play" around with it. thats why bags is mainly just to lower/raise the car. and i'm sure they make accumulators for air cylinders, i've seen them before. and theres always air struts, civicpunker has them on his ride and he said the ride is great. keep in mind lincolns are on factory non-adjustable bags and those ride nice..
n for the front we have plenty of room for cylinders, its just the bag that is limited.. let me try to invite civicpunker into this convo cause he actually has strut bags on his ride... i'm sure it was all bolt on and the steering rod was connected to it...

 
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The strut bags work bitchin cause you just slide the bag over the stock strut/shock, replacing the spring. The only problem is that this usually won't allow you to lay the car out. I had them for my 00 Celica and it only lowered the car approx. 2.5", far from where I wanted it. You will need to cut the strut down shorter, and get a shorter shock, if at all possible, to lay the car out. Check out the air cylinders and air struts from www.dzmotorsports.com Their air cylinders are the only ones I know of that have a built in shock and the upper mount both pivots and rotates for less tower and cylinder stress. http://www.showtimehydraulics.com also has a pair of bags that you use with the stock strut in which they claim to be the only leak proof bag on the market.

 
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By the way, the first air setup on my 91 s-10 consisted of a 5 gallon tank and 1 compressor. It took about 10min to fill that tank, and you could only get 2 full hits out of the front...I then got (2) 12 gallon tanks and a belt driven compressor, man, it was like juice. I could hit it all day long without any problems or worrys. Let me tell you, it aint cool when you are driven tuckin 3" of rim and you come to a corner not being able to hit the front due to lack of air. Needless to say, my fenders were tweaked to hell. My truck had a 2.5" body drop though, so in your hondas you shouldn't have to worry about that...

 
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theres different type of strut bags, the one civicpunker got i believe replaces both spring and STRUT. n dont s10s need big bags, thats why you would run out after 2 hits. n not sure what compressors you had but i'm sure there are much better ones out there(i'm talking about the regular ones and not the belt driven. also i've heard you can use the AC air compressor).
i dunno i'm an air man, the thought of having a trunk full of batteries scares me. but then i guess the thought of having 2 pressurized tanks scare some people too.

 
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I still dont know what to get [IMG]i/expressions/face-icon-small-confused.gif[/IMG],from reading i think hydros r the way to go but that means no more system [IMG]i/expressions/face-icon-small-sad.gif[/IMG] ... I want a kit that lowers the front more...so which one should i get, im thinking of doin something by spring time so help me out here

 
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Unless you plan to hop, 2 batteries is all you need with a hydro setup. I have 2 pumps, 2 batteries, 2 subs, 3 amps, etc. and it will all fit in the trunk with no problems. Be creative, not ghetto...

About the air, yes, on my S-10, I had 2600lb bags on all 4 corners, but they are not much bigger than the 2500lb bags used with the air struts. Go talk with anyone with air and unless they run compressed air or have a belt driver compressor, I will bet you they bitch and complain. Everyone I know of does, which is the big downfall for air. The bigger comressors are a little quicker, but still take several minute to fill a small tank in which will only give you a few hits do to all the weight in the front. You will be able to hit the rear up several times since there is no weight in the rear. Also, the bigger the compressor, the more current it draws from the alt. If you have a stereo systems, you can forget bumpin while the compressor are running (which is almost all the time) since your headlights and interior lights will dim dramatically, to the point where they almost turn off. Not trying to scare anyone away or push them towards juice, just giving you the facts from my previous 2 air equiped vehicles and from all my friends experiences as well. I admit, I wanted to put the RSX on air, since I had all these stereotypes about juice, but once I did my research, talked to a couple different shops that specialize in adjustable suspension (MIC, and Totally Polished) as well as other owners with juice, I then realized it is totally different on a daily driver than a hopper, and gave it a shot. I am now more that satisfied, and would not go back to air...

If you do go air, I would use compressed air or you will eventually get fustrated and wish you did other wise. Just be careful with them PSI levels or you will blow a bag.

 
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I dunno about the messed up ride with cylinders. I have alot of friends turn to cylinders and they ride smooth. I still have a car on Hydros and i like it but its a bitch to maintain. I been dealing with Hydros for 9 years and there good to a point as so is air. They both have there down falls. Personaly i like them both but i get a better ride out of cylinders then i do with hydros. and also there is a way to have a belt driven compressor in a honda/acura the only bad thing is losing the air con but i did it. I give props to the person with the rsx it looks nice. The only thing i have to say is that AIM and BLOWJACKS are the only company that people should stay away from. Also there the same company so dont think one is better then the other because AIM, BLOJACKS, AND CHASIS TECH are the same people so dont get ripped off. But what ever you choose its up to you. If i was you i would try to find out from people that have kits that you really know and that will tell you which one to buy. get some with hydros and some with air and you figure it out.
Because anyone can tell you that they like it but when you know someone they can be more honest with you.

 
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Spanky: On your hydro setup, do you use springs, accumulators or neither? I replaced the springs with 4 accumulators and my ride is better than it was with the GC coilovers. I have driven in several air equiped vehicles and have never been impresses with any of them as far as ride quality is conserned.

About the belt driven compressor, you can use certain CA units if you are willing to ditch the AC, but I live in the desert so that isn't an option. My S-10 had a 2.5" body drop so the AC had to be ripped out to lay body, but it sucked in the summer since it gets 110+ degrees here.

 
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I am in the process of re-doing my setup since I switched from reverse flow cylinders to normal cylinders, but I would be more than happy to give those of you who are interested in adjustable suspension and are trying to decide between juice and air, a ride in my car to check it out for yourself once I get it all back in. I am in Southern Cali near LACR.

 
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I did accumulators and spings and then just springs and then just accumulators and after all the test i got a good ride better then coil overs with both spring and accumulators. But before i worked for The hack shack i thought that air ride wasnt that good and isnt worth it. But when the owner took me a rid in a car with it on oh my goodness i fell in love. You didnt even feel the speed bumps and when we was on the freeway and everyone knows how LA area freeways (ex: 60,10,710 and so on) This thing handled up to speeds up to 100. Remember the ride hight was at its perfect hight. It will only ride like that when your at your perfect ride hight. If topped off then it it will ride like crap and when you have it too low again it will ride like crap but when you get it perfect then it will ride like a Mercedes benz. But the Hydros they have a better ride then they had before. Back in the days it was like u was on a boat but with the accumulators they ride even better now. The only thing is blowing a hose. I have used so many hoses and they all clame to be good but everyone should know that its good some time but not all the time. I usualy blow my hoses or lock up my hydro cylinders from hitting it too much. Dont get me wrong im not hatting on hydros like i said i like them both but i was just saying there is some ups and downs to both. Why some people that arent really educated on this stuff can do something and break something and make it seem like its the parts fault but remember these parts are all moving parts and need to be maintained its not something that will last forever. So i mean its up to anyone what they want im not going to take sides for me i got a air ride for the shows and now im selling my 2k2 civic to get a H2 and go off roading in it. I tride the rest and now its time to try off road [IMG]i/expressions/laugh2.gif[/IMG] But im also going to get a car maybe i might get a rsx i always wanted one because i love integs and i like messing with the motors and building them up and racing them on the track but i like the new civic si so i dunno yet . The only thing i hate about the new Si is that damn rally shifter it just doesnt feel right to me i like it closer to me and right by my side. But yah it dont matter to me what is the best i like them both and if i was that person that wanted to get either or just make sure u get more educated on both products and see which one is worth it for you.

 
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Here is the pic that someone wanted to see how low my car is and to see how fast it goes *video is short*


Video


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[IMG]/forums/themes/orbitz/paperclip.gif[/IMG] MY_CIVIC2.JPG (40 Kb)

 
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Spanky: So whats on the honda, air or juice? I am not familiar with the hondas but I believe the front suspension is the same as my RSX-S...If so, and you have air cylinders, how did you mount the steering rod to the cylinder? I am guessing you have air struts...Your in LA right? Maybe we can meet up, I would like to check out the car and suspension setup...I am in Lancaster 93534.

As far as the hydros go, my car was as smooth as a catti, in which I didn't like. I am in the process of putting them back on since I switched to normal cylinders and made new upper mounts, but I plan to get the accumulators charged with a higher PSI. Right now I am only running the cylinders and accumulators and the ride just doesn't feel right for a sports car. I think I will get them charged to like 400-500 psi rather than the 300 psi to make the car rougher...I would think springs would make the car bouncy?

 
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The civic does have a similar suspension as a rsx and its on air. I dont have air strut bags on my car those things suck and didnt do wat i wanted so i put air cylinders on there and i have it mounted on there with a custom bracket that i made.

 
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You got any pics of the brackets you made? Did you just weld them to the cylinder?

 
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Here is a link to the pic of the brackets sorry about the quality its off a webcam.


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[IMG]/forums/themes/orbitz/paperclip.gif[/IMG] bracket 1.jpg (16 Kb)