# air suspension and car lift question



## vwva123 (Feb 20, 2011)

so i have to get new tires put on and they have to put my car on a lift, i have bags and im wondering what to tell them, do i tell them once they get it on the lift to go ahead and let all the air out of every bag, or do i tell them to fill up every bag, before they lift it, or does it really not matter, please help im going tomorrow so i need to know, thank you


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## Greedo (May 26, 2010)

I have a feeling I'm no the only person who's reading this and going, "what the hell kind of question is this?" 

If your air is installed properly and you're low, you'll need to air it up to a height they can get on the lift with. After that, what reason would they need to adjust your bags? What does your height have to do with getting new tires? Just drop the car off at a "normal" height and leave it be. They don't need to know, nor do they probably care, that you have air ride. 

Are you sure you have air ride? Because this sounds like a question from someone who knows nothing about air ride.


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## rgarjr (May 19, 2012)

As soon as the tires leave the ground, dump the air out. 

I believe the bellows struts don't matter much but the sleeve ones do.


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## crispy21 (Mar 26, 2012)

Greedo said:


> I have a feeling I'm no the only person who's reading this and going, "what the hell kind of question is this?"
> 
> If your air is installed properly and you're low, you'll need to air it up to a height they can get on the lift with. After that, what reason would they need to adjust your bags? What does your height have to do with getting new tires? Just drop the car off at a "normal" height and leave it be. They don't need to know, nor do they probably care, that you have air ride.
> 
> Are you sure you have air ride? Because this sounds like a question from someone who knows nothing about air ride.


 Lol right, coilovers would be the same deal. Once its on the lift your good


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## bryangb (Jun 16, 2010)

I'm guessing you purchased the car with the air ride on it. 

No, do not tell them to let the air out. Leave it filled :beer: :beer:


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## vwva123 (Feb 20, 2011)

no i installed the air myself lol i may have worded it wrong basically what i was trying to ask was once i put on the lift is it better to air out, fill it up or it doesnt matter, thats what i was trying to say, sorry if it sounded different, to answer your question yes i know what air ride is ha i may have worded it wrong lol


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## bryangb (Jun 16, 2010)

Do not let the air out of the bags. Doing so will accomplish nothing. I can't believe someone who installed an air ride set up would even have to ask that?


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## vwynn (Oct 11, 2011)

i dont see a reason to release air if its off the ground. :what: 

I just keep the car in regardless if its on jacks or off jacks. nothing changes and i dont see how its bad for the bags. the bags will expend however far your shocks extend so with or without air it extends the same amount. 

just leave the car as is. or raise it to clear lift n thats it. :thumbup:


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## OMGitsKYLE! (Apr 10, 2009)

i think hes asking cause some cars that had factory bags were very very picky when lifted, like old lincolns and **** u had to shut the compressors off from the trunk if u were lifting the car cause it would keep trying to fill the bags then u put it back down their over filled and they blew out. 

With our types of air its a different setup, dont worry.


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## vwva123 (Feb 20, 2011)

thanks for the respones guys it helped, im not a newb i did install myself but being my dad has an old lincoln haha go figure i wasnt sure


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## Squirrel Nuts (Aug 25, 2010)

air **** up to 250psi.


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## gtipwnz (Jun 6, 2010)

I was always told to let the air out of the bags when the car was supported so they didn't blow, but I have sleeve bags in the rear so maybe that's why. For sure if you have E-level, disconnect the height sensors - that's right from Bagriders' mouth. :thumbup:


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## bacardicj151 (Dec 9, 2007)

gtipwnz said:


> I was always told to let the air out of the bags when the car was supported so they didn't blow, but I have sleeve bags in the rear so maybe that's why. For sure if you have E-level, disconnect the height sensors - that's right from Bagriders' mouth. :thumbup:


 If the car is not running why would it matter to disconnect the height sensors? 

Maybe Will or Rali can chime in on this?


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## NDubber (Sep 11, 2006)

bacardicj151 said:


> If the car is not running why would it matter to disconnect the height sensors?
> 
> Maybe Will or Rali can chime in on this?


 ive always been told by many semi truck mechanics that bags should never be inflated without any weight on them that its bad for the crimps and could cause a failure and blow out. just something to keep in mind.


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## RednBlackVr97 (Jan 17, 2009)

NDubber said:


> ive always been told by many semi truck mechanics that bags should never be inflated without any weight on them that its bad for the crimps and could cause a failure and blow out. just something to keep in mind.


 i have also heard that you air the car up once the jack or lift is set in under the car in the right spot you air the bags completely out before lifting. the reason being with all the pressure in the bags when full it can blow a seal when lowered back down.


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## Slamtastic (Jul 24, 2010)

I always air mine out when lifting. It puts a lot of stress on the bag if it's full. Take the 80 psi it's filled to and add the weight of the suspension components and wheel and there is a ton of weight and pressure on the bag, which will cause the crimps to slip out or cause a tear in the bag. 

I know most guys don't do this and I know that it's not absolutely necessary, but it takes seconds to do and gives me the peace of mind. If I were to ever drop it off at a shop I wouldn't tell them to air it out. But I never do so that's not a problem.


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## [email protected] (Feb 10, 2012)

bacardicj151 said:


> If the car is not running why would it matter to disconnect the height sensors?
> 
> Maybe Will or Rali can chime in on this?


 If your height sensors are installed correctly there is no reason to have to disconnect them when you droop the suspension on a lift. If your height sensors get over traveled when you droop the suspension (installed wrong) than yes, you would have to disconnect them to keep them from getting over extended and damaged. If this is the case, than you are probably the same guy that breaks height sensors when you go over a huge drop off on the freeway... the height sensor travel should be setup to not overextend the sensor when the suspension is at full droop. 

To answer the original question, we always suggest depressurizing the bags once you have the lift pads under the frame (i.e. drop the vehicle onto the lift pads). This is beneficial because then you are not drooping the bags with full pressure in them. Some air spring designs are more sensitive to this issue than others, but either way it is a safer bet to just remove the pressure. 

When setting the car back down, repeat the same process in reverse... Let the lift all of the way down and then air the vehicle up off the lift pads.


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## [email protected] (Feb 19, 2010)

gtipwnz said:


> I was always told to let the air out of the bags when the car was supported so they didn't blow, but I have sleeve bags in the rear so maybe that's why. For sure if you have E-level, disconnect the height sensors - that's right from Bagriders' mouth. :thumbup:


 To clarify, we only suggested disconnecting the linkages in a pinch. The long term solution is to position the sensors (and rod lengths) appropriately so that no situation will put them out of their range as Reno said.


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## gtipwnz (Jun 6, 2010)

Ok, no worries. When I called they just said that it was a good precautionary measure. Eric Johnston installed my sensors, so they are in fact in the right spot and don't over extend, but the guy that I talked to said it would be just a good idea anyway, just to be safe. He did say that it probably wouldn't matter whether or not I aired out my bags, but again, not a bad precautionary measure. For my sleeve bags I've heard it's a good idea. :beer:


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## rgarjr (May 19, 2012)

About 6 years ago I had some Airlift universal chapman sleeve struts up front. Went and got a new tire, so they used the lift and it had normal driving pressure in the air sleeves. Driving about a block away though I noticed my right dump out and had to limp it home (not a fun experience).


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