converting rear air ride shocks to gas fileld ones, and keeping air ride in front?

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hey guys, i just picked up this lincoln on monday, and i love it!!! repaired a tranny line, fixed a couple nic naks, and the car is running great now. when i bought it, the rear shocks were obviously blown. i haven't had a chance to look under yet, since a couple lines in the front end need to be replaced, but i was wondering if i could convert the rear end to gas filled shocks, maybe plug up the air line to the rear shocks, and leave the front air ride in there, since it works really well and i have no leak problems in the front.

i've been searching all over the net for info on this topic, but could just find info on converting the whole car to gas, not just the rear end. i'm sure its possible, but if u guys could point me to the right direction, and if u know of a supplier that sells jsut the mounting brackets for the rear end, i'd really apreciate it.

the rear shocks fill up with air initially, and sit at a proper ride hieght after fully inflated. then, after about 5 or 10 minutes, the rear end sags right to the bottom, and usually the right side sits even lower than the left. i can't hear the air escaping out of anywhere, and the compressor works great. i'm thinking it may be a leak in the air line (which would be a bonus cause those are pretty easy/ cheap fixes). i rather not buy new air bags, since i lost my job last week and funds are tight.

if u guys might know what it is, i'd appreciate any help of any kind.

at the moment, i am repairing some rsty lines in the front end, and then, i am gonna do the tranny filter and 1-2nd gear piston update, although this car does not suffer from any hard shifting. slowly but surely i'll get her to 100%.

thanks guys
 
RE: converting rear air ride shocks to gas fileld ones, and keeping air ride in front?

RE: converting rear air ride shocks to gas fileld ones, and keeping air ride in front?

The first thing you need to know is that the shocks in the back are just standard shocks, not air shocks. You may actually have a variable dampeneing shock in the rear if you have one of the first gen Marks with that feature. Even so, you can replace them with standard shocks.

You probably have a problem with your rear air bags(s). They replace the coil spring in a conventional suspension and work in conjunction with your shocks. If an airline were to leak, it would not cause the problem you are describing. The air flows from the compressor to a valve mounted on the bag, if air gets into the bag, it can only escape through the valve, a leak at the valve seal, or through a leak elsewhere. A leak in the line would cause the bag to fill slowly, or not at all.

Kale
 
RE: converting rear air ride shocks to gas fileld ones, and keeping air ride in front?

RE: converting rear air ride shocks to gas fileld ones, and keeping air ride in front?

thanks Kale, i went under the car yesturday, and my air bags look brand new. when i was messing around with the air valve, i could hear the air leaking from there the more i pressed on it. so obviously, the leak is coming from the valve!!!

air bags look new, the upper metal ring on the bags are mint, so i assume the previous owner recently replaced them. so, looks like i can keep the air ride, i'm gonna go over to ford to find out if they have new washers for the valve, or should i replace the whole valve??

thanks again
 
RE: converting rear air ride shocks to gas fileld ones, and keeping air ride in front?

RE: converting rear air ride shocks to gas fileld ones, and keeping air ride in front?

What may have happened, is an o-ring got pinched when the bag was replaced. Put the car up on jack stands, remove the valves on the bag assemblies, and check for an o-ring. Make sure it isn't cut and is positioned properly.
 
RE: converting rear air ride shocks to gas fileld ones, and keeping air ride in front?

RE: converting rear air ride shocks to gas fileld ones, and keeping air ride in front?

hey guys, i pulled out the valve, and found that the 2 small o rings on the end were missing totally, and the 1 large on wasn't there either!

i bought the repair kit from licoln, but the only problem i am having now is puttign the thing back in. it feels as if i am puttign way too much pressure to turn the valve clockwise, is there a special tool or technique to use to put it back in?? or do u just give er??

thanks again
 
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