I have a 99 eb expo. I noticed that the rear has been sagging alittle and the compressor has been kicking on alot more than normal. Also when I put it in 4wd low it doesnt raise up like it should. I sprayed down the lines today to see if I see any bubbles and didn't. Could it be the rear air bags? thanks

 

The compressor coming on more is a good indication of a leak. Keep in mind that the air springs generally only last 5-10 years, so your inline for replacement. BTW, the compressors are junk to begin with a don't need a reason to fail. Driving the vehicle with a leak will surely shorten the life of an already bad design compressor. In other words, the faster you repair the problem, the smaller the repair bill.

 

Agreed with AA-1, Just to throw a caution out there if anyone is thinking to replace the rear shocks while tuning up your air suspension, as I did last summer. Be careful what shock you put on with the air ride suspension. I replaced the front with the Monroe OEM replacement air Struts and the rear with the recommended Monroe "Sensa-trac". The front is "Like New", The rears are JUNK.... The air suspension raises up when you first start out and I assume "unloads" the rear shock, perhaps throwing it into rebound rate. This results in a pogo stick like wallowing in the rear for the first several bumps you go over. Quite unsettling, especially with the truck full of people. I am tossing these shocks ASAP and replacing them with the factory rears.. Hope to help others avoid the same bad experience...

 

This happened to my '00 expy and found a cracked coupler on top of left inner fender going to rear suspenions. fixed it with brass coupler from Ace hardware-5years ago.

 

Try waiting for the compressor to kick on. When it shuts off, quickly shut the system off under the dash on passenger side. Leave it off and see if anything sgas. If so, there's a leak. If everything stays the same then its something else - bad sensor, relay, compressor, etc. I've had a problem with my drivers side front constantly lowering and raising. I just waited for the truck to level itself and then I turned the air suspension off. I turn it on occasionally just to let everything run, but normally I keep it off. You will get a "check susp" light on the dash when its off.

 

I turned the switch off 3 days ago and the front and the rear have not sagged yet. So as of right now that leads me to believe that the problem is not the airbags leaking, or it could be a leak before the solenoid in the tubing. Does anyone agree with this?
I also replace my front and rear shocks with the monroe and i agree that the rears are not too good
thanks

 

First of all, with a rolling lobe type air bladder, its not going to be an accurate test unless the vehicle is vented down to curb height BEFORE turning the susp. switch off (where the fold of the rubber has been most of its life) .

If your going to do a leak test, turn the ignition on and let it pump up to normal ride height, then turn it off and let it vent to curb height. THEN turn the switch off, write down your readings and "DRIVE IT". VERY IMPORTANT TO DRIVE THE VEHICLE TO LEAK TEST IT!!!!

BTW, if there wasn't a leak, why would the compressor need to run all the time?........if there wasn't leak and the compressor kept running & running, the vehicle would be maxed out in a short time.

 

i have a similar problem with a 97 2 wheel drive. my bags will air up but during a trip the suspension will bottom out and not return to normal hight. in the morning it will be back to the right hight. some one please post a diagram of the air suspension sensors. thankyou matt.
i am not trying to jack the post







97 2 wheel drive air ride

 

Keep in mind that the air springs generally last 5-10 years, so your right in there timewise. I think the reason why its not pumping up right away while being driven, is because its probably leaking as much air out as it can put in, therefore timeing out. Sitting still is sooooo much easier for the system to level. While driving, the cracks on the fold of the rubber are being exposed and leaking. Early in the stages of a leak, it'll only leak while being driven. As the leak progresses, it'll leak anytime.

 

My Navi is riding higher than usual.
Also, when i shut the truck off it doesn
t lower to the orignal settings. Looks like I have to get it calibrated. Does anyone know how much it is by the dealer ?
Or does anyone know how to set it back to factory defaults. I tried unhooking the battery .. Doesn't work
It just started happening out of the blue ...

Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks,

 

My guess is that you have a 4x4? 4x4's are really bad about the front shocks leaking hydraulic fluid "internally". When this happens, the hydraulic fluid gets injested in the air suspension system and swells just about anything rubber 3-5 times its normal size. My guess is this is your problem and your compressor cannot vent properly.

BTW, I see this problem on "at least" half the compressors that come through here. Short term fix is to replace the compressor/dryer. Long term fix is to replace the compressor/dryer and find out what shock(s) are leaking and replace it/them.

 

thankyou all for the help. my passangert bag had a pin hole in it, now i should have replaced all both the bags. but at three hundred a piece i only fix what is broken and wait for the other to go.
thankyou,
matt

 

I Had The Truck Go To Ride Height Then I Shut It Off And Then Shut The Switch Off A Few Minutes Later, The Switch Has Been Off For 5 Days Now And I Driven It Around. The Front Nor The Rear Have Sagged Down To The Stops. It Has Been Around The Same Height. The Other Thing I Notced Is When I Put It Into 4wd Low It Doesnt Raise Up Like It Used To. A Few Months Ago I Did Have To Replace The Front Air Line Because The O Rings Were Leaking. I Think Either There Is A Leak From The Compressor To The Selenoids, Or The Compressor Is Just Weak And Not Putting Enough Pressure In To The System.

 

Thats just the thing though. You need to get it to normal ride height FIRST, THEN turn the ignition off and let it vent down to "CURB HEIGHT".....then turn off the switch. What your trying to do, is to get to the same level that the vehicle has sat at most of its life(sitting overnight and during the day while at work,etc.) BEFORE the switch is turned off. With the rolling lobe design, this is CRITICAL for an accurate test.

 

Is this Eddie from American Air?

I will wait to say anything else to make sure.