A huge selling point of air ride is that you have absolute control when it comes time to dial in your setup. If you wanna ride around low and stiff like a true hotboi, you can do that. Want a bit more comfort and float to your ride? You can do that as well! Here we will explain how to dial in your air suspension to achieve your desired stance or comfort.
How do I adjust my air suspension?
First things first, the two primary adjustments that will make a difference in the way your vehicle rides are the overall length of your suspension and the air pressures you run in your bags. If you decide that the “stock” configuration of your air suspension from the manufacturer isn’t exactly what you want, these two things should be the first to change if you want to see a difference in your ride quality or height of your vehicle.
What should I do if I want a stiffer, lower ride height?
For the stance kids out there that desire the low ride height that still allows aggressive fitment, you will need to make your suspension stiffer at ride height which means you will need to run higher PSI in your bags. To make up for this, the thing you want to do is shorten your air strut by threading your lower mount up which will cause you to be at a higher pressure at your standard drive height. Once you find the sweet spot, you’ll find that your vehicle can safely drive at a low ride height without destroying your fenders or quarters due to the stiffer ride.
What should I do if I want a more comfortable ride?
If you want a softer, more comfortable ride then you will want to do the exact opposite of the tip above this. Instead of shortening your strut and running high pressures, you will want to lengthen your strut so it takes less air pressure to get you to your desired ride height. This will make your car respond to road chatter and bumps in a softer and more comfortable way than a stiffer setup would. The main tradeoff to this is that your spring rates will be softer at ride height, meaning you won’t be able to drive as low without the fear of damaging your fenders. Depending on the platform you own you may also find that your car won’t air out as low as it once did due to the longer overall strut length.
Tips for making these adjustments
The best way to approach this is by making smaller adjustments, checking to see how it feels, and then slowly finding out where the sweet spot is for you. This just makes it easier to dial in to make sure you get the exact ride quality you want without sacrificing more height one way or the other, depending on which goal you have. Another thing we would NOT recommend is immediately threading your strut body as short as possible in assumption that it will make you as low as possible. Take your time and find the perfect setup where you aren’t sacrificing too much low or too much lift.
Final Thoughts
Overall dialing in your suspension is a pretty easy task, just takes up a little bit of time and effort. We hope that this little guide has helped you visualize the adjustments you need to make to reach your goals with your car, but if you need any assistance along the way feel free to hit us up with any questions! Our team would be happy to help point you in the right direction!
Don't feel like reading all this stuff? Peep the video below instead!
If you have any questions about dialing in your air suspension, let us know! Hit the chat button on the site to chat with us directly, shoot us an email at sales@bagriders.com, or give us a call at (844)-404-7344.
