# Pneumatic helper springs



## PatricioIN (Jun 13, 2008)

try http://www.miata.net/

GREAT info on anything Miata related in the garage section and wonderful guys who know EVERYTHING there is to know about those cars.. not snobs or brats like many car forums.. they've even had EV Miatas..


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## ISellMiataParts (Sep 24, 2008)

the air bags ive looked at were designed for a specific truck chassis. Just where the HELL are you going to fit air bags on a miata 

There isn't a ton of room in the under chassis, but maybe air shocks would work better?

FM and others have 10k lb spring weight coils made for the miata, we run 10-15k in autocross applications, would that not do the same thing?


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## TX_Dj (Jul 25, 2008)

a coilover shock (if it will fit) or an pneumatic shock (not airbag) may be easier to implement.

Airbags could be tricky.


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## ISellMiataParts (Sep 24, 2008)

there are lots of coilover packages available for a miata 

jic flt2 is very nice if you have the $$


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## kixGas (May 2, 2008)

ISellMiataParts said:


> t
> 
> There isn't a ton of room in the under chassis, but maybe air shocks would work better?


I have never seen air shocks that raise and lower the vehicle. They just alter the performance of the shock, i.e. make the extension and contraction stiffer.


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## ISellMiataParts (Sep 24, 2008)

hmm then other than hydraulic means a coilover setup would be the best idea.


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## TX_Dj (Jul 25, 2008)

kixGas said:


> I have never seen air shocks that raise and lower the vehicle. They just alter the performance of the shock, i.e. make the extension and contraction stiffer.


I don't think the point is to raise and lower the vehicle so much as to handle the extra weight more appropriately.

And yes, under additional weight, "Air Helper Shocks" do "level the ride" by lifting the vehicle...

This is why they are sold for trucks that do a lot of hauling or towing... if you put a heavy load that compresses the rear suspension, you add air pressure to the helper shocks which in turn level the suspension.


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## kixGas (May 2, 2008)

TX_Dj said:


> I don't think the point is to raise and lower the vehicle so much as to handle the extra weight more appropriately.
> 
> And yes, under additional weight, "Air Helper Shocks" do "level the ride" by lifting the vehicle...
> 
> This is why they are sold for trucks that do a lot of hauling or towing... if you put a heavy load that compresses the rear suspension, you add air pressure to the helper shocks which in turn level the suspension.


The OP said he wanted to boost the suspension and have the added benefit of the ability to increase ground clearance when needed. Sounds like he wants to raise it to me- granted it would likely be needed due to the extra weight. 
Air bags can do this. Air shocks, however, cannot. 

Airbags:








Air shocks:









I am assuming that when you guys are talking about "Air helper shocks" that you are incorrectly referring to air bags. Shocks do not aid at all in ride height. They are intended to dampen/absorb the bounce that occurs when you hit a bump. Your suspensions components, whether it is a coil spring, leaf spring, torsion bar or whatever, combined with suspension geometry and vehicle weight will determine ride height. I would always get a laugh when I use to drive my Jeep rockcrawler and some guy would come up and say, "Wow! What kind of shocks to you have on there?? How much of a lift are they giving you?" They would always be confused when I would say, "Bilstien 5150 14" travel shocks and they didn't lift my Jeep at all"
Anyway back to the OP- I think your best avenue for dealing with ride height after loading your car with lead would be a properly rated coil spring or looking into adjustable coil overs as other mentioned before. You would loose you ability to adjust your ride height on the fly like you would with airbags and a compressor but I would venture to guess that it would be difficult to find a airbag system for a Miata.


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## TX_Dj (Jul 25, 2008)

No, by "Air helper shocks" I'm referring to exactly what you showed- The Gabriel HiJackers. 

Direct quote from the official Gabriel site: "Up to 1,100 pounds per pair of extra lifting capacity".

Direct quote from JC Whitney catalog: "Stop sagging rear end — raise rear of vehicle to 4", adjust easily to desired height - Increase tire clearance"

They've been sold since the '60s to do exactly that.

But no, they won't raise the suspension above it's stock level, and no they're not something that can be easily adjusted on the fly. But yes, they will make the suspension stiffer, and act similar to a coil-over shock.

I apologize if I misread the OP- I thought we were just talking about handling the extra battery weight in the car, not necessarily increasing ride height above stock on the fly. I see now that I was mistaken.


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## kixGas (May 2, 2008)

My bad- you are right- they can raise a sagging rear end and I agree with you that they can't/shouldn't lift it above the stock level- but what a terrible way to do it. I am of the opinion that air shocks are a bandaid and not a solution. The previous owner of my mustang had some air shocks installed. Just for kicks I put ~150 psi in them once- it didn't lift the rear end up at all but it sure made for a stiff ride- I thought that my axle was welded to the body 
Those suckers came out real quick.
However I have never seen them in an application like a coil over  A coil over isn't much more than a traditional coil and shock combo in a tidy package where the coil handles the suspension and the shock handles the dampening. I thought that the air shocks were always used in conjunction with typical suspension components (coil or leaf spring) and not replacing them. I would hate to see something that uses air shocks only- especially if it was a single shear mount like the pic I posted earlier. 
Anyway I have detracted from the original post enough now. Carry on...


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## RKM (Jun 9, 2008)

Thanks guys.

Yes, I had wondered about increasing ground clearance on the fly. Sorry I wasn't more clear in the first post. I sometimes drive gravel roads that can have considerable crown, enough to bottom out sometimes. Snow can also be an issue. 

It seems its not easily practical to alter clearance on the fly. There is no place to install air bags on a Miata.

I'll focus on getting a higher spring rate or a coil over package to handle the increased weight. I've never modified a suspension. Thanks again.

Rob


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