Air ride on used trucks

[crash68]

That's what I was thinking, the "when",not "if", thanks for the input

If the "when" does happen, there have been several on this forum that have converted the air suspension system to a regular coil spring system. If you find a truck you really like and fits what your looking for you don't necessarily need to rule it out because of the air suspension.
The conversation is no more work than doing a set of coilovers, shocks and springs.

 

[LouM]

Well here is a different take on the air suspension. I have it on my 19 Laramie and I like it and have not had any issues with it.
I live were it does snow and get cold. I have overloaded mine with no issues.
To repeat I have it and I like it.

 

[Bandit517]

My 2016 has air ride, I've leveled the truck by re-calibrating the sensor information. The ONLY time I have issues with mine is during extended times at below freezing temps. As others have stated, when the system is beyond your desire to repair it's easy to swap to traditional coil springs. There's no fabrication work involved. I'm still happy with my air ride for now but I imagine I'll be going to coil springs eventually. Depending on if you plan to do your own work it's not a terrible expense. So if you like a Limited packaged truck, I wouldn't let the air ride be the single deciding factor. But definitely worth keeping in mind that it will be a future expense.

 

[TotallyHucked]

I’m also in the market, planning to buy in the next month or so. I don’t want air ride but it wouldn’t keep me from buying a truck if it had everything else I wanted and fit the budget. BUT, you have to factor in the cost of the conversion. It’s not super expensive but it’s not cheap either. Two identical trucks priced the same and one has air ride, I’m not buying the air ride truck.

 

[Jeepwalker]

Pretty much everything a person/mechanic/tech could want or need to know about how to troubleshoot, debug and repair the Air Suspension system is in the Factory Service Manual. Which you can find on this site for 'free' (just do a search). It's not substantially different in concept or even parts, from air suspension systems on cars from the 90's/00's. Once you get the concept and basic understanding under your belt, it makes more sense.

It's a pretty comprehensive section in the manual. It's more for owners/techs who like to dig into details and troubleshoot ...not for the guy who just wants to drive his tk & get his boat in the water ...and everything else is a hassle. But if you're that guy who likes to get into the nitty-gritty, you could easily fix any issues that might come up. It's not rocket surgery.

Not trying to portray the system as highly problematic ...compared to any other air-ride system.

 

[Shawn Burns]

I have it and like it, but... twice I've come out to the truck during extreme cold to find portions of the truck lowered. And then an array of warning lights for my ride home until the truck slowly warms.

Once it fails, I will replace it with coils. Repairing it requires so much diagnosis and the parts are expensive. I do all of my own maintenance on a variety of vehicles, but it is way out of my comfort zone to tackle something like the diagnosis of a failed air system.

 

[huntergreen]

I have cold winters. Therefore I would stay away from the air suspension.

 

[Logjammin]

I just replaced mine with coils/struts. My 17 Limited has nearly 150K and my problems started in October 2022. I reluctantly replaced the compressor (the dealer did) at just under $2K. Same issues happened again by December and I tore it all out. Second time around they "discovered" a bad rear unit and manifold leak. That was another $3800 they wanted! I'm still so pissed at myself for blowing the 2 grand on the compressor. I bought all the parts thru Rock Auto for $830 and then needed an alignment for another $120 but thats a given...probably needed one anyway. I couldn't be happier with the ride and piece of mind my suspension problems are over. If I were you, I wouldn't rule out a vehicle with air suspension but be mindful it will more than likely go bad on you. The conversion took less than a day...not hard.

 

[Jeepwalker]

With a lot of owners swapping over to coils, there's a bunch of used parts on Ebay for a fraction of new. Air compressors for less than $200 (used). But even things like air compressors, there are components which can be replaced. It's usually not the air compressor motor that craps out ..but dealers change 'assemblies' which makes it a lot more expensive (but ultimately less labor). That's why a guy who knew his system could keep it in great shape for not a whole lot of $$.

 

[Logjammin]

I will say that someone who really wants to service the air system themselves can probaby do so. I know a member on here replied to my posts when I was contemplating my options who seemed quite familiar with the system. Unfortunately there's "possibility" AND "reality". Even given the fact that I'm retired, mine's a daily driver and tracing out issues in the air system proved to be too frustrating and time consuming. Beyond that, the system is supposedly filled with nitrogen...how do you deal with that? Then there's the parts...compressor, tubing, level sensors (the easiest things to troubleshoot) and finally the bags themselves. I just didn't have the time. I'd gladly sell my 2 month old compressor if I had an outlet to do so. My Craigslist ad was met with crickets and I don't have the posts to sell it here!