Adjusted air suspension ride height
#1
Instructor
Thread Starter
Adjusted air suspension ride height
I figured I'd post this as it may help some others out. I noticed some time ago by 02 Ultra riding lower on the rear passenger side- so I pulled up my repair manual and decided to adjust the ride height to make the car sit level.
Repair manual gives specs for measuring the distance from the ground to the middle of a particular suspension bolt. Then there are height sensors which can be adjusted to set the height.
Upon changing the passenger side rear all the way to the highest possible setting and the driver's side rear all the way to the lowest setting- the car still sat lower on the passenger side rear!
Hmmmmm
Then I figured it out....I noticed the driver's side FRONT sitting high after my adjustments. So upon adjusting that side down, the passenger side rear came in line with the rest of the vehicle. It appears that the car sitting high on the driver's side front caused the diagonally opposite side of the vehicle to sit low because it pushed it down. (Similar to how you would put a wedge under a chair leg to get the opposite leg to touch the ground).
I hope this helps anyone out there with an UL sitting low in one corner.
Repair manual gives specs for measuring the distance from the ground to the middle of a particular suspension bolt. Then there are height sensors which can be adjusted to set the height.
Upon changing the passenger side rear all the way to the highest possible setting and the driver's side rear all the way to the lowest setting- the car still sat lower on the passenger side rear!
Hmmmmm
Then I figured it out....I noticed the driver's side FRONT sitting high after my adjustments. So upon adjusting that side down, the passenger side rear came in line with the rest of the vehicle. It appears that the car sitting high on the driver's side front caused the diagonally opposite side of the vehicle to sit low because it pushed it down. (Similar to how you would put a wedge under a chair leg to get the opposite leg to touch the ground).
I hope this helps anyone out there with an UL sitting low in one corner.
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yick99 (06-13-23)
#2
great info!! my rear passenger tire has been sliced so badly because of this i could just raise the car with my controller but it always bothers me knowing my car is sitting low in one corner. is this an easy fix? if not, i will pass this info along to my mechanic
#3
Instructor
Thread Starter
yea, its pretty easy, its simpler in the back because there is one nut to loosen to move the sensor arm. The front is a pain unless you are willing to take the tire off which I didnt want to do because i wanted to easily be able to check the ride height (kind of a catch-22 situation there) anyways the front adjusts by turning a rod after loosening the end nuts. Similar to adjusting the steering rods when doing an alignment.
#6
You can adjust the fronts by just turning the wheel ALL THE WAY to the right or left...you can then see the sensor and adjust it the way you want.
JuniorEXE -
Just take it to the boys at Dynamic..they did ALL of this work for me on my 04 UL.
Mike
JuniorEXE -
Just take it to the boys at Dynamic..they did ALL of this work for me on my 04 UL.
Mike
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#8
OK, adjusting the height of the car is about as easy as first grade math. The front left of my 01 Ultra was 3/4" higher than the front left. I've been driving like this for a few years, always wondering why the right rear looked like it was squatting and the front drivers side always looked jacked.
I just adjusted the sensors and it literally took like 10 mins to check and adjust all 4 corners. I can't believe how easy it was.
Folks, if you want to try this, its simple. Park your car on a level surface with it running, turn the wheel all the way to left and look in FRONT of the front left tire. You'll see a small rod about 5 inches in length going vertically between the sensor arm and the lower a-arm. Reach in and loosen the top and bottom 10mm nuts with a small wrench (mine were not tight at all) and twist the rod with your fingers to move the sensor arm up or down (you can see it move, and if you move it quickly, the air suspension will move the vehicle up or down in response). Straighten out the steering wheel and check the height of that corner from a reference point (I just used a tape measure and measured to the fender edge from the ground, lined up vertically with the center of the wheel). Set the height to where you want it and tighten the two adjustment nuts and you're done.
The rear is even easier. Look under the rear wheel from the behind the wheel and you'll see the sensor arm with a lower attachment nut. Loosen the 10mm nut and you have about 1.5" to move the sensor up or down. Again, play with it and you can actually see the vehicle move up and down.
I set mine right in the middle of the adjustment slide, has anyone set the vehicle all the way down and had any issues?
I just adjusted the sensors and it literally took like 10 mins to check and adjust all 4 corners. I can't believe how easy it was.
Folks, if you want to try this, its simple. Park your car on a level surface with it running, turn the wheel all the way to left and look in FRONT of the front left tire. You'll see a small rod about 5 inches in length going vertically between the sensor arm and the lower a-arm. Reach in and loosen the top and bottom 10mm nuts with a small wrench (mine were not tight at all) and twist the rod with your fingers to move the sensor arm up or down (you can see it move, and if you move it quickly, the air suspension will move the vehicle up or down in response). Straighten out the steering wheel and check the height of that corner from a reference point (I just used a tape measure and measured to the fender edge from the ground, lined up vertically with the center of the wheel). Set the height to where you want it and tighten the two adjustment nuts and you're done.
The rear is even easier. Look under the rear wheel from the behind the wheel and you'll see the sensor arm with a lower attachment nut. Loosen the 10mm nut and you have about 1.5" to move the sensor up or down. Again, play with it and you can actually see the vehicle move up and down.
I set mine right in the middle of the adjustment slide, has anyone set the vehicle all the way down and had any issues?
Last edited by jpcdmd; 03-25-07 at 11:57 AM.
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Hagar (03-15-19)
#11
I further adjusted my settings today. I lowered the rears all the way, wow the back really came down about another 3/4". I had to play with the fronts a little after I took the rear down, I couldn't get them even. After a little tweaking, I got the rears all the way down and the fronts even on both sides. Here are some pics of the adjustment mechanisms. The rear is easy to find in the photo, the front is the vertical bar connecting the sensor arm at the top of the photo and the lower a-arm. You can see the two 10mm nuts you need to loosen in order to spin the rod and move the sensor arm up or down.
The front:
The front:
#14
here's a pic of the car. I know its filthy, but you get the idea. It apears that the rear is a little lower than the front but I measured from the ground to the trim strip on the doors and the car is level. In person it looks good too.