interchangeable suspensions?

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defflepp1

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so with all the problems that im having with the air ride and the shop saying it will cost about $1500-$2000 to fix it i was wondering if there was a standard suspension from another car that i could swap into mine? i know that the T-bird and Cougar are based on the same platform but will the suspension bolt up to my mark? (its a 94 BTW)
the problems im having is most of the time the front will slam after a 4-5 hours of being off, others it will take only about 2, and a few times it didnt go down at all, now the back just went down and the front is fine. when the car is turned on sometimes it will only take 2 mins for the compressor to fill the slammed front end others i will have to turn it off and turn it back and move it several times for the compressor to fill them up enough to be driven safely. im stumped shop says computer and most likely leaking bags. they say i real should drive it cause the compressor is putting more stress on the alternator to run but i have no choice if i want to get to school and work. any real useful advice would be greatly appreciatd, im only 16 and working on a limited budget so keep that in mind to please. thanks :):):)
 
go on ebay or go to americanairsuspensions.com for a coil conversion kit.

t-bird front struts will work i beleive...the rear i think you'll have to buy new. around
200ish
 
defflepp1 said:
200 for the whole thing or just the rear
Click to expand...

just rear....better off buying the hole thing....
it feels good to get it all done and not have to worry about it..the air susp caused me all sorts of hell.. i'm so glad i converted.
 
The rear will work too, you'll just need to get a set of these(see pic) & rubber spring isolaters to go with them. With washers & bolts you'll be good to go. MM Weld-in Spring Adapter

MMCA-1_2in.jpg
 
Buy the coil conversion kit from American Air Suspensions. It's $389 plus tax and $60 flat rate shipping. Also, if you choose new rear shocks or not. I just received mine on Friday, installed it yesterday morning, and it really is a super nice kit. I personally like the ride better then my air ride.

The kit really isn't hard at all to install (if you have any mechanical ability), so you can save even more money.

f6ab3b65.gif
 
cadillackman said:
The rear will work too, you'll just need to get a set of these(see pic) & rubber spring isolaters to go with them. With washers & bolts you'll be good to go. MM Weld-in Spring Adapter
Click to expand...

Have you used those?

They are designed to be used with 2.5" ID springs, the ID of Thunderbird spring isolators is around 3.6".
 
OMG, I think this is the first thread that didn't say to use the search function...Is evolution taking place? ;)
 
DLF said:
Have you used those?

They are designed to be used with 2.5" ID springs, the ID of Thunderbird spring isolators is around 3.6".
Click to expand...

Sorry, I just found those on the image search, I don't think that's the brand I used. The guy I did a swap for a couple of weeks ago ordered a set that looked just like these but they were from a circle track parts site. there wasn't that much play in them, maybe 1/2 of an inch. I showed him yours but the guy was cheap, real cheap. At first he wanted me to just zip-tie the springs to the upper mount. His name was Antwon & he had pantyhose stockings on his head. He also had 1993 ball joints on his 93. I warned him, he didn't seem to care. He'll be back, lol.
 
The air suspension really isn't that complicated. To go cheap and never worry about it convert. I'd use aftermarket t bird stuff with addco bars if I were to do that, to get a sporty ride. The lowered mark kit if it's even still being made rides like sh*t on bad roads. The air ride is great and so smooth, not to mention you have full adjustability from the ground to 4x4 and everything in between add a pressure guage, water seperator and dump valve like the spider there's nothing like it and no limits to it, fast bags extra compressors, bigger lines, whatever. The air suspension Along with the hump it makes it a Lincoln, what a luxury car should be.
 
And it does not cost 1500 to replace what's wrong with the air suspension unless someone has no idea what they are doing.
 
Lux said:
And it does not cost 1500 to replace what's wrong with the air suspension unless someone has no idea what they are doing.
Click to expand...

OEM front struts are 369 each. Rear bags are ~90 each, I think.

1500 is not unreasonable for a shop to charge, I'm thinking.
 
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