Air Ride Tech Street Challenge - Super Chevy Magazine

Big rigs have them, as do mini-truckers. For most hardcore performance nuts, however, stuffing airbags between the sprung and unsprung underbelly of a classic car is sacrilege. Adjustable coilover shocks, tuned leaf and coil springs, and performance struts have long been considered the way to go for introducing better handling to Chevelles, Tri-Fives, Novas, and Camaros. Heck, the only air suspension I ever remember adding to my hot rods while growing up was a set of Gabriel Hi-Jackers.

My, how our attitude about oxygen has changed, and in a relatively short period of time, no less. Today, the level of operation and sophistication of air-assisted suspension systems is at record highs. At the forefront of this movement is Air Ride Technologies. The engineers-and I mean engineers-at Air Ride have figured it out. While you'll still find ultra-sophisticated suspension systems on the world's most expensive race-only machines, you'll be hard-pressed to get better performance from a street-driven ride than you'll experience with an Air Ride Technologies system mounted beneath the floorboards.

To give you a firsthand account of that statement, I recently took a trip to Indiana to take part in Air Ride's annual Street Challenge track day.

By all initial indicators the event should have been a wash, since Hurricane Katrina delivered a residual storm through most of the area. When I landed, I had my raingear close by. But after a strong soaking overnight, the day of the event was clear and dry, making for a fun outing at Putnam Park.

I was there to personally experience the difference an Air Ride suspension system would make, both in ride quality and handling. To make my job easier, Air Ride supplied a '67 Nova with factory stock suspension that I traversed around the racecourse at my own skill level.

The Nova was a pretty clean, yet sedate, example of just how poorly old classics handle. I was able, however, to keep the go-pedal firmly planted in the turns without too much worry about overpowering the track and spinning out in the rain-soaked infield grass. The little Chevy featured an automatic trans behind a bone-stock small-block. Not exactly my idea of the perfect streetcar, mind you, but a viable donor to accurately gauge any improvements that the air suspension might provide. On the upside, the car did have power disc brakes to help me scrub off what little speed I could attain.

My initial outing with the car on the track was fun. I even had a videographer along for the ride, and he got plenty of footage of me as I wrestled with the Nova's steering wheel. As far as the car's road-hugging ability, there was not much of any, until Air Ride's on-site mechanics changed over to an entire air suspension.

While the large contingent of enthusiasts who turned out for Air Ride's Street Challenge were sitting enjoying the catered lunch, a crew of technicians meticulously installed an Air Bar bolt-in, four-link rear suspension and replaced the stock front over-the-A-arm coil springs with air bags and adjustable shocks. While the Air Ride crew was experienced at doing this install, the effort that was required to get all the components in place was well within the range of the average do-it-yourselfer with basic tools. In short: you could do it in your driveway in an afternoon.

The results of the installation proved convincing to this veteran hot rodder that air ride suspensions are here to stay and that they offer the ultimate in tuneability from inside the cabin. The feeling I got while driving the little white Deuce around the track after the Air Bar install was of a different car altogether. Well, the horsepower stayed the same, but the effort to maintain a faster speed around the corners was much less than with leaf springs out back and coils up front.

Even in the slalom, the Nova's nimbleness was impressive. If there had been an additional 100 ponies, the car would have been a blast going around the cones.

As it was, the Air Ride crew didn't stop with the Nova, as a First-Gen Camaro also got its underpinnings upgraded. The result with that car, which featured a manual trans behind a potent Mouse motor, was staggering. According to world-renowned road racer Boris Said, who was one of the celebrity pro drivers on hand, "[the Air Bar-equipped Camaro] could probably run 7 seconds quicker around the track than it did with the stock suspension."

Lending credence to that was a trip I took with Boris in the slalom, which netted us the Camaro's best time of the event-almost 4 mph faster around the cones than with the stock components.

To sum it up, all I can say is that it sure was a lot of fun riding on air!

Here were two of the stars of the 2005 Air Ride Technologies Street Challenge. Though there were many cool rides on hand, the little Nova and First-Gen Camaro went through a metamorphosis, as we got to drive them with stock suspension and then after they had their underpinnings swapped with Air Ride's Air Bar system.
Here were two of the stars of the 2005 Air Ride Technologies Street Challenge. Though ther

The Street Challenge is a highly organized event put on by Bret Voelkel and his excellent crew at Air Ride Technologies. With good weather blessing us in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, the driver turnout was great. After a few calories and an introduction by Bret, we were off and running.
The Street Challenge is a highly organized event put on by Bret Voelkel and his excellent
One of the most influential men in our industry, Chassisworks icon, Chris Alston, was on hand for the event. I drove out with Chris from the hotel and got some insight on what he's got coming down the pipe. Air Ride's Air Bar system uses Chassisworks' state-of-the-art double-adjustable aluminum shocks.
One of the most influential men in our industry, Chassisworks icon, Chris Alston, was on h

Here's the first thing I saw of the racecourse at Putnam Park in Northern Indiana, as a passenger in the slightly modified '67 Camaro. The car featured a warmed-over small-block and a four-speed. In stock suspension trim it did reasonably well.
Here's the first thing I saw of the racecourse at Putnam Park in Northern Indiana, as a pa
Yours truly getting ready to take the little '67 Deuce out for a spin. This car was a little more docile than the Camaro and featured a bone-stock small-block and automatic trans. It did have power disc brakes, however, to help me drag it down from speed.
Yours truly getting ready to take the little '67 Deuce out for a spin. This car was a litt

Here's proof that I literally "tore up" the road course with the little Chevy II! Well, not really. The truth is that the stock suspension was so sloppy that the tire wanted to rub on the inside of the fender in every turn. With the Air Ride system installed, the car didn't lean nearly as much and the tires were less prone to rubbing.
Here's proof that I literally "tore up" the road course with the little Chevy II! Well, no
Air Ride's '67 Camaro was the star, however. It ran reasonably well in stock trim, but really traversed the cones after the air suspension was in place. Legendary racer Boris Said was impressed with the F-body and showed us all of its capabilities. I rode with Boris on one of his last trips around the cones and can proudly say that I was the passenger when he hit the best lap of the day. He also said he felt that the addition of the Air Bar was probably good for a 7-second improvement in lap times. Awesome!
Air Ride's '67 Camaro was the star, however. It ran reasonably well in stock trim, but rea

There were plenty of cool rides taking charge around the track. Impressive were the big rides such as the Suburban and Air Ride's own two-door Tahoe.
There were plenty of cool rides taking charge around the track. Impressive were the big ri
This SSR looked great just sitting still.

This great-looking Second-Generation Nova was a blast to watch.
Safety is always a prime concern at any track day, and Air Ride's event was no different. Helmets were provided, as was expert advice from veteran racers and officials alike.
Safety is always a prime concern at any track day, and Air Ride's event was no different.

To the delight of everyone in attendance, Billet Specialties' head honcho, Glenn Grozich, brought out Chicayne, his famous twin turbocharged '62 Biscayne. Proving that he's a hands-on car guy, Glenn even took a ride off the course in the high-end project. The car survived the off-road adventure with little damage but was done for the day. Nothing a good hosing off wouldn't fix, I bet.
To the delight of everyone in attendance, Billet Specialties' head honcho, Glenn Grozich,

The Nova snaked the cones pretty well for a nearly 40-year-old-classic.
As mentioned earlier, the Camaro was the star. With the right amount of air in each corner, it set the pace through the cones.
As mentioned earlier, the Camaro was the star. With the right amount of air in each corner
While real race cars have tires with little or no treads, I can honestly say that real performance cars do have Air Ride suspensions.
While real race cars have tires with little or no treads, I can honestly say that real per

Mad Thrash!
I love doing tech stories. It's in my blood. But even after 30 years of working on cars, watching the Air Ride crew swap out the suspension under the little Nova was a new one for me. While it wasn't my intention to show a blow-by-blow install story, here are a few of the highlights of the changeover. I didn't get to eat much because of the work going on, but I did enjoy the fruits of our sacrifice when I experienced what a difference a little air can make.

Simple in design, excellent in function. That's Air Ride's Air Bar setup. The system's bottom bar of the four-link replaces the leaf spring and an upper bar is attached to a crossmember that bolts in place between the factory unibody framerails. The crossmember also acts as the upper mount for the fully adjustable Shockwave air bag/shock combination.
Simple in design, excellent in function. That's Air Ride's Air Bar setup. The system's bot
During lunch, members of Air Ride Technologies tore into the little Chevy II, and in less than an hour had all four corners suspended on air.
During lunch, members of Air Ride Technologies tore into the little Chevy II, and in less
Of course, safety was the prime concern for the guys working without the help of a lift. A floor jack and heavy-duty jackstands allowed the team to work on it and feel safe while doing so.
Of course, safety was the prime concern for the guys working without the help of a lift. A

Removing parts on the Nova was simple and basic. Here is the factory lower shock mount and leaf spring retaining plate. The Air Ride system replaces this with a nicely engineered plate that acts as the rear mount for the lower four-bar and an adjustable shock mount.
Removing parts on the Nova was simple and basic. Here is the factory lower shock mount and
The tubular lower bar simply bolts in place.

After the upper crossmember is in place, mounted between the stock rear framerails, the upper four-bar is bolted in. The only welding that needs to be done is attaching the rearend brackets for the upper bars. This rearend already had them welded in place. Finally, the Shockwave fully adjustable shock is a bolt-in part.
After the upper crossmember is in place, mounted between the stock rear framerails, the up
Up front, the factory coils are discarded for a Shockwave airbag/shock combo. Of course, care was paramount when it came to taking out the factory coils. There's a lot of energy stored in a compressed coil spring an it's important to make sure you use the correct tools when disassembling the frontend.
Up front, the factory coils are discarded for a Shockwave airbag/shock combo. Of course, c

Here are the upper plates that go in place of the stock upper shock tower mount. Simple installation here. But it fits and works superbly.
Here are the upper plates that go in place of the stock upper shock tower mount. Simple in
Here's the rear of the Deuce with no air in the rear bags. Of course, the car wouldn't go around the track like this. But just think how cool it will look at the car show sitting still.
Here's the rear of the Deuce with no air in the rear bags. Of course, the car wouldn't go