1988 Chevy Camaro Air Suspension - Tokico Shocks

The lower spring plate was set over the spring pad on the rearend.
It was necessary to cut down the rear bumpstop; failure to do so will not allow the car to drop to its lowest position when aired out.
It was necessary to cut down the rear bumpstop; failure to do so will not allow the car to

After completion, this is how our rear suspension appeared.
Here, John is tightening the brass air-line fittings into the Air Ride Technologies air compressor; notice he is supporting the air compressor with his other hand.
Here, John is tightening the brass air-line fittings into the Air Ride Technologies air co
Thanks to prewired assemblies, hooking up the air-valve solenoids was relatively simple.

To prevent any chance of air leaks caused by the air hose being punctured from to unseen sharp protruding edges or friction caused by suspension travel, Dean slides a 3/8-inch hose over the air lines supplied with the Cool-Ride kit.
To prevent any chance of air leaks caused by the air hose being punctured from to unseen s
Once a spot was located to mount the air compressor, the template included in the kit was used to drill the mounting holes. The professionals at Dean's went above the call of duty by fabricating a mounting plate for the compressor and solenoids. This plate was then attached to the car's floor inside the spare tire compartment in the rear quarter.
Once a spot was located to mount the air compressor, the template included in the kit was
After the compressor and solenoids, the air tank was installed in the lowest part of the Camaro's trunk. The tank also came with a template to drill the holes, that way there is no second guessing or redrilling new holes.
After the compressor and solenoids, the air tank was installed in the lowest part of the C

John peeled back the carpeting, drilled holes in the floor, and then routed the wires from the computer (which controls the air-spring pressure), to the solenoids in the rear truck. The firewall was also drilled to run a 12-volt lead from the battery to the air supply mounted in the trunk.
John peeled back the carpeting, drilled holes in the floor, and then routed the wires from
From the front to the back, the wires were run through the floor and underneath the vehicle.
From the front to the back, the wires were run through the floor and underneath the vehicl
After all the work is done, everything tucks neatly away and out of sight in the spare tire well.
After all the work is done, everything tucks neatly away and out of sight in the spare tir

You can see that we put the controller in the middle of the Camaro's dash, that way if we desire, we can monitor bag pressure with the glance of an eye.
You can see that we put the controller in the middle of the Camaro's dash, that way if we

As promised at the beginning of this story, we have some hard numbers to look at. Before any modifications to the IROC were ever made, we ran it through the 420-foot slalom. Here are the numbers we came up with: In its factory stock form, the Camaro ran the slalom at 38.2 mph at 7.52 seconds. When it was later upgraded using Hotchkis springs, sway bars, subframe connectors, torque arms, etc., it ran the same slalom at 45.5 mph at 6.35 seconds with a gain of 7 mph. When we ran the Camaro through the slalom with its new Air Ride system, we set the adjustable Tokico shocks on the lowest setting.

After this, it ran in the high-6s and low-7s, which was not good enough for us. So we readjusted the shocks and set them near the top setting. With five possible rebound positions, we set the shocks at the #4 position. After this, we ran the slalom five more times; this time around, we achieved some consistent numbers. The Camaro ran some solid mid-6 times; its best time was 6.47 at 44.2 mph. At this point, we were happy and decided that Air Ride had proved itself on the track. Yes, we could have set the shocks on the #5 position and run it through the cones a few more times, all the while adjusting the air pressure to move the numbers even lower. But it was lunchtime, and we were happy with what we had achieved.

Perhaps the greatest achievement for this car and us is the fact that the ride quality drastically improved. Before, when the suspension was at its stiffest, we could run over a dime and tell you if it was heads or tails. Now we can clear the mountain-sized speed bumps in parking lots then let the car down so it looks low and mean. And don't think for one minute that we're going let the guy in the Porsche ride our tail through the canyon passes, either. He's going to at least be 10 car lengths behind trying to negotiate the curves!