so i have always ran air shocks on my 70 fork truck with no probs. now i see people saying they are really bad for the mav. i need to know why. i have got a new set of 4leaf springs. if air shocks are indeed bad on these cars, what is the best shock for the rear with new springs? i do want a jacked up rear a few inches as i like how it looks. other than air shocks, what can i do to get a few inches lift? edit: im sure new leafs will help with the height, but how much? ive yet to install them.
See how the top mount is designed...air shocks will push the mount through the sheet metal. Your truck could be mounted to the frame crossmember.
The new springs alone may raise the rear to a height you like. If not you could reinforce the frame in the mount area so it can handle the added forces of the air shocks.
Dont use air shocks...New springs will raise the back of the car all on their own. If you dont like the height. You can always have the springs re-arched to get the back up higher...But...(Theres allways a but)...Raising the rear ride hieght does affect the cars handeling as well as traction. You will find that the rear of the car will get skittish over uneven rough pavement at higher speeds. A good gas shock will do just fine...These cars dont have alot of weight for shocks to dampen to begin with. KYB makes a good shock as well as Gabriel/Monroe etc...
I ran air shocks on my Comet for more than 20 years before I realized they just aren't cool!!!!!! Plus the ride is compromised. It was my experience the rear of these cars is so light the risk of puncturing the body is minimal. I also ran minimal air. You just can't load it up like you would your truck! LOL
I too ran air shocks on my first Maverick and punched out the cross member on the passenger side. A friend with a welder built/installed a 2" x 3" cross member with shock mounts for me. I agree with all those saying that the new springs will raise the rear of the car and that raising the rear too much brings new driving experiences in less than ideal conditions - been there, done that, got the t-shirt. Bruce
thanks guys! i guess ill know more about the height once i get the leafs installed. im not looking for a huge height back there, just about an inch above the tires is all from the lip. if it turns out i need more height ill just beef up the shock supports.
I'll strongly disagree. My first Maverick only had half the rear cross member due to air shocks. Where you see a bunch of surface rust is where the cross member used to be. The holes are where someone added sheet metal screws to "fix" it. The dark spot by the tailpipe is where the shock attempted to enter the trunk space. You could also ask Matt (Matterick) how this car looked back there from air shocks.
It's better to lower the front than to raise the rear. As others have already said, new springs will raise the rear anyway.
I ran Gabriel Hijacker air shocks on a Duster back in the 70's until I drove one shock clean through the trunk floor - those top mounts were similar to a Mavericks - the ultimate fix was to have the existing rear leafs re-arched and one more added to each side, then use stock shocks again - I had L-60 tires on the rear and the reworked leafs had the car high enough to clear the tires with no problem
These cars are nose-heavy. Keep the rear height reasonable and work on stance by lowering the front. The overall handling will be better. If you set the rear height too high, and the car gets loose in a corner, the car will handle like a bowling ball ... the rear will try to do loops around the front.
There was an article in Car Craft many years ago where they referred to a car as "handling like a tractor trailer on ice". It has stuck with me for all these years because that described all my cars I have modified!
you guys have made me think of safety over looks to a good degree i didnt before. so ill go with the new 4 leafs i have and use reg good quality shocks. i did feel it get kinda squirrely the other day taking a curve at 60. had the shocks up a good bit just to test it. you guys are right about the handling. and plus i dont want a shock busting up my floor.
