Printed in The American Tri-Five magazine in Volume 2 : Issue 9
There are many, many ways to improve upon the ride quality of your Tri-Five Chevy. The aftermarket has been making bolt-on improvement parts for 55-57 Chevys for nearly as long as the cars have been around. For a lot of folks the ride quality is important but so is the stance. Some like a car at stock height some like it slightly lowered and for some slammed on the ground is the only way to go. With our Project ’56 Wagoonie we wanted it all; superior ride quality and adjustable ride height. There was only one clear way to get everything we wanted and that was to bag it!
With help from the great folks at ridetech we have installed a full ridetech Shockwave air suspension to our wagon. The complete kit utilizes ridetech’s four-bar rear suspension, Strong Arm upper and lower control arms, a RidePro control system with LevelPro ride height sensors and a MuscleBar sway bar. This kit is actually pretty easy to install and the results are crazy cool.
Air bags have come a long way and the control systems that regulate them have come even further. The difference that the Shockwave air shock provides over an older style bag system is that the air spring and the shock are one. Just like a coil-over shock the Shockwave, mounts in the stock position the only difference is that instead of a coil spring there is an air bag. This allows for full steering range from lock to lock. The four bar rear suspension eliminates the rear springs which allows for a wider rear wheel. On a wagon like ours you can run up to a 10” rear wheel after you have removed the rear leaf springs.
All ridetech control arms come with Delrin bushings which are a huge upgrade to OE style rubber or polyurethane because they eliminate unwanted movement and stiction, they improve handling, and are self-lubricating. The brain behind this system is the RidePro control system that gets ride height measurements in real time from the LevelPro ride height sensors. In simple terms, with this system when we hit the key the car will rise to its preprogrammed ride height and will adjust for things such as extra weight in the car, such as extra passengers, and cooler or whatever. When we turn the car off, it will lower to its pre-set lowest point. It also allows for 3 pre-set ride heights that can be set and then used by pressing one button on the included key pad.
Without going through every nut and bolt we wanted to show you the main components and how they are installed. The kit comes with very good step-by-step instructions and is about a $6,000 investment. Not for everyone we realize, but a hi-tech way to achieve the ultimate in stance and in comfort.
- Once the stock suspension is removed the first step is to clearance the front spring pocket. About 1/4” needs to be cut off of the pocket to allow for the air bag to expand when completely deflated.
- With the upper and lower control arms installed, the front Shockwave shocks can be installed. The shocks are adjustable depending on each owners ride preference. To install them, you must remove the adjuster knob, then reinstall it once the shock is in place.
- The MuscleBar sway bar installs much like all other sway bars, but utilizes a PosiLink as opposed to the standard pedestal mounts more commonly used. This allows for more articulation and better, fluid movement from the sway bar.
- NOTE: the top ball joints on ridetech Strong Arms are taller than stock, this allows for improved camber angle so that when the suspension is under a load in a corner the wheel stays straight up and down so that you retain the maximum amount of contact patch from your tire.
- When installing the 4-bar rear suspension you must weld the brackets to the rear end housing. It is very important that you set the 3 degree up position of the pinion angle.
- The control system installation requires mounting the air tank, compressor, valves, lines and control module.
Click here for the ridetech Shockwave.
