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Old 07-07-2016, 10:35 AM   #3
gmtech1
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Re: 2002 Bravada Air Spring Replacement

Quote:
Originally Posted by Dosh80 View Post
I inherited my Dad's 2002 Bravada with about 65,000 miles on it. At the time, it had been sitting for a while and the air had leaked out of the air springs. However, as soon as the engine was started, the air compressor filled them back up and they were good to go for quite a while.

Then once the winter hit, I noticed that as the temps got colder, when I would leave it parked at night, I'd often find the air would leak out by the morning. Again, once the truck started, the compressor would come on and fill the springs back up again.

Now, the truck has about 85,000 miles on it and it seems that pretty much every night, regardless of temperature, the springs lose all their air. The compressor still fills them up and keep the truck level unless I have somewhat heavy cargo in the back, or even passengers.

I'm guessing that I need to replace the sir springs but can't seem to find any good videos on how to do that - most videos out there are for the coil-over conversions.

So my questions are:
  • Has anyone gone through this process that would be willing to give me advice on where to find a how-to for this?
  • Also, any recommendations on quality parts?
  • Do I need to replace the shocks when I replace these springs?
  • Do I need to have an alignment done?

Any and all help would be greatly appreciated. Also, I searched through the forum to find answers to these questions but didn't find an answer. If I missed one, please do let me know.

Thanks to all in advance!
A spray bottle with soapy water will probably show many small leaks in the air bags. They are not too tough to replace. No, you don't NEED to replace the shocks and no, you don't need an alignment. You will need to get the truck in the air. The air hose removal from the air spring is the hardest part. Need to push the hose and the brass fitting down at the same time, then pull the hose up and out, left side is the hardest. Not a lot of room. Then the springs twist to release from the frame. If you can deflate the bags first, then remove them, you can get to the hoses easier.
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