Are air ride suspensions reliable? Or a deal breaker?

[deth_monkey69]

I'm in the market for a new car, and am looking at either a crown vic, grand marquis, or town car. I had a Deville, but after paying every 6 months for repair after repair I sold it and am looking for something just as spacious, but without breaking all the time. I've seen a lot of Panthers I like, but a few have had air ride suspension, which scares the life out of me. I did some research, and I saw most people replace theirs with regular suspension because of it breaking. As of now if I see a car with an air ride I immediately cross it off, because the reason I went away from a caddy was to avoid luxury style stuff that breaks all the time and costs me and arm and a leg to fix. However, I did really like the ride of the town car I drove that had it. So my question is, are air ride suspensions that prone to breaking? Or am I just over cautious because of my crappy northstar engine? Also off topic is there anything else I need to know or look for when searching for a panther? Is there a year to avoid, or any specific thing I need to look for? I'm a complete idiot when it comes to cars, so assume I know nothing about anything automotive haha. Thanks.

[y2kmgm]

Air suspension is only a deal beaker if you do not have money. My current 2000 Grand Marquis has the air suspension removed before I bought the car. The light stays lit on the dash.

Things to look for in a panther:

2001 and earlier check for updated intake manifold (aluminum vs plastic)

2003 and earlier had parallelogram steering (some say it tracks better)
2004+ had rack and pinion steering

2004-2005 had more transmission problems
2005-2006 had headlight module problems