Hello, this is my first post to the boards and I have a question!
I have a 2002 Venture Extended with the rear air. This van was not equiped with the air ride level control from the factory and I tow a small pop-up camper and would like to add the ride leveling. What components are in the system, and how does it work. I know there is an air pump unit and the shocks, but what "tells" the air pump how much to add to the shocks? Is the ride level sensor in the air pump or is it somewhere else in the van? Is the wiring harness there for the option? Any help, or alternatives to the factory system you could give me would be appreciated.
thank you,
Brad

 

Hi,
I have too many hobbies too I own an '04 Silhouette with auto-leveling and my in-laws have a '94 APV with the same setup. I've replaced the air shocks on the Lumina APV. They are not as fat as the ones on my Silhouette, but they are readily available from www.rockauto.comfor the APV. That store also carries the air pump, but I suspect it will be much cheaper toget most of what you need from a wrecker. The system is fairly self-contained so it should be easy to transplant. I don't know if the harness if already there on your vehicle, but it would make sense to me if it was. The air pump doubles as an on-board air compressor accessible in the cargo area. There is a suspension level sensor mounted to the unibody and attached with a solid wire to the rear beam-axle - it triggers the pump. From the pump there is nylon tubling with compression fittings going to the shocks. No rocket science here, but it you find a wreck with all the pieces, it will make life a lot easier. As far as I know air shocks are supposed to last longer than conventional oil/gas shocks, so if you find a late model wreck with this setup you'll be golden.