# Best air suspension kit to buy?



## Eklypised (Jan 17, 2020)

So I’ve been looking around and seen a few brands from AirRex, Cruze Culture and Universal suspension Company. Prices seem to vary some. AirRex has 2 from $3000 and $6000. I’m not sure what the difference is.

Heres the link









2012 Chevy Cruze Performance Air Suspension - CARiD.com


Don’t drag the tail on your 2012 Chevy Cruze when carrying a load. A performance air suspension system lets you adjust ride height for a level, comfortable ride.




www.carid.com






Cruz Culture seems to be just for Chevy Cruz’s but theirs are cheaper for $2700









11-16 Chevrolet Cruze Cruze Culture Complete Air Suspension Kit


We are proud to be one of the first to offer this unique part to the Cruze Community. We have product tested this suspension kit for one year with our own personal Cruze and we have been pleased with the quality and absolutely no complaints.With this kit, very minimal work will need to be done...




www.cruzeculture.com





Why is the AirRex kit so high at $6000? Are their any other kits you would recommend?


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## snowwy66 (Nov 5, 2017)

Why is the bnr tune $650 and the trifecta tune $350?

Probably different way of doing things. Which one is better. Maybe the forum knows.


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## Toma (Nov 8, 2021)

I wish this post got more attention, I am also curious about this topic


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## knightryderx2 (Sep 5, 2021)

Air suspension is such a huge topic there is so many options out there. Ill go over the basics of most kits out there and what they are comprised of in the two main parts, the suspension and the management.

The suspension side of most kits are going to be a coilover type setup where the bag replaces the spring of the coilover but for the most part its a standard coilover. It has most of the adjustments of a standard coilover, damping, height adjustment, and camber. Like I said the spring is replaced by the bag and this part in itself has options. Universal Air sells kits that are just the bag and it will fit over most bands of coilovers because most companies, BC, Tein, and Fortune Auto for example, use the same diameter pipe for the dampener. Then there is air suspension companies that makes their own line of coilovers with their bags. There is many parts to just the suspension component.

The management side of it does all the controlling of the air pressure to raise and and lower the vehicle. There is two basic types, manual and automatic. Manual is just as it sounds, you have switches in the cabin that control solenoids and valves to move the air where you want it. Then the automatic side uses computer based systems that control digitally controlled solenoids and valves to move the air where you want it. The manual type has a couple of options but usually the only way to know what's going on is by analog gauge that will tell you what the pressure is of each bag, then you have to equate this to height and adjust the air pressure. The automatic type usually has digital readout/control pad that connects to a manifold and this manifold sits between the air tank and your bags. That manifold controls and constantly reads the air pressure in each bag and automatically adds or takes away air based on what you have setup. The system knows this as when you install you will setup up presets heights usually parked, low ride, and high ride. With that most companies will have two types of automatic systems, height and pressure. The pressure system uses the pressure reading of each airbag at the manifold to get to and adjust to preset heights. Then there is the height system that uses sensors installed at each wheel to constantly read the height and adjust the bags accordingly. If you put 3 people in the back seat and it drops your car an inch the system will add more air to the rear and raise the car an inch. In an automatic system this is where most of the money will be spent.

There is a bunch of options and setups for air suspension. A bunch of different companies out there and thus all kinds of prices. You can piece together build your own manual system for just several hundred dollars, there is a few videos on Youtube for this. You could go with one of the big dog companies and spend thousands of dollars and get a straight forward to install system that works great and has good replacment parts and customer service when you need it. The air suspension community is huge and there are many forums dedicated to it. You can get a lot of info from there. What I touched on is just the basics to get started. Watch some videos on youtube there are ton that go over systems and install. Doesn't have to be for the Cruze as most systems have the same stuff in them so you can get a good grasp of the basics.


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## Blasirl (Mar 31, 2015)

Eklypised said:


> So I’ve been looking around and seen a few brands from AirRex, Cruze Culture and Universal suspension Company. Prices seem to vary some. AirRex has 2 from $3000 and $6000. I’m not sure what the difference is.
> 
> Heres the link
> 
> ...


If you try a little to compare Oranges to Tangerines instead of Apples to oranges, the Cruze Culture setup is more like $4000+ .

Some of the differences is anodized aluminum compares to bare steel and probably more. I only spent about 2 minutes each looking at them. For that kind of money I would create a spreadsheet with features, pro's and con's myself.


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## Toma (Nov 8, 2021)

knightryderx2 said:


> Air suspension is such a huge topic there is so many options out there. Ill go over the basics of most kits out there and what they are comprised of in the two main parts, the suspension and the management.
> 
> The suspension side of most kits are going to be a coilover type setup where the bag replaces the spring of the coilover but for the most part its a standard coilover. It has most of the adjustments of a standard coilover, damping, height adjustment, and camber. Like I said the spring is replaced by the bag and this part in itself has options. Universal Air sells kits that are just the bag and it will fit over most bands of coilovers because most companies, BC, Tein, and Fortune Auto for example, use the same diameter pipe for the dampener. Then there is air suspension companies that makes their own line of coilovers with their bags. There is many parts to just the suspension component.
> 
> ...


How can I find out what bags will fit my car? I hear some bags will rub if you don't select them correctly.

I want to piece together a kit but don't really know where to start.
Should i just pick some coilovers that fit my car, then pick bags that fit both?

What kind of electrical draw does air suspension add to my system? With my subwoofers I am definitely pushing my limits, I get lights dimming and voltage drops at full volume. Should I get an alternator before installing air suspension?


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## knightryderx2 (Sep 5, 2021)

Toma said:


> How can I find out what bags will fit my car? I hear some bags will rub if you don't select them correctly.
> 
> I want to piece together a kit but don't really know where to start.
> Should i just pick some coilovers that fit my car, then pick bags that fit both?
> ...


As for bags that will fit your car, I'm not sure. This is where the big companies will come in as they have done their R&D. Air ride, Air Lift Performance, and Accuair are great companies. You will spend upwards of $3000 or more for these, I wouldn't be surprised if it goes over $4000. I will add this part though, its not uncommon for bags to rub on the inner lining or a hose. Its all about how you install and luck of the draw. It's not that easy with the cruze as there isn't a lot of coilover choices. Universal Air does sell bag kit for coilovers but its only certain brands of coilovers. I guess one of the coil routes you could try is BC as they make kits for BC coils but they do the R&D to figure out the best fit so they may or may not have something for the cruze. Before buying anything I would contact them and see if this is an options to fit the car. They may also have something in R&D or looking for a car to do tests on. Its not easy to build your own system and get it right the first time. Not saying its impossible, its just not easy. There is a lot that goes into it. 

I would start by looking at those companies I mentioned and also check out some air suspension forums. I have never actually installed an air suspension system but have thought about it over the years on various cars I have owned. What I know is from research. Watching youtube install videos and manufacturer product videos. Reading articles online and going though forums, research research research. I will also add that certain car communities are big into the air suspension, VW and Audi just to name a couple so don't hesitate to check those car forums.

I don't know the elecal draw. If your stereo is already pulling that kind of power causing those issues you may want to stabilize your electrical system first. Install a big three kit, little bigger battery, and of course a stronger alternator.


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## Toma (Nov 8, 2021)

knightryderx2 said:


> As for bags that will fit your car, I'm not sure. This is where the big companies will come in as they have done their R&D. Air ride, Air Lift Performance, and Accuair are great companies. You will spend upwards of $3000 or more for these, I wouldn't be surprised if it goes over $4000. I will add this part though, its not uncommon for bags to rub on the inner lining or a hose. Its all about how you install and luck of the draw. It's not that easy with the cruze as there isn't a lot of coilover choices. Universal Air does sell bag kit for coilovers but its only certain brands of coilovers. I guess one of the coil routes you could try is BC as they make kits for BC coils but they do the R&D to figure out the best fit so they may or may not have something for the cruze. Before buying anything I would contact them and see if this is an options to fit the car. They may also have something in R&D or looking for a car to do tests on. Its not easy to build your own system and get it right the first time. Not saying its impossible, its just not easy. There is a lot that goes into it.
> 
> I would start by looking at those companies I mentioned and also check out some air suspension forums. I have never actually installed an air suspension system but have thought about it over the years on various cars I have owned. What I know is from research. Watching youtube install videos and manufacturer product videos. Reading articles online and going though forums, research research research. I will also add that certain car communities are big into the air suspension, VW and Audi just to name a couple so don't hesitate to check those car forums.
> 
> I don't know the elecal draw. If your stereo is already pulling that kind of power causing those issues you may want to stabilize your electrical system first. Install a big three kit, little bigger battery, and of course a stronger alternator.


Thank you very much, I couldn't get all this info anywhere! I'm a complete noob to air suspension and still new modding cars and general mechanic type work. It sounds like the best idea for me is to go with one of the kits made for the cruze, I've read about two of them I believe. I think that would be the safest route for me.

As for the electrical, I'm running two mid level 15's and they are pushing my power limits as well as my trunk space limits, working on pulling one out rn until I have the means to accommodate the two big boys.

Again thank you very much for your advice 🙏


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## knightryderx2 (Sep 5, 2021)

Toma said:


> Thank you very much, I couldn't get all this info anywhere! I'm a complete noob to air suspension and still new modding cars and general mechanic type work. It sounds like the best idea for me is to go with one of the kits made for the cruze, I've read about two of them I believe. I think that would be the safest route for me.
> 
> As for the electrical, I'm running two mid level 15's and they are pushing my power limits as well as my trunk space limits, working on pulling one out rn until I have the means to accommodate the two big boys.
> 
> Again thank you very much for your advice 🙏


I would say that would be the best way to go. Its easy, comes with everything you need, and there is customer service when you run into a bind. I looked at Cruze Culture kits and they use Ksport coilovers with Universal Air for the bags and Air Lift 3P system for management. These are all great parts with backing from 3 great manufactures. This is what I was talking about the big dogs doing the necessary R&D to make a great kit for you. Keep in mind if you do get this kit you don't have go straight from Cruze Culture for info. You can go to Ksport, Universal Air, or Air Lift for info on the individual products. Should be pretty good.


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