Airride - time for some pics

The novelty is far from wearing-off. Parking up becomes funny wherever you go; airing-out in front of unsuspecting passers-by with a loud 'Pttsssssshhhhh' seems to stop people in their tracks.

Here's a few 'aired-out' (that's all four bags devoid of any air pressure) pics to whet your appetite - click any pic for a larger version:

So far, the ilevel app has been faultless; being able to pre-set ride-heights and have the trim-mode set to permanently monitor ride-height is awesome.

Here's the van in setting 3 - 90% full - Ideal for getting on to campsites, rough terrain etc. Ride quality is good at this height if a little firm.

Here's another pic with the van set to pre-set 2 - daily driving - looks cool and driveable. Ride quality is fine at this height; similar to factory.

And between the presets we have any infinite variation of height and rake, perfect for leveling up at a campsite:

Nose up, back down - good for those sloping Welsh campsites.

Nose down, back up - for that hot-rod rake!

Being able to control all four corners independently means side-to-side slopes can also be dealt with. Here's driver's side front and rear up and passenger side front and rear down:

Camping whilst there's very little air in the bags also gives a firmer base - no longer when turning over in the night does it feel like the whole van is moving. Dubfreeze was a great night's sleep.

You'll notice there's no pics of the eLevel touch pad on the dash yet. I'm still undecided as to how I'm going to mount it. I'm tempted to remove one of the heater outlets next to the head-unit and flush-mount it there. For the time being it will sit loose on top of the dash.

So that's the airride in a nutshell. If you have any questions (just not 'how much?') feel free to get in touch using the ask Stone174 link at the top of the blog.

Stone174 airride specs:
Airrex front bagover struts and rear bags/dampers.
Viair twin 480 air compressors
Accuair 5 gallon air tank
Accuair VU4 solenoid valve unit
Accuair eLevel management
Accuair iLevel iphone integration module

Fitting/setup by iKustoms

Show Report: Dubfeeze 2013

Cold nights. Blue skies. That feeling of emerging from hibernation. That's what Dubfreeze is all about for me. I have no reason to rummage through greasy boxes of aircooled parts, and the show'n'shine is non-existant... but Dubfreeze is about so much more than that...

Pic courtesy of Rhosneigrgaz - thanks, good to meet you.

This was the first year we had camped at the show - the organisers had loads of last minute registrations for camping due to a forecast of some much-needed sunshine. We arrived shortly after gates opened and there was plenty of room to spread out. A couple of quick drinks and a taxi was ordered for the trip into Stafford. Plenty of beers, an okay curry, and a taxi ride back before gates were closed at midnight meant we slept like logs - the van was PERFECTLY level too - without the need for chocking up.

Sunday dawned with a cold fog in the air that soon burnt off to reveal a clear blue sky. The show was busy but not crammed - some people still begrudge paying £10 to get into what is technically a 'buying and selling' show rather than an all-out show, Bugjam it isn't!

It was only £5 to camp overnight too - I can't believe people moan about that as well - you'd be hard-pushed to find a local campsite that will let you book just one night for that price. Would I camp there again? Yes, without a doubt - as long as it wasn't forecast to rain or blow a gale.

Having bought nothing more than some fresh cleaning products and a few stickers, we headed for home, heads filled with hope that this year's show season is going to be a belter - roll on the Volksworld Show mini road-trip in just over a month's time.

PS: thanks to the blog readers that came over to say hello - sorry I don't always immediately recognise you, I'm rubbish at putting names to faces!

On air...

Here's a quick 'first-look' at the van on airride. No doubt there will be many more pics soon.

Needless to say I'm over-the-moon and big, big thanks go to Iain at iKustoms for his work over the last 10 days. I can't stop giggling every time I see the van aired-out.

Sneaky peek...

Just a quick teaser shot before picking the van up:

Early progress...

Nothing like waking up to find an email sent late in the previous night:

Compressor mounts made and installed
Compressor wiring done and tested
ECU mounted
Valve block mounted
Power cables run
Wiring is into the dash area

Will be making tank mounts first thing and running the first air lines, Should be able to pressure up that side of it by lunch

Struts and bags will be going on Monday

The touchpad will be left loose for now, maybe mounted permanent at a later date. More updates soon...

And so it begins...

Parts arriving ready for dropping the van off on Wednesday.