2004 VW R32

[mike97xj]

I just bought a 2004 VW R32 from a guy near Boston, MA. It has the LevelPro setup on it, and to be honest, I don' t know a ton about it. He said that it was designed with help with some guys from air-ride, so maybe someone here can help. I' ve never had a car on air before, and I don' t know what to expect.

How do I figure out what to set the controls at? Do i simply pick a height I want, and then set the presets?

It seems like the only way to not have it bounce is to put more air in the bags, but that also makes it sit really high, and look silly.

I also don' t know much about the dampening that is on the front struts.

I' m located in Evansville if that matters.

[amber@ridetech.com]

It seems like the only way to not have it bounce is to put more air in the bags, but that also makes it sit really high, and look silly.

Does it have adjustable shocks?

[mike97xj]

The front is an air-strut type setup.

The rear is a bag and shock setup.

After taking the wheels off, I noticed that there are no level sensors, so I was apparently told incorrectly, and it isn' t a levelpro setup. Must just be an e2.

Either way, i don' t know how to set it up. If i put it at stock ride height, its REALLY bouncy and miserable, but if i put more air in the bags, it rides much better, but it is really tall, and looks stupid.

[darren@ridetech.com]

Any pics of the struts? Whose are they? Most air suspension systems will give the best ride quality just above mid travel. How much travel do you have?

[mike97xj]

I honestly don' t know who made them... I' ll take everything off and take pictures on tuesday. It appears that it will go up max of ~4" from fender to tire. Stock ride height is 1" above the tires.

[darren@ridetech.com]

How far will it go down from stock height? How much travel overall.

[mike97xj]

Stock
---------------
Front 26 1/4"
Rear 26 7/8"

Lowest
----------------
Front: 24"
Rear: 22 1/5"

Highest
----------------
Front: 29"
Rear: 29 3/4"


Oh, and the bags in the front say Air Lift on them.

[darren@ridetech.com]

I would say the ride height should be around 26.5 -27" in the front and 25.5-26" in the rear. You might contact Air Lift direct on that though.

[mike97xj]

Okay, I' ll do that.

Now for some questons on your stuff.

How do I set the e2? Every time I push a button, it seems to just go up or down some random amount. i' ve set the speed on the contoller to the slowest. I don' t know how I should set it so that all corners are even.

Also, when it goes back to preset 2 (auto-height on start feature), it comes up to different numbers every time, and the height isn' t ever right. I understand that it may not be exact, but its usually not even close. The numbers are close, but it isn' t right. Is that normal?

[darren@ridetech.com]

I' m not sure that I understand. Give me a call when you have time. 812-481-4706

[britt@ridetech.com]

E2 Programming:
1-Manually adjust the vehicle to the desired ride height
2-Press and hold the corresponding Preset Button (1, 2, or 3) for at least 5 seconds
-the preset button will begin to flash letting you know it has learned the preset
3-Learn all presets

E2 Activation:
1-Press and hold the desired Preset button for 3 seconds
-the preset button will light, release button once lit
2-The vehicle will travel to Preset destination

E2 Operation:
The E2 will adjust to preset within +/-7psi. Normally it will be within 2 or 3psi of destination, but it could be as far as 7psi off (this is so the ECU does not continually " search" for the exact psi.)
The preciseness of the system depends on valve and line size. If you have 1/2-inch valves and lines, there is no way it will reach preset accurately.

When designing the E2 my criteria was within 1/2-inch of preset destination when used with pressure only, and within 1/8-inch of preset destination when used with level sensors. Due to external forces (suspension bind, etc.) the pressure sensors are not directly related to suspension travel. Level sensors, on the other hand, " know" where the suspension is at all times. This makes the level sensor option much more predictable and precise than using air pressure alone. Though we offer level sensors, not all cars require them.

System Speed will only effect the initial burst of air when the system travels to Preset destination automatically. So when you turn on the ignition and the system attains preset #2, it will add a short burst if set at #1, and a long burst if set at #5. Some vehicles find it beneficial to use the faster setting so the car overshoots the preset, then deflates back down (very helpful on cars with inherent suspension bind).

How far away from destination is your ride height? How far off are your air pressure readings?

[darren@ridetech.com]

I talked to him on the phone. It was withing 7 psi, but on his application 7 psi can change the ride height like an inch. Upgrading to LevelPro would solve his problems.