2000 Marquis left front airbags

[Duane Kunze]

Hello all, hope someone can point me in the right direction. Front left side airbags are only partially inflating for travel. Travel mode green light is illuminated. Left side is approximately  2” lower than the right side. Cannot hear any air leaks anywhere. Any assistance where to start trouble shooting greatly appreciated.
FYI. Magnum chassis 8 airbag system.

[Carl Boger]

I would expect that your air ride valve(s) are out of adjustment. There is a adjustable rod that sometimes moves especially if you hit a pothole or something hard.  I am not sure what you ride height should be, but mine is 10 inches from the bottom of the bag to the top when inflated.  Someone with a Marquis may know what yours is.  Hopefully this will help.

[Eric Maclean]

Duane
On most of these coaches Beaver employed three ride height valves one on the front axle mounted behind the axle in the center of the coach and one on each side right and left of the rear axle , it's the rear ride height valves that are responsible for. The coaches level right to left .
If the left side is low by 2" check the left rear ride height valve for adjustment
PS: the small rubber ride height link ends are known to harden with age and break ( it might be a good time to replace them )

I believe Carl is correct as to the ride height being 10 inches
The  is best made with the coach on level ground but remember to work safe under there as there is a real possibility of being crushing under the coach if the air was to go out of the suspension while your under the coach.
It's best to drive the coach onto blocks to give you ample ground clearance to work safely.

This is a link to a link at NAPA
https://www.napaonline.com/en/p/MBIRN10JC

Hope this helps
Eric

[Duane Kunze]

Carl and Eric, thank you both for responding, I will check the rear linkage. I was looking at the front 6pack solenoid block in the front just in front of the axle. I was thinking maybe I had a bad solenoid.

[Joel Ashley]

Just to back up Eric’s post, similar circumstance happened to us once as we were pulling away from our home curb, and it indeed was a deteriorated left rear Haldex link.  It had broken apparently, after a couple years storage, when I drove over the driveway dip coming from our sideyard, but went unnoticed until some yards down the street toward a 6 month sojourn.  We made it to Bend where techs immediately went right to it;  it’s a very common malady/weak point in our coaches. Not all NAPA stores have the link kit in stock, but can usually order it from their local warehouse.  It’s also available online.

It’s a good idea to carry a spare, Duane;  but as Eric notes, undercoach efforts by inexperienced owners should proceed with ultimate caution, especially when messing with air support devices.  Accordingly I carry two 12 ton support jack stands, but some carry custom ramps;  for our relatively short coach, the jacks take up less room.

Joel

[Joel Ashley]

Sample reference pics:

[Duane Kunze]

Thank you Joel for posting your experience and the link. I have inspected all of the linkages/ rubber hoses, etc. All seem good. Now what I am searching for is a step by step troubleshooting process for the valve. I cut some blocks to support the coach, but I cannot move either rear valve left or right. I have to be doing something wrong. Videos I have watched do not show how to manually move the linkage. Can someone explain the step by step process? Engine has to be running, air tanks empty? I’m lost.
Thanks

[Steve Huber Co-Admin]

Duane,
Have you checked the height of the air bags on the left front as Carl suggested? They should be ~ 10" from the top of the bottom plate to bottom of the top plate. If it is lower than that adjust the left rear ride height valve as Eric suggested before you start chasing any other solutions. I'd check the right side bag measurements before adjusting and start by setting the left bags equal to the right side bags. You can then make any needed adjustments to finish leveling the front.
Why are you trying to move the valve? The adjustment is done by moving the rubber linkage (shown circled on Joel's photo. The air tanks need to be full but the engine does not need to be running. To make an adjustment simply loosen the screw in the band around the rubber linkage and move it slightly. IMPORTANT: be sure to hold the linkage in place while loosening the band. If the linkage slips it can cause the bags to deflate, resulting in the coach dropping quickly and crushing anything in its path.
Steve

[Duane Kunze]

Hi Steve, yes , I have checked the measurement of the bags. The passenger front is about 10”, drivers front is about 8.5 “ I can definitely see a difference in how the bags are inflated. I have misunderstood how to manually operate the valve. I didn’t realize I needed to loosen and move the rod, I thought I could just turn the round portion of the valve where the rods connect. Now I think I understand. I want to check operation of valve to make sure it is working. Or maybe one of the 6 pack solenoids is bad? Thanks for your input. I appreciate it. If you have any other suggestions, I am wide open.

[Steve Huber Co-Admin]

Duane,
The solenoids have no effect on the air leveling or ride height of your coach. It is completely controlled by the air bags.
Steve

[Eric Maclean]

Duane
Have you checked the ride height on the rear
The system only uses a single ride height valve for the front axle which means that all the front air bags are tied together and the coach can lean to one side of the other this avoids twisting the frame .
If the driver's side front is low 8.5" apposed to 10" where it should be then one of three things is wrong .
1) the coach is not on level ground
2) the driver's side rear ride height is low ( should be 10" )
3) the passenger side rear ride height is set too high (should be 10" )
Remember this system is essentially a three point leveling system as the front of the coach can pivot or tilt of the center line moving air from one side air bags to the other if the rear ride height is not set at the same height the fronts will not be right either.

There is a fourth possibility
It is possible you have one or more front torque rods seized not allowing the suspension to come up to ride height , these torque rods have a spherical ball end on each end and with age the rubber seals deteriorate and allow dirt and water into the joint causing them to rust and seize.
One of the symptoms of sized torque rods is a squeak or grown when dumping the air bags.

Maybe dumping the suspension air and letting it come back up to ride height several times might free a tight torque rod ( or not)

There is a section in coach assist on servicing the torque rods if your interested.

Hope this helps
Eric

[Duane Kunze]

Hi Eric, sorry for the late reply, I have been trying to adjust this ride height all day. I adjusted both rear height valve linkage. I have not adjusted the front middle valve linkage. These are the bag measurements I ended up with.Driver front = 8.5
Driver rear 9.75. Passenger front 9.0, passenger rear 9.5.
Couple questions, are you saying I should adjust both rear linkage so the rear bags measure 10”?
Second question, what happens when I adjust the linkage in the front?
Thanks for your help, it is sincerely appreciated

[David T. Richelderfer]

https://beaveramb.org/forum/index.php/topic,8304.msg57237.html#msg57237

[Eric Maclean]

Duane
That is correct the ride height should be 10" measured from the bottom mounting plate to the top mounting plate on all the air bags both front and rear.
Make sure to have the coach aired up ( above 100 psi ).
The rear ride height valves control two air bags each for their respective side.
The front ride height valve control all four front air bags together as one.
Get your rear ride height set first then set the front
Remember to do this on level ground

Eric

[Duane Kunze]

Okay, thanks again for the reply and advice. More.work to do.
Have a great day