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Read the tech article on a 1962 Buick wagon project car featuring aftermarket air bag suspension, brought to you by the experts at Custom Rodder Magazine.
1962 Buick Air Wagon Project Car - Suspended Animation
Part 2: Project AirWagon Gets 'Bags, Brakes, and a Spiffy Underbelly
From the May, 2009 issue of Custom Rodder
All contributors: Bret Voelkel
 A Buick wagon on a road course?...  A Buick wagon on a road course? You bet! The AirWagon not only looks great, it also drives, handles, and stops better than ever thanks to air springs, disc brakes, and other choice components. |  This is where everyone starts:...  This is where everyone starts: decades worth of wear, tear, grease, and grunge. As you can see, a ShockWave unit was already fitted to the stock suspension. It was such a no-brainer that it was in there before we could even grab a photo. Now all we have to do is tear it apart, clean it, replace the bushings and balljoints, and install the disc brakes. Easy? Somewhat. Quick? Well... |  Here's another preview of...  Here's another preview of the cleaning marathon ahead. This is an area where you can save serious time and money, provided the stock stuff works and you're not worried about how the bottom of the car looks. We opted to plow ahead with the cleaning, rebuilding, and upgrading. |  This is where planning and...  This is where planning and experience saved time. We knew we were going through the entire car, so we blew it all apart in order to get to everything. When you do it this way, you have to keep close track of how things come apart and where they are stored. Getting things back together months later can be tricky, so organize and label everything, and take reference photos. |
When you get right down to it, I'm a hi-tech kind of guy. Slick paint, smooth trim, leather interior, a futuristic-looking engine bay; that's the kind of stuff that gets me to stop and take a longer look at a car. The chassis? Well, I like slick and zoomy there too--on someone else's car! I am far too lazy to clean a polished suspension and undercarriage, and simply unwilling to avoid driving a car for fear of getting it dirty. To that end I decided to utilize as many OEM suspension components as possible on the AirWagon '62 Buick project, upgrade parts as needed, and use paint and undercoating as the surface treatment to save time, expense, and hassle. For obvious reasons, we planned on installing an air suspension. That meant that we first we had to build one. Here at Air Ride Technologies, that's pretty straightforward stuff: ShockWaves up front, CoolRide in the rear, and a four-way compressor kit--all the good stuff. Now that we've built a system, though, we realize that it's really a no-brainer for a customer to install. Best of all, the AirWagon gets low, rides great, and handles like a new car. The most serious deficiency with the stock suspension was the brakes. Drum brakes in 1962 were only average even for their time. By today's standards, they're outright dangerous. A call to our friends at Stainless Steel Brakes Corporation (SSBC) solved that problem. The company didn't make a model-specific kit for that car, but was able to find a combination of existing components that worked out well. Pure Choice Motorsports was our one-stop source for the stainless lines and fittings to complete the brake system. Like most GM X-fram cars, the Buick's exhaust needed serious attention. We called Kanter Auto Products to secure a stainless dual exhaust system. Kanter also supplied the rebuild kit for the suspension, which included bushings, tie-rod ends, ball joints, and all of the stuff the guy at AutoZone said didn't exist! The rest of the undercarriage was mostly a matter of cleaning and painting the existing components and plumbing the air, fuel, transmission, and brake lines. We took extra pains to make sure everything was securely fastened out of harm's way. I've spent too much time trying to fix problems on the road to shortcut this area. Spend the time, spend the money, go to the extra trouble. I assure you it is easier working in your garage than in some parking lot in BFE with no tools, lights, or help.  Now this is a brake system!...  Now this is a brake system! Stainless Steel Brakes sent us components to create a system for the big Buick. The 13-inch rotors and four-piston calipers haul this boat down quite nicely. We saved the finned drum brakes to sell at the swap meet because hot-rod guys pay real money for them. What you don't see are the hours of sandblasting and painting before reassembly. |  The rear brakes also have...  The rear brakes also have 13-inch rotors and four-piston calipers, plus a parking brake. SSBC makes bolt-on kits for many popular applications; the Buick was not one of those, but we easily adapted existing parts to make it work. You can also see some of the stainless exhaust from Kanter. Sharp-eyed readers will see we are not using the stock muffler, which was originally located between the axle and gas tank. That's where we put the fuel pump and filters. |  Speaking of the exhaust, the...  Speaking of the exhaust, the most troublesome point on a GM X-frame car is where the headpipe crosses under the frame. We spent extra time massaging a close fit to gain extra ground clearance. You can also see how we detailed the undercarriage of our driver. It's clean, it's functional, but it is not polished. You have to decide how far you want to go. I'm willing to do show-quality work, but I find it tough to get much cleaning done from my lawn chair, which is exactly where I intend to be when I get to a show! |  Here's another view of how...  Here's another view of how tight the exhaust is to the frame. We were sure to leave clearance for engine movement. We finished the suspension parts with nothing more than elbow grease and some cast-iron paint. It sounds easy, but the result is proportional to the amount of cleaning and prep effort. It wouldn't have taken much more time to paint these parts the body color if we'd wanted to. Resto shops charge the same hourly rate for this as they do to make your body straight, or you can do it for pennies in your own garage. Best of all, it's easy to maintain, and I can drive 500 miles in the rain without feeling guilty about a few water spots. |  The combination of the flat-black...  The combination of the flat-black frame, cast-colored suspension, and body-colored drivetrain creates a very functional, OEM look, and the Powermaster alternator, March pulleys, and Be Cool aluminum radiator provide a nice contrast. While glossy paint and chrome look fun in pictures, it's kind of like the difference between looking at a Playboy centerfold and a picture of your cheerleader girlfriend--which can you relate to? |  The rest of the undercarriage...  The rest of the undercarriage carries the same theme. We used scuff pads to give the stainless Kanter exhaust a brushed look. All of the battery cables, fluid lines, and air lines were neatly routed and securely fastened. I know from experience that time spent on thoughtful line and cable installation will pay off the first time you don't have to repair something on the road. |  You didn't think we'd get...  You didn't think we'd get by without a little gratuitous self promotion, did you? This is the rear CoolRide system for the Buick. It's a simple bolt-in setup that allows the wagon to sit right on the OEM bumpstops while still riding and handling great. |  Billet Specialties Vintec...  Billet Specialties Vintec wheels finish off the chassis in style. We used 18x8-inch wheels all around with P255/45R18 Nitto 555 tires. The ride and traction are great. And the handling? Just ask anyone who attended our Street Challenge last September. Steve Grissom drove this car with four passengers around Putnam Park Road Course in Indianapolis, and he lapped my '01 Mustang GT (which is no slouch). I'm sure you'll hear more about the Street Challenge and the handling of the wagon and other air suspension vehicles in future magazine articles. | |
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