Air Suspension 83 Aspencade

[Robmanda1]

Hello Folks,
Hello Folks,

The air compressor on my 83 Aspencade is not adding any air to the suspension (front and rear). The gauge, on the dash, shows air in the suspension (front and rear), but does not indicate an increase in pressure when I use the compressor (it works, I can hear it running). The manual says to service every 8K miles (what is the function of a drier?). However, I am a bit apprehensive to remove the hoses (Arizona Bike Week is next weekend and I would rather it not be in pieces for this event) as I have never serviced an air suspension system. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

In addition, the rear tire, almost on the sidewall, on the left side facing forward is rubbing on something up top. I smell burnt rubber shortly after hitting a bump in the road or when I have a passenger after a sharp turn. That said, could this be a function of the air suspension not working properly?

Thanks for any input,
Rob

[WingAdmin]

The dryer does just that - it dries the air, removing the moisture from it. You can have a look at the procedure here:

How to service your air compressor dessicant

That said, the dessicant won't normally cause the compressor not to function. I'd pull the output hose off the compressor and see if it is actually putting any air out.

[fgh]

I did mine a long time ago. The Honda shows how to dry the desiccant but says the rest of the assembly is non-serviceable.

Well it can be disassembled and cleaned. I don't remember much about it other than there are very few parts, its not hard to disassemble, clean, lube and reassemble. It made a difference on mine.

LOL111

[RoadRogue]

you do realize that you need to push both the front or rear selector switch AND the increase or decrease button at the same time. If you only push the increase button you fill the very small "tank" in the compressor unit, it doesnt hold enough air to make a noticeable difference when pushing only one at a time. I dont mean to sound insulting ,but I have seen this mistake before.

[Robmanda1]

I do realize that both the suspension selector and pump both need to be depressed. You do offer a good point though, perhaps it could the the suspension selector switch. The dash does indicate which one is selected, but the valve may not be working properly. Thanks for the replies.

[Robmanda1]

Alright,
I am just about remove the on board air compressor, but noticed the pump filter hose. If the compressor is working, then shouldn't the pump filter hose suck air in? I thought this would be a good place to start. I held a lit match to the end of the hose and the air seems to be coming out of this hose (it blew the match out). My thought is that if the compressor is working then air should be going in, not out of this hose.

[Robmanda1]

Another question,
At the other end of the drier (towards the shock absorbers) there is a relief valve. Can I add air to the system with bicycle pump on my 83 aspencade?

[wingman83]

I know this is old post but I was searching for trouble shooting help for air compressor but to answer question for future people yes you can pump shocks up with shop compressor or any other pump that fits air valve that's how I've been pumping mine up this summer but ready to figure out wats wrong with mine

[WingAdmin]

I know this is old post but I was searching for trouble shooting help for air compressor but to answer question for future people yes you can pump shocks up with shop compressor or any other pump that fits air valve that's how I've been pumping mine up this summer but ready to figure out wats wrong with mine

You can, but you need to be careful - ESPECIALLY with the forks.

Shop compressors meant for filling tires with a high volume of air are easily capable of putting out 120 psi, and this will very, very quickly blow out the seals in shocks or forks that are meant to handle at most 20 psi. Your best bet is to use a hand (i.e. bicycle) pump.

[wingman83]

OK thank you think I learned the hard way cause my front shocks want stay pumped up now wish I seen this sooner and hope no one listened to my post feel bad now but thanks again

[Dragontattoo72]

Yes, they are serviceable, the pump piston doesn't have rings. The cylinder and.the head also have a deliberate offset groove and boss to show alignment. I was wondering why the pump "worked", but I wasn't getting enough pressure to raise the shocks. Turned out there was kak preventing the intake flap from closing all the way. Rebuilt it, and it's as good as New! Well built little compressor I can say in all truth.

I did mine a long time ago. The Honda shows how to dry the desiccant but says the rest of the assembly is non-serviceable.

Well it can be disassembled and cleaned. I don't remember much about it other than there are very few parts, its not hard to disassemble, clean, lube and reassemble. It made a difference on mine.

LOL111