Think I got a leak in the air ride....

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DeepSeaFish

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On any given day, the air ride suspension in my Denali would normally pump for about 5-8 seconds at start up....no problem... Well, after towing the boat last week on a 20 mile round trip to the lake, the compressor now runs for 2 MINUTES on start up!! After a day or two, it's still doing the same thing so I decided to crank the truck and put my ear by the compressor to listen for a possible leak... As my luck would have it, I can hear a bit of a 'hissing' sound while the compressor is running. There is no 'Service Air Ride' warning light illuminating on the dash, so I don't think there's any bad sensors or check valve so I'm thinking I can rule out electrical. My initial thought is that maybe the tongue weight of the boat has blown out the upper boot of that left shock causing a leak?? Again, the compressor is shutting off, but it's taking ALOT longer than normal. Anyone else seen or heard of this or a similar problem. If I have to replace the shocks, I'm thinking of going with shocks from Arnott Industries as I've heard they're half the price of the OEM from the dealer and hold up well.. Thanks for any info..
 

OHSIXX

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I replaced my rear shocks with Arnott OEM reman'd ones about a year ago along with a new compressor. My compressor would kick in multiple times during any vehicle trip and my compressor was extremely loud too. To be certain you could use a water/soapy solution and look for bubbles. Replacing the rears was easy and the nice thing was they were plug and play/bolt and go. As long as you have no 'SERVICE RIDE CONTROL' messages on the D.I.C. then everything is working properly and the compressor is just running that long to get the rear to be level. I'd fix those rears before you burn out the compressor. I bought mine via ebay from Arnott for $550(rear shocks and compressor). Good luck.....
 
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DeepSeaFish

DeepSeaFish

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Thanks OSHIXX.. I looked at those reman shocks on their website. Think they're like 379.00. Then I noticed the new Bilstein for $20 more. I'm a little weiry on reman stuff as I've bad luck with it in the past, however they do warranty them. I thought about the soapy water trick and plan on doing that this weekend. I haven't notliced the compressor coming on multiple times on road trips much, just primarily if I come to a stop on an incline it will kick on once in awhile especially if I've got 3-4 people in the truck. Just that two minute run time on start up has got me concerned now with that hissing sound. Hoping I'll get lucky and it's just an air line. Sure as heck don't want the compressor going out as this one is only 2 yrs. old. Did you do the replacement yourself?? The shocks are relatively easy I know, but I'm not so sure on the compressor. Thanks again!
 
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OHSIXX

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Yep. Did the shocks and compressor install myself. Top shock bolts were a slight PITA and the compressor was easy--comes with great instructions from Arnott. There are a few threads floating around here on the process....some even have pics.
 

livingez_123

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I replaced my coils with air bags and the shocks with KYB's. I put in a larger compressor with in the cab controls and gauge. It cost me less to do this then to replace the factory system. And I have bags with a lifetime warranty and a compressor that wont burn out anytime soon.
 
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DeepSeaFish

DeepSeaFish

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Strangely enough, after I go out to inspect and try to locate the exact location of the supposive leak, I crank the truck up and everything is running normally again...WTH?? Started several times and the compressor is running only 5-7 seconds again like nothing is wrong. Had the system scanned to be sure and no codes present. Talked to a GM specialist and he seems to think the check valve on the compressor may be acting up at times and not shutting off when it's supposed to causing the 'hissing' sound I was getting. If it goes out, it will cause the 'Service Air Ride' light to come on. His only other suggestion was that maybe the system is adjusting itself after towing a heavy load? Time will tell, but for now I'll let it ride.
 

yates ™

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I would guess the compressor is dying and putting out the cfm it normally would, I could be wrong though.
 
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DeepSeaFish

DeepSeaFish

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Well, just when I thought everything was getting back to normal, guess what..?? The compressor died this morning! :favorites68: Cranked the truck up, compressor comes on for all of about 1 second and makes a clicking sound and stopped. Cranked 2 times since and still nothing. Guess I'll be placing the call to Arnott Industries for shocks and compressor. I know the Arnott compressor does not come with a new dryer, but instead just a rebuild kit. I have seen one from SunCore industries as well that offers one with dryer AND direct plug / play wire harness. Has anyone ever used this compressor before ?? Most folks on here seem to be going with Arnott. Thoughts ??
 
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