Car rides high

[Fantomas]

I have a 91 tc, the problem is the car is always high and never lets the air out. From what I understand it's the compressor relief valve maulfunctioning. Also, what is the system composed of, how many sensors, their locations and such.

[Richard J. Parker]

You have two rear air bags each with a solenoid valve that lets air in or out of the bag in sync with a control module, one height sensor and the compressor/vent/dryer assembly (which is located under your windshield washer container).

You probably need a compressor assembly. There are some creative ways to avoid this (see TECH) but the easiest is to buy a rebuilt unit. You may need air bags if they have never been replaced, but bad bags won't make your car too high.

Almost all Town Cars I have seen at car lots in the 90-97 years have this problem. The car should vent and lower slightly every time you get out of the car and close the doors. The venting comes from the front left fender and is easy to hear from outside when it works.

Humidity turns into water inside the air ride system, the dryer fails to dry the air and finally the vent solenoid in the compressor fails to work.

Some cars (maybe not yours if the bags are not original) have enough leaks in their air springs (cracks where the air spring flexs)that the owner hardly notices a "too high" problem. This behavior is a result of minor air bag leaks that are often "sealed" when the car is not moving. So when the car moves, it bounces up and down, allowing some air to release. The compressor runs more than it should to keep the minimum level.

[BLUECOLLAR]

RJP, good post.

THE RESULT:
What happens is the moisture in the system allows the vent solenoid to rust and is made inoperable.

THE PROBLEM:
The system was designed to take moisture out of the air being compressed and sent to the air springs. Then, to regenerate or "dry out" the drier, that same air is vented through the drier BACKWARDS, and then through the vent solenoid in the compressor, then to the atmosphere.

The problem with this theory is, where the compressor is mounted is in a valley. In turn, it would get its air from down low in a moisture ridden environment. On the later models, they came with what I call a "snorkel". It took its air from a higher place and cut down on the amount of moisture that was injested. This helped some, but wasn't the answer. You need to take as much of the moisture out as possible so......