davidmac Posted March 11, 2014 Share Posted March 11, 2014 Hi, Just had m/h m.o.t'd and told the rubber bellows on the ALKO topair are perished. Not a failure but has anyone replaced these theirselves. Regards David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Newell Posted March 11, 2014 Share Posted March 11, 2014 Do they hold air pressure or lose it over time? Very unusual (although not impossible) for these bags to perish as they are usually reinforced rubber and out of sunlight. How old are they? Could it be that the vehicle was undersealed after the bags were fitted and what the tester has seen is underseal flaking off? If they do hold air for a reasonable period (a week or more) without losing significantly then I'd leave them alone. D. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
davidmac Posted March 11, 2014 Author Share Posted March 11, 2014 Hi Boxer350 with rear uprated to 2300kg 52plate 43000 miles no underseal. One side deflates in about 24h, other is fine.I have never used them much as they seem to lift the rear and give more roll. Regards David Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted March 12, 2014 Share Posted March 12, 2014 There's a full page in John Wickersham's book "Build Your Own Motorcaravan" describing the installation of an AL-KO Air Top 'air assist' system on a motorhome of a similar age to yours. I believe that (unlike the Dunlop equivalent) the air-bellows unit used with the Air Top system cannot be repaired. DIY replacement of a faulty unit should be pretty straightforward - disconnect the air-hose where it joins the air-bellows unit, unbolt the faulty unit, bolt in the new unit and reconnect the air-hose. Both of these companies advertise installation of an AL-KO Air Top system, so should (one might think) ba able to supply spare parts. http://www.armitagetrailers.com/Airide.htm http://www.towtal.co.uk/motorhome-accessories/dunlop-air-suspension It's perhaps stating the obvious but, before considering replacement of the air-bellows unit(s), it would be sensible to be certain that, although the present units may show signs of 'perishing', the perishing is why one of the units is deflating. 12 years is a fair amount of time, so it's not unreasonable for the bellows to be coming to the end of their useful lifespan, but the deflation might be due to a slight air-leak elsewhere. I was going to suggest that you could consider removing the air-bellows and replace them with the standard 'bump stops' that would have normally been fitted. However, I note that your motorhome's rear axle-loading was uprated, so - even though you might not be exploiting the Air Top system to lift your motorhome's rear end - the system is probably necessary to 'assist' the rear springs. I don't know how much Air Top units cost but, if they are expensive, it might be cheaper to replace the complete system with an alternative make. However, as long the rest of your Air Top system is still in good order and you can DIY, it should be be simpler just to replace the faulty parts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ricardo Posted March 12, 2014 Share Posted March 12, 2014 Greetings, My first post on this forum so hope I can help. I fitted Timbren rubber suspension units bought from Ride Solutions in Cambridge. They just fit in place of the bump stops, very easy to fit and parts cost about £230. Basically just two large rubber cylinders that work in a similar way to the air filled units ,but cost much less to buy and much easier to fit. B-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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