Hi,

I was about to pull the trigger on a set of Air lift bags but I found conflicting information. I run a Pro series 750#WD hitch with sway control bar with my F150 when pulling my trailer. It does a really nice job and I liked how it was set up at the dealer when we bought the trailer. I was thinking about adding air bags for my ride to FLA next week. I can get the bags relatively quick and the install should be accomplished before I leave. Here is what I have found as the two consensus.

1) Don't use air bags since your truck is set for no air bags. This will negatively effect the WD set up and will have stability trouble in transit. A properly set up hitch will compensate for anything that air bags will offer.

2) Air bags will make a difference in ride quality. Just air them up after the hitch is fully set up. You will notice a difference in control and ride.

Which one is really correct?

Buying a bigger truck is not an option this year. If my employment had been more steady, I would probably moved up to at least a 3/4 ton TV. The wife said it would be nice to have a crew cab truck. 1/2 ton is doable just nicer to have more truck under you.

 

Hey ****,

I've got a 97 that I needed to add some additional overload springs to because it had such a wimpy load handling ability when I put anything in the bed..

Air bags would essentially do the same thing, right?

I also tow a TT that I use a #1000 EAZ-Lift WD setup on. In conjunction with the overloads, it all works great!

For the air bags, I would say get 'em... Makes adjusting loads that are in the bed a lot easier. Once you get them, you can find out what the best psi to run when empty and when loaded up and when you tow your trailer.

What I would do is air up the bags. Hitch up the trailer and then set the bars. You may find that you can go up a link or 2 or you might find you have to re-set the whole deal, because now you are not sagging as much initially.

If you set the WD first, then air up, you will essentially be taking tension OFF the bars as the rear end rises, right?

That's just my take on it..

Good luck!

Mitch

 

Mitch,

Interesting take. I would not think to air up the bags first then hook up. Unfortunately, there are a bunch of different opinions and theories on the matter. I went with the two most common consensus. However, your points are valid to me in the fact if you air up first you need to readjust the hitch as necessary. I had an Airlift kit on order but I cancelled quickly due to all the pros vs cons threads I found fairly easily through a google search. I could reorder them and still get them by Tuesday thanks to Amazon prime.

Humm I will have to continue to think about this. I am looking some comfort for the long ride from NJ to FL.

 

needed them cause My truck is lowered, but I think I would have put then anyhow knowing How good it ride now.

Hitch up, almost level it with air, and then crank the bar up...Pretty much the same as before.

The bar help to equilibrate load on the front wheel, remove the loose steering wheel feeling.
the bag help to level it out. and help a lot if you want to load anything in the bed while towing a tongue trailer.

Totally love the way my truck handle now...but don't loosen the bar from your setup before the bag install...or the loose steering feeling will come back (Been there, done that )

 

I think the key is just to make sure you have the WD hitch set up for the ride height you are using with your air bags.

Your WD hitch manual should have the complete procedure for setting up the adjustment heights.

Long story short - if your airbags make your ride height higher, then you will likely need to adjust your hitch.

Maybe once you get it set up, measure the height with a tape measure and write it down. I would think airbags would be great for a WD hitch as long as you know what you are doing. That way if you are light or heavy (within limits of course) you can set your ride height the exact same each time to get the most benefit from your hitch.

 

Hi,

I spoke with my storage provider today about this thread. He advised against air bags. I store my trailer at a trailer/ RV supply house that has been in business for 50 years. He understood where I was coming from, what I wanted to do and doesn't blame me for doing a bit a of research for the long trip. He feels in my case I got something simple like getting the bars a bit tighter which will transfer the weight more evenly across the TV and TT. We will see. If I have time tomorrow I might have his lead shop tech or the owner to give it a once over. Just making sure things are in check for the ride.

 

So it's all about the tire package. Turns out I have the wrong tire on the truck. Ironically, I missed this the whole time cause I was just looking at the door sticker the other day and never noticed the tire spec. (Never had too. but that's another story.) Turns out I have p series off brand on the truck. I should have an LT series spec tire. In this case, the air bags would not have done anything for me.

In one way happy I didn't spend the time and money purchasing and installing the air bag and not getting any benefit. Bummed out I need to get new tires. So I am calling around getting prices.

 

So what was the initial issue that you thought the bags were going to fix that now the tires are the issue?

What size tires do you have?

Mitch

 

Currently have P265/70R/17 Runway Enduro HT. The door jam sticker states LT265/75R/17C. It turns out this tire size is discontinued and LT265/70R17 in replacement. This truck came from Ford with 17inch rims and an LT package that no tire dealership could find. Long story.

Here is what was happening. For about the first 20 miles I would get bounce from the truck then it would go away. Since my trailer is stored approximately 10 minutes away, I naturally eliminated "cold" tires as the cause. Could it be coming from the trailer, possibly but I had my bud tow it and see if he could get it to bounce a bit and he could not.

As I stated yesterday speaking with the trailer shop, he mentioned rechecking the air pressure of the TV tires as well as the TT. Well that got me thinking. What if the TV tires were the cause. Since I regularly check the tires, I go with the side wall. The current tire spes stated max pressure is 34 PSI for 2500 max load which sound a bit off. I researched it. Well Runway has a barely functional website when it comes to after sale support. No phone number and a bouncing Email app. On their spec page, it lists the same tire rated at 44 PSI max pressure. Looking at comparable tires. Most in that load and speed range was listed up to 55 PSI.

Now while calling around for tires, I had 2 rude shops that didn't want to help me and they stated if the tire is no longer made I don't know what to tell you attitude. Another one said well I could sell you those tires (P265/70R/17) in LT but I don't think it will work with your truck. Walmart and Sams Club had to order them which was quoted out to 7 business days. I called another shop and after hearing the guy cry about how busy he is, he said he could not find the tire size (After I told him what I was looking for of course.) and call Ford. I called 2 places my buddy recommended, and they quoted me and were willing to work for my business. At that time I had to run out. So on the way back I stopped at Ford about the tires. I was quoted a price better than the 4 quotes I received. They beat it by almost 80 bucks of the next best quote plus my service adviser was going to make sure the tires were in the shop by 12 PM tomorrow for an afternoon install.

I quoted out BFG rugged trail T/As, Cooper Discovery A/T3s, and Goodyear SRAs. I had a set of Coopers that I liked in the past. Currently there is a set of BFG RT TAs on my 2005 Explorer that have gotten excellent mileage and wore like the Michelins i had my first explorer. The Goodyear's are last on my list cause they always seems to wear out too fast for both me and my father's Ranger. I would use GYs since they were cheap for me at the time since my mom worked for a Goodyear dealership. So it was the only choice. Ford said it would have taken an extra day for the coopers and GYs. The BFGs were going to be in tomorrow so I pulled the trigger.

 

okay, I see now.. You thought the 'bounce' and 'sway' was the suspension..

Still might be to some extent, but I would say you are on the right track by taking care of the "P" rated tire issue first!

I didn't know they put LT tires on the regular GVWR F150's of that time?? Thought only the "7700" got them..

Anyway, yes, 17" tires are hard to find in LT C range from what I understand.. You will likely have to get a D or an E.

Not that it helps you any, but I'm so glad I have the boring 16" wheels! Easy to find my LT265/75/16C tires anyplace I go....

Good luck with it!

Mitch

 

Hey Mitch,

Yes it was a pain to find C rated for the 17 inch rim. The BFGs are E rated. My service adviser flat out admitted to me the E rated were over kill but they were going to fit the rims. I managed to reduce my bill a bit more by taking the old tires back. $10 off the bill is still $10 I am thinking about storing them for an emergency (Non towing vehicle such as my Explorer with 17 inch rims) or selling them on Craigslist for a few bucks to cover the cost. BTW, I am jealous of your 16 inch rims and the ability to buy cheaper and easier to find rubber

However, with the short ride between the service center to my house which is 4 lane moderate to high speed highway, I felt a difference already. The truck didn't feel as soft and more tracked. (which it should have.) Right now they are aired up at 35 cold. I will probably go up to 45 for the tow and see how they feel with the trailer hooked up. I have a small portable compressor with me to make changes as needed.

 

I noticed that too, when I went from the P255/70/16 tires to the LR C tires.. I pump my C's at 44 front and 40 rear when not towing. Right up to 50 all around when towing.

Those dang P tires would have scrub marks on the fronts going half way up the side wall, even when pumped up to 40 psi! (35 on the sidewall...)

Could not corner to save it's life!

Got the C's and OMG! I could corner at above the posted corner speed and not scrub the tires half way up the sidewall!

Never did tow with the P tires, so can't compare there, but I'll bet you find towing will be better too!

Mitch

 

If you have E's, I think you need to run more than 35 in them empty. They should be rated up to 80.

 

Added air to the tires. I brought them up to 50 PSI. Truck felt pretty good empty. Definitely like a truck. We will see how the F150 does when in 24 hours and the first part of the trip. Got a good feeling about this.

 

Hello!

Well I have returned from my trip to Florida and back.

1. Tires made a big difference. The truck felt better and handle much differently with the older tires on it.

2. I managed to get another chain link on my WDH bars. This really gave a more stiff feel. I did ride with the original instructed setting as per the dealer who I purchased from for the first 400 miles. It rode pretty well but felt a little light in the front end. When I readjusted, the front end felt better. More connected.

3. No bounce in the first miles. Everything was smooth as a baby's butt. Just rock solid. I did not need to change the air pressure at anytime during the trip. I had them set at 50 PSI and might have "lost" .5 to 1 PSI the whole 2400 mile round trip.

4. I do not think the air bags would have made much of a difference. The only bouncing that happened was when we would hit a rough patch of road.

5. Got better gas mileage with the bars tighter. I was averaging 8.8-9 MPG in the first two fuel stops. When the bars were tightened, I got close to 10 on 2 of 12 fuel stops. On average I was in the 9.5-9.7 range.

Now for the bad.

1. Smoked the brakes on the ride home. The rear wheel caps took flight at some point in the Washington DC area. I had my right rear smoking pretty bad and it feels like the caliper locked up. I did get cooled down to continue driving. However, with the traffic there was not much I was able to do. After all, I only got cut off 6 times with 2 of them could have easily been a jackknife. We should have ventured back up 81 instead of 95. Oh well.


In the end, the F150 was capable of pulling our trailer from Florida and back. If I were to do it again, it will be with a 3/4 or 1 ton class vehicle. More truck and more passager comfort. I felt like I had to be more on the case with the F150. Keeping an eye on Trans Temps, etc. Longer entry onto the highway. Just an overall more awareness to the surroundings. I am not saying it would be different driving in let's say a 250 but with more motor, different trans and diff pkg, with increased cooling, more braking and suspension, would have taken some of that additional attention off my mind allowing to concentrate longer on the road. When I towed equipment around with a F350 dually w/ a 6.0, I didn't worry as much about the truck and would concentrate on the road know the truck was more than capable. Maybe next year, there will be a 3/4 ton in my future.