Which Airbags? Firestone? Ride Rite?

[BusyCarol]

We are thinking of installing airbags on our 2002 Ford F250 that has the trailer package (extra leaf spring, different axle, etc), and is a 7.3l diesel. In town two names have been recommended to us - Firestone and Ride Rite - but I wanted to get your opinions on them. Please be completely honest as I know nothing about them other than how they work.

Please let me know of any brands that I should avoid, or what your favorite brand is. I would also like to know if you installed them yourselves (and any tips for doing so). Did you find that it helped? We are NOT expecting it to give us more load capacity, we just believe that it will give us a better ride. What do you think?

[Drifty1]

I put Firestone Ride Rite on my Dodge. They are quite simple to install so you should not have any problems. I have not installed the on board compressor yet but I believe I will in the near future as it makes it a little easier to adjust the pressure in the bags.

[HamRad]

Carol & Keith,
The air bags are not designed to give you a better ride. They may actually give you a slightly better ride but they are made to support a load in the bed of the truck. We were going to get them for our 250 to help level the load. When we hooked up to the 250 it would raise the front end of the truck just enough to throw the headlights directly into oncoming vehicles! Got lot of upset folks with us when we towed at night. We ended up getting a bigger truck. Sure glad we did. Good luck. Dennis

[8.1al]

We have been using Airlifts (http://www.airliftcompany.com/) with the compressor for years and they sure made a difference in loaded ride, have been trouble free and I sure love the convenience of the onboard compressor. If you install the compressor at the same time there is a lifetime warranty and a satisfaction gurantee

[Ozz]

Air bags are super, I had them myself.
I would check with a spring shop before I decided on anything. I had spring work done on my truck last week, it has never ridden better. It is 'Passive' you don't need to add air, air compressor or anything, just drive the truck.
Look at both before you make the decision. My spring work was just over $400.00, but it will work loaded, or unloaded. I had the trailer package in my 2008 F-250 myself, but am always loaded with extra weight.

[DQDick]

We just had the Dodge dealer put on what they thought was best and they work great. Whatever kind you get they will help with your 250.

[CORattler]

Our Ride Rites work great for us! I keep them at 15 lbs unless loaded. It rides like a ... truck.

[jimcol]

Busy Carol, I guess it depends on what you are trying to achieve. Some say airbags help the ride some say they correct the squat but have no effect on the ride. Having never had air bags I don't know.I had a 2000 F250 and it didn't require anything. The suspension was heavy enough that squat was not an issue. When we went to the 09 Dodge squat became an issue as HamRad mentioned. After much debate we went with Timbrens and they fixed the squat issue and stiffened up the ride to our satisfaction. The biggest plus for them was cost and zero maintenance. Jim

[8.1al]

The Timbrens are passive, not adjustable. Some will say this is good, some will say it isn't. If you don't like the ride with the Timbrens too bad.

[CountryGuy]

I thought about going with the airbags but it ended up being a cost factor among other considerations.

The cost of the airbags was around $300. Then there was the onboard compressor at over $400. To install all this broght the cost to $1000 and some change. My cost on the Timbrens was $237 with shipping included from Amazon. I was able to install them myself under 1 hour - really easy.

Timbrens do not puncture or wear out like airbags can. Airbags can sometimes be torn if not unbolted before lifting the truck from the frame on a hoist if all the air is not let out. No airlines to leak or break and no compressors to go bad with the Timbrens.The ride is not affected when unloaded. The Timbren company is also well known for their customer support. They will send you different springs and spacers to make your situation work.They have a money back guanantee if you are not satisfied.

There is only one negative that I can think of with the Timbrens - You can't adjust them. That is not a problem with my setup since I am not hauling multiple trailers with different pin weights. I would think that the hot shot haulers would prefer airbags.

Quality of the ride is a subjective thing. Postings from the internet give a thumbs up in ride quality to the Timbrens from those who have used both. Some say that airbags even give a little harsher ride with the required 5 lbs of air unloaded.

I just did a pull of 250 miles and the Timbrens worked great. The truck was level and the ride was fantastic! No negatives. Unloaded, the Timbrens do not come into play. Totally satisfied.

[priceml]

I had them on my old truck (3/4 ton)with the compressor (Air Lift).All I can say is don`t run the lines any where neer the exhaust.Don`t ask me how I know.I had them about 8 inches away.

[BusyCarol]

A huge THANKS to everyone for the GREAT information! I am going to share all of it with DH when he gets home from a business trip. I know he has checked into the airbags but was given varying information on whether or not you needed the compressor, and I do not believe he has looked into the Timbrens at all...don't think he had heard of them. I appreciate the clarifications and the input on how they work/ride. Keep the info coming!

[woodtic]

I went a differant way. Don't know if it's better or worse than any of the other options. I chose Hellwig "Load Pro 1500" helper springs. In hind sight I wish I would have gotten the "Load Pro 2500" springs but, I do have a 3/4 ton truck as opposed to a one ton. I see 2 inches of squat with the trailer hooked up. The ride is a lot better when loaded. Worse when empty, but I also have a lot of pre-load on the springs right now. Have been planning on reducing the pre-load by about 50%. During testing when first installing the springs, at 50% pre-load the ride height when loaded was virtually the same as with full pre-load. Supersprings, I belive also has some good helper springs

I was told due to the cold winters where I live, airbags seemed to have some issues. If it's only a tow vehicle it should be fine but, we use our truck as a dailly driver during the nasty winters. Also, I have heard that some airbag installations interfear with some hith bedrail mountings on some trucks, so maybe you could look into that as well just to be sure.

Good luck on whatever you choose, and hope your next outing with your Montana is better than your first trip.

[Champ_49]

Have the Firestone Ride Rites with Air Lift compressor. Works well and happy with it. Got them from Amazon if I remember correctly.

Dave

[BusyCarol]

Thanks woodtic for another option! That is great information that my husband will definitely want to know. We live in Billings, MT and the weather can get -30F so we will need to look at the performance of airbags vs. the springs in that situation. We will be leaving for Quartzite in January so winter driving with a load is a concern. I did not know that airbags might have issues in that type of weather. We do not use our truck except when hauling our rig so ride without being loaded is not a huge concern but definitely something to be aware of.

Thanks again for taking the time to share with us another option! We also appreciate the well wishes regarding our future travels. I am also hoping that we do not have issues. Our latest issue was that evidently the cupboard above the stove opened up and then closed again, but we did not know that it had opened. It dumped a muffin tin on the floor that we did not see because it slid under the slide out. So when we popped the slide out it got stuck on the muffin tin! UGH! I got it out but it left a dent in the linoleum floor (concentric circles). I don't know how we could have avoided it because we didn't even see it until it was too late. Oh well...just another story!

[hookman]

I use Air Lifts and the compressor came in the kit. I installed them myself and it was fairly easy. It brings the back end up and helps a bit with the ride.

[BusyCarol]

I love the fact that we are getting such great information! It is better than reading reviews on Amazon because those do NOT necessarily apply to towing a Monty. This is perfect! When my husband walked in the door from his business trip I told him about the great info. He immediately sat down, read all of your replies, and started watching videos on the various options! Thanks again!

[Ren]

quote:Originally posted by Champ_49

Have the Firestone Ride Rites with Air Lift compressor. Works well and happy with it.

Same here. Levels the truck, gives a better ride, and adjustable.

Here is a of what our install looks like.

http://5thwheeladventures.com/airbags.html

[BusyCarol]

Thanks RonD for the idea of the 12v air pump. That is a great idea. I was wondering if anyone had them without the air compressor. My brother has the air compressor switch in the cab of his truck but he says he never changes them because he doesn't care what it rides like without a load. So I wasn't sure if that was the best way to go. I am glad to hear that the Firestone install was fairly easy. I hadn't heard of Pac Brakes so I will have hubby look into those too.

OMG Ren! Thank you so much for the pictures! Hubby was ecstatic! He immediately started checking it out. Thanks for taking the time to write about your install and taking pictures to boot. I love cookbooks with pictures because I at least know what it is supposed to look like...I guess my hubby is the same way!

[Ren]

Hahaha! No problem. Keeping up with my website is a pain, but helping somebody else out makes it worth the effort.