Air Bags for towing?

Fat_Gold_Chain · Jan 9, 2021

looking for opinions on airlift bags for towing with this truck. I have leveled at4 on 34’s it squats pretty good in the back with my boat 6500lbs or so. I’d like to prevent squat and and prevent the towing “jounce” that happens with soft 1500 suspension.

I am curious about the ride quality when not towing and bags installed.

2019 At4 1500 6.2

AT4_Guest20 · Jan 17, 2021

I had the Airlift Ultimate 5000 bags with the internal jounce bumper (bump stops) and I did not like them. They made the rear end ride way too stiff. I tried multiple air pressures in them and nothing would make them any better. What I did was got rid of the bags and the Rancho shocks, I went with some Bilstein 5160s and it made a huge difference both in towing and everyday driving. Here in Colorado, there are a lot of expansion joints in the roads, especially in the mountains and that bouncing motion can get pretty bad at times. The new shocks didn't make it go away, but it is a lot less dramatic now. Of course shocks wont do anything for squat. I would look for bags with a lower rating than the ones I had, let me know if you would like the part number so you can compare.

Fat_Gold_Chain · Jan 17, 2021

Maysville Stig said:
I had the Airlift Ultimate 5000 bags with the internal jounce bumper (bump stops) and I did not like them. They made the rear end ride way too stiff. I tried multiple air pressures in them and nothing would make them any better. What I did was got rid of the bags and the Rancho shocks, I went with some Bilstein 5160s and it made a huge difference both in towing and everyday driving. Here in Colorado, there are a lot of expansion joints in the roads, especially in the mountains and that bouncing motion can get pretty bad at times. The new shocks didn't make it go away, but it is a lot less dramatic now. Of course shocks wont do anything for squat. I would look for bags with a lower rating than the ones I had, let me know if you would like the part number so you can compare.

good info thanks. Yes the part number would be helpful. Appreciate it

AT4_Guest20 · Jan 17, 2021

The part number is 88388. They have a 5000lbs capacity. Maybe something 2000ish would have been better.

Fat_Gold_Chain · Jan 17, 2021

Maysville Stig said:
The part number is 88388. They have a 5000lbs capacity. Maybe something 2000ish would have been better.

do you think the bags with the bilstein would be a decent combo? Or would the bags eliminate the need for the shocks?

AT4_Guest20 · Jan 17, 2021

Fat_Gold_Chain said:
do you think the bags with the bilstein would be a decent combo? Or would the bags eliminate the need for the shocks?

Depending on the bags, absolutely. Like I said, the bags I had were just too uncomfortable unloaded for me.

As for your second question, that's a tough one. We're really talking about two different issues, load support and load control. The bags may solve everything to your liking, so I would say start there. If you still want more control, then do the shocks. Hope that helps.