Journey with Confidence RV GPS App RV Trip Planner RV LIFE Campground Reviews RV Maintenance Take a Speed Test Free 7 Day Trial ×
RV Trip Planning Discussions

Go Back   iRV2 Forums > MOTORHOME FORUMS > Class C Motorhome Discussions
Click Here to Login
Join iRV2 Today

Mission Statement: Supporting thoughtful exchange of knowledge, values and experience among RV enthusiasts.
Reply
  This discussion is proudly sponsored by:
Please support our sponsors and let them know you heard about their products on iRV2
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread Display Modes
 
Old 04-08-2012, 08:53 AM   #1
Member
 
Thor4's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Los Angeles
Posts: 39
Airbags - installation / advantages?

After having the hitch scrape the ground driving out of a gas station I am thinking about suspension airbags - questions:

Installation:
- how long does it take for DIY? (avg skillset) special tools needed?
- single circuit or dual
- pump or no pump needed? how quickly do the bags loose air if parked?
- thinking about rear only right now, when are front ones recommended?

Advantages:
- some vendors claim "5000 pounds addl. weight capacity" - how much do they really help?
- How do they improve driving feel/handling?

Cons:
- any cons?

best model/shop to purchase from?
Thor4 is offline   Reply With Quote
Join the #1 RV Forum Today - It's Totally Free!

iRV2.com RV Community - Are you about to start a new improvement on your RV or need some help with some maintenance? Do you need advice on what products to buy? Or maybe you can give others some advice? No matter where you fit in you'll find that iRV2 is a great community to join. Best of all it's totally FREE!

You are currently viewing our boards as a guest so you have limited access to our community. Please take the time to register and you will gain a lot of great new features including; the ability to participate in discussions, network with other RV owners, see fewer ads, upload photographs, create an RV blog, send private messages and so much, much more!

Old 04-08-2012, 07:27 PM   #2
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2011
Posts: 1,144
Air bags are one of the first items I would consider on any heavy rig I drove. They are relatively inexpensive and do a good job of:

-Correcting sag on the left or right due to weight loading.
-Raising the rear if it sags.
-Helping the ride characteristics.

You don't need a fancy compressor if you are low on cash. You can just run lines out to a Schraeder valve on the body of the MH. With caps, air loss shouldn't be too much of an issue. Firestone makes them and so do a few others. Manual filling can be done with a bicycle pump if you like.
__________________
2004 Tiffin Allegro 27.5 ft. P32 18,000 lb. GVW. 8.1 liter. Workhorse chassis built May 2002. 35,500 miles. 2012 Jeep Liberty Toad. RVi2 brake unit.
Full.Monte is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-08-2012, 08:34 PM   #3
Senior Member
 
bearaboo's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2011
Posts: 325
Airbags have pros and cons. If you are installing them to prevent the hitch from hitting and raising the rear end, you will need to increase the air pressure in them. That is a pro. The con is that when you do that, the ride will suffer. The ideal situation is to have an on board compressor to easily adjust the pressure as needed, to balance ride versus height. As far as increasing load capacity, they are not designed for that purpose. They are designed to work with your springs and suspension to help level your ride height. People who have them seem to like them. The only drawback is that they can leak and need to be replaced. Although they are not hard to install, I would recommend a service facility or garage that works with trucks such as a spring shop. They have the expertise to look at the whole spring and axle setup and install the correct airbags with the correct mounts.
bearaboo is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-09-2012, 06:31 AM   #4
Senior Member
 
Wizard's Avatar
 
Winnebago Owners Club
Freightliner Owners Club
Join Date: Mar 2007
Location: Home on the hill in Georgia
Posts: 2,742
Quote:
Originally Posted by bearaboo View Post
Airbags have pros and cons. If you are installing them to prevent the hitch from hitting and raising the rear end, you will need to increase the air pressure in them. That is a pro. The con is that when you do that, the ride will suffer. The ideal situation is to have an on board compressor to easily adjust the pressure as needed, to balance ride versus height. As far as increasing load capacity, they are not designed for that purpose. They are designed to work with your springs and suspension to help level your ride height. People who have them seem to like them. The only drawback is that they can leak and need to be replaced. Although they are not hard to install, I would recommend a service facility or garage that works with trucks such as a spring shop. They have the expertise to look at the whole spring and axle setup and install the correct airbags with the correct mounts.
Totally agree but keep in mind that air bags DO NOT increase the weight rating of the vehicle. It will help level the rig if the front or rear is sagging. The GVWR will still be the same.
__________________
Jerry Potter, Taz
1999 Coachman Catalina Sport
[SIGPIC][/SIGPIC]
Wizard is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-12-2012, 12:48 PM   #5
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2012
Posts: 2
For me the air bags were totally worth it. I took measurements of the fenders for all 4 corners with a 1/4 tank of gas. With a full tank, 50 gal of fresh and my trailer connected the hitch dropped 2" and the front raised some. The airbags leveled out the ride with 60psi. I can now always get a full tank of gas as the pump would shut off early leaving me with 7/8 as a full tank. The headlights are always pointed where they should be. The air bags have firmed up the ride and gotten rid of most of the sway from passing cars. I installed the Airlift 5000 myself. The one that is between the axle and frame as I may want to put bigger tires on. It took me longer to install the airbags as there is an axle vent line and brake line that was too close for me. So I repositioned to make me happy.
2009 Jamboree 26' V10

Tim in Livermore CA
Timondirt is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 04-15-2012, 09:34 AM   #6
Member
 
Thor4's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2012
Location: Los Angeles
Posts: 39
Thanks for the feedback, the 31ft rig swayed all over the place driving back from Palm Springs in heavy head/cross winds this week, wasn't aware that airbags can help with that also.
Thor4 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-25-2012, 06:15 AM   #7
Senior Member
 
baraff's Avatar
 
Winnebago Owners Club
Ford Super Duty Owner
Join Date: Sep 2010
Location: Chicagoland
Posts: 2,750
Resurrecting this thread. I installed a set of Air Lift Load Lifter 5000 bags last weekend. It was actually quite easy once I got the old jounce bumpers removed. Getting those off was the hardest part, that and having to work around the brake and fuel lines bracket that was clamped to the jounce bumper bolt through the frame. It took me about three hours.
My aging body is feeling it today though, not used to crawling around under the motorhome on my back and working overhead. But it gave me an excuse to buy a 12 ton jack and jackstands, so now I can work on it when I need to rather than pay someone to do it!
I too have the gas tank issue not filling completely. Since the rear of the motorhome is now where it should be I am anxious to see if the install helps correct the problem. And it sure seems to ride a lot better!
__________________
Burns & Diane
2005 Winnebago Aspect 26A/2012 Subaru Impreza toad
Illinois! - Where the politicians make the license plates......
baraff is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-25-2012, 11:16 AM   #8
Senior Member
 
AirLift's Avatar
Official iRV2 Sponsor
 
Join Date: Aug 2010
Posts: 127
Glad to hear you like the new Air Lift kit and that the installation was pretty straightforward. And yes, adding air springs will solve these common problems: squat, braking, steering, bottoming out, trailer sway, rough ride, body roll, and more. Look forward to hearing a review after a few months of use. Enjoy!
AirLift is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-25-2012, 12:56 PM   #9
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2007
Location: texas
Posts: 2,420
My review I put front and rear on a 28 foot class A best money I spent
whem2fish is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 09-26-2012, 08:31 AM   #10
Senior Member
 
Big Bear Local's Avatar
 
Join Date: Nov 2009
Posts: 1,365
I installed front and back airlifts. Works for what I wanted them for.
__________________
2021 Trail Runner 211rd 25'
2015 GMC Canyon
Mark & Carole Big Bear, Ca. RVM 54
Big Bear Local is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 10-10-2012, 02:35 PM   #11
Senior Member
 
73DodgeTitan's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2011
Location: alexandria, va
Posts: 105
i just ordered the air lift 1973-1982 Dodge M Class "A" Motorhome - "Load Lifter 5000" Air Bag Helper Springs & a heavy duty compressor. the old '73 is going to be riding nice very soon!!

73DodgeTitan is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply



Currently Active Users Viewing This Thread: 1 (0 members and 1 guests)
 
Thread Tools Search this Thread
Search this Thread:

Advanced Search
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
2012 Explorer Installation ImagineIF Toads and Motorhome Related Towing 3 03-29-2012 05:09 PM
New TV installation volume control Blues Harp Winnebago Industries Owner's Forum 6 03-28-2012 09:48 AM
Airbags won't inflate lmcgill Fleetwood Owner's Forum 2 03-26-2012 07:01 PM
85 pace arrow airbags stepside454 Class A Motorhome Discussions 5 03-19-2012 06:51 PM

» Featured Campgrounds

Reviews provided by


All times are GMT -6. The time now is 06:51 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.8 Beta 1
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions, Inc.