Bought a 28' toy hauler (7600 dry, 11500 loaded) and a new Hensley Arrow hitch this week. I've been planning it for awhile and have a plan for upgrades to the Ex that includes the Hellwig rear bar (already on), the Rancho 9000s (already on), a 4" exhaust (going on in early Jan), trans cooler (before March), DP Tuner and gauges (whenever I can sneak it by wifey-poo), and the RAS or air bags.

My question is about the RAS. Specifically I think the price for the RAS for the Ex has skyrocketed to over $300 most places I can find it now. Less than a year ago the price was around $200-240. What happened? Anyone have ideas on the best places to buy the RAS now? If the price is the same as the Firestone airbags, should I just go with the bags? The Ex is my daily driver (tho I work mainly from home), too, so the idea of the adjustability of the air bags is nice. I know folks have opinions on both sides, but now that the prices are similar, I wonder if that tips the scales toward the bags?

Thanks, Scott

 

I had your setup before my fifth wheel. I'm not a big fan of RAS type solutions due to them being more or less non-adjustable. Once you put it on you're stuck with what you have whether loaded or not. I wanted my unloaded ride to be unaffected by my suspension solution and that's why I went with air bags. Specifically I went with bags that automatically adjusted to the load on the rear end of the Ex. When I hooked up the trailer the suspension would settle and about 20 seconds later the system kicked in and raised the rear back to my chosen ride height. Once I unhooked the trailer the bags would unload and let the suspension settle back to normal ride height.

Basically the ride height of the rear end never changed whether loaded or unloaded, and neither did the ride itself. I still have the system on though I don't tow a TT with it anymore but it still serves its purpose. Shoot, if I'm running on empty and fill it up the bags will inflate a bit to take up the weight of the fuel. If I load up the truck full of people, the bags kick in and take up that load.

This all happens automatically with no input or thought on my end and I love it. The down side is the cost is going to be about $500 +, but for shear adaptability and no-brainitude it's hard to beat.

 

Best price I've seen on RAS is here.

As far as the price increase in the last year, I know they changed the design. In what way? I have no idea.

 

Peter, that price is actually one of the highest I've seen. I have found a few lower, but nothing like the $200 of last year.

TG, the air bag option is certainly intriguing, but they don't help with axle wrap or any sway issues, whereas the RAS helps with all of it. If the RAS price was $200, the choice would be easy... I do really like the automatic leveling option, but the price is a bit higher than I was hoping to spend. Something to consider, tho. What brand is your set up?

 

If you are seeing prices much lower than that, I would caution you that it's probably old stock of the discontinued style. Ask before you buy.

 

I was looking for solutions for my X when I decided on the RAS. I don't tow...but it really improved the stability loaded and unloaded. I didn't see any increase in ride height, and the ride just feels slightly firmer. I still plan to add a hellwig...but I am very pleased with the RAS.

 

I don't know that I'd take their word for it when it comes to sway or axle wrap. I'd much rather have a good sway bar in the back. I'd be willing to bet it does a much better job of reducing body roll and it's tried and true tech. As far as axle wrap, unless you're street racing or something I can't imagine wrap being much of an issue, at all. Wrap becomes a problem when the rear end breaks traction under serious load and the springs unwind, over and over again, and you end up with wheel hop. I can't imagine this scenario ever occurring in a normal tow situation.

To be honest I don't remember if I purchased the Ride Rite or Firestone set up. They're pretty much the same deal anyway and you will find people that will argue for and against either.

It is a bit much price wise for some bits of steel and a couple air bladders but such is life. One thing I've learned is never to let a little extra cost stand in the way of a good solution to a problem you are trying to solve. If you only want to spend $200-$300 today, then sock the money away and save another month or so to buy the right solution. I've gone the "cheap" route sooo many times and in the end almost always regretted it and ended up spending more in the long run to boot.

Your Hensley Arrow is a case in point. You could have spent $500 +/- on your standard style weight distributing hitch and saved a ton of cash, and it would in no way have done the job the Hensley will. Been there, done that and I STILL have the Hensley though I no longer have a travel trailer. If I did though I wouldn't give a second look at a standard hitch. Actually, not even a first look.

Anyway, that's my opinion. I have an '01 Ex with a sway bar, air bags, and a Hensley Arrow that I used to pull a 33' TT. I never gave a glance to a RAS or any other similar system and all I can say is the set up I have was the cats azz and I don't regret it one little bit.

 

We may not be the lowest on the RAS but we have to stay within manufacturer stated MAP or we could lose our distributing contract. Also, many of the companies that are drastically lower are selling the old style or an old style knock off. The knock off company is actually being sued by Roadmaster currently as well.

Duck Fan is correct, they have updated the design so you don't have to pull the top plate off the spring. It is completely bolt on now and only takes about 15 min per side with normal hand tools.

Check out this video and you will be able to see axle wrap more clearly. You are describing axle hop which takes place after axle wrap. Now this is on a 6" all spring lift but it will show you how it happens, and it is the same on stock springs just not as bad, but still there.

The RAS vs air bags discussion has been going for a long time and both have merits. FWIW I have run both on my Powerstroke and my Ex and can tell you I prefer the RAS unless I am towing a heavy 5th wheel or extremely heavy trailer. The great thing about RAS is that you can put it on for summer towing and take it off for winter four wheeling. If you take your vehicle off road at all you run the risk of ripping a bag and that gets old and expensive after a while.

So I guess what I am trying to say is there is value in both setups and neither is perfect.

YouTube - OUO Traction Blocks Vs. the All Spring Lift.

 

Thanks, Clay. I meant no offense to you or your company, but I did not know about the redesign - only that the price was drastically different now versus last year when I looked.

Great video - I didn't know what wrap really was until I saw that.

So the debate rages. I have time, so I'll save my $ for awhile longer to see where I come out. Thanks, all

 

I'm not sure of your point here. I know what axle wrap is and I know what wheel hop is. The point I was attempting to make is that axle wrap, on his vehicle anyway, isn't going to be much of an issue. On MOST on road vehicles it isn't going to be much of an issue. It's not much of an issue until it turns into wheel hop and that shouldn't happen under normal driving/towing conditions. Axle wrap on most factory leaf sprung vehicles is a fact of life, and accounted for by the factory.


I don't recall that the OP mentioned anything about off-roading his Ex but if so I would agree that bags might not be his best option, but personally I wouldn't want to be R&R-ing a RAS system twice a year either. And what about summer wheeling? Some folks wheel AND tow during the summer. That R&R would get to be old real fast I'm guessing.

If the vehicle is going to very multi-purpose then compromises will have to be made in one form or another. If he just wants to tow and do generic street duty when not, I still say bags, sway bar, and the Hensley is his best all around solution.

Absolutely. It's a matter of picking the solution whose compromises will have the least affect on the way he intends to use his truck.

 

No worries at all, just wanted to make sure you knew why. You really can't go wrong either way, and a set of firestone bags with an on board compressor is very convenient for sure.

Short answer is we agree. But remember that axle wrap is worst while towing as the increased load means you demand more power to move it. If you really want a scare you should see how bad the wrap is when getting on a freeway from a stop with your foot in it.

 

I have been screwing with suspensions on two (2) Excursions now since 2003. Both 4x4, both tweaked to tow big trailers. To be honest, I am not totally "there" yet. Still looking for a bit more improvement. Here is what I think is the "ideal" set up for towing heavy hitch weights and, for that matter, towing empty:

V, B code springs. Improvement in suspension travel improves the ride.

Hellwig rear sway bar.

Landyots Radius Rods. This keeps the rear axle from "steering" the truck. Many people call this axle wrap. I don't know and don't care if it is technically axle wrap. I do know that the Radius Rods on my 03 stopped the "wander".

Firestone air bags. RAS are OK, I guess, but if you bite the bullet and go for radius rods, you will not have a "wander" problem at all. And, you can then use the air bags where they serve best--to level the rear end depending upon load.

I have RAS right now along with B code rears (V on front). Hellwig too. Works OK towing my big trailer, but the big 05 still wanders more than my 03 did with Radius Rods. The Landyot kit is waiting on me to buy airbags. I know it will be a sweet setup when I get time to put it all in.

 

Absolutely. The more torque you're applying to the spring the worse the wrap is going to be until you ease up on it. My only point is that in an on-road situation, in a stock suspended vehicle, it doesn't really matter all that much. Start adding half azzed lift kits and such and bets are off.

I once saw a lifted dodge truck in a travel center that had THREE stacked blocks in his rear end and two in the front. I don't recall that he had traction bars on the rear. I think folks in here call them radius rods or some such, but they've been around pretty much forever as traction bars, ladder bars, etc and exist specifically to control axle wrap.

 

Just wanted to update my old thread with new info:

I went with the RAS and Clay and Duck_Fan are right - the new design is a piece of cake to install. I installed alone, at night, in my sloped driveway (nose pointed lower to help with the jacking) and did both sides in about 1.5 hours. The thing that took so long was ratcheting the 12mm rod to tighten it down. On the passenger side there was only a small amount of room to ratchet because of the wheel well liner. I should have just cut it out a little to make it easier on myself, but it was therapeutic after awhile, so I didn't. The driver's side was much easier and took maybe 20 min.

The ride with the RAS is not noticeably different when just tooling around town, but the added stability when cornering is amazing. It's probably on the same magnitude as the addition of the rear sway when I did that (mine didn't have one originally, so adding the Hellwig made a HUGE improvement).

I also installed the 4" exhaust earlier this winter and it's fine, but there is a little amount of jiggling and metal on metal contact up front that threatens to drive me nuts on quiet days - this after adjusting myself 4 or 5 times and then giving the stealership a try, too.

And finally, I got the hitch hooked up to the trailer today and drove the trailer home for the first time. Wifey-poo hadn't seen it until this evening. The drive home was terrible because I was rushed and we did not properly level the rig. I was bobbing and weaving all over the place, but fixed it at home by turning the stinger over to give me 2" of lift instead of the 2" drop. Now it's all level and it drives really nicely.

Next up is the additional tranny cooler and DP Tuner. I'll keep updating this thread with more info as I continue to progress.