i have spent hours reading up on rear suspension mods but still have one burning question.

i am leaning towards adding air bags to the rear of my X to level it out when towing and hauling. i am in construction and sometimes tow and haul heavy. i also have a 30' travel trailer and when camping i can load her down pretty good as well. coming out of a '99 F250 SD i have been used to not really worrying about loading up the truck and trailer, my old truck took whatever i threw at it and liked it.

i tow anywhere between 5000-10000 lbs but usually not much above 7500. i may have a few hundred pounds of gear and/or people in the truck at any given time. i already have new E range tires on my X.

i like the adjust-ability aspect of the air bags. my question is will the air bags address the wandering issue effectively without any other spring mods. i dont see air bags helping much with "axle wrap" but i do see them working well to stiffen up the rear spring rate when needed. are there side-to-side stability issues with the stock spring packs?

my plan is to add a rear sway bar and air bags to the rear suspension and call it done. but i see all these threads about b or v code springs and wonder if i'm missing something?

 

I am actually wondering the same. It sure seems like bags would ve more versitile, giving the user the ability to air down when not towing for a smoother ride, Right? Maybe a good comprimise would be using helper bags in conjunction with RAS to aid in less axle wrap.

 

The air bags won't help the wander/axle wrap. You'll need to do radius rods if you want to go with air bags and cure the axle wrap. I've got radius rods in my garage, I'm hoping to get them installed in a week and a half. Then I'll add air bags a bit later.

 

I put V-codes on the front and Air Lift bags in the back years ago, and have been happy.

Mark

 

Air bags address a very specific application...adding resistance to rear end squat.

They do squat IMO (sorry for poor pun) to assist with anything else in the rear end department for the Ex with her other issues from the softer springs Ford installed.

In my experiences on here...To address some of the other issues you need any of the following three (your choice):

I will caveat this by saying that in all cases you should really have a rear sway bar first.

1) Air bags PLUS radius rods (most expensive option)
2) V/B code springs
3) RAS (Roadmaster Active Suspension)

I went RAS because it truly is a DIY project for most anyone to bolt on. I'm not sure springs are as hard as I may have thought...but for me I installed the RAS and have never looked back. I tow a 9000# TT with 1100 - 1200#'s of tongue weight (depending on if I load 40 gallons of fresh water is the variable). That generates a lot of potential for rear end squat...and the RAS does an excellent job of not only resisting the squat but also aides in adding resistance to the other rear end issues we fight with the softer rear end springs from the factory.

The air bags are a good option too as many on here have them...I tried them but pulled them off for one reason or another...I would have had to install the radius rods for an additional ~$300 or so to address the rear end "push" feeling I had when I would brake while towing...under braking conditions when that much weight is PUSHING on the rear of the Ex...the softer springs don't resist that well and you get some rear steer feel...at least I did...I didn't like it...with the addition of the RAS...I do not have that feeling and I have towed my TT all over this country including to and thru the Rockies twice already and we're heading back a third time in July...so my setup is rock solid.

At the time I spent ~$250 for my RAS and I believe they have gone up to ~$300 due to some installation improvements they have made...you no longer have to unbolt the rear axle top spring plate/U-bolts since the new system installs around the top spring plate...a neat idea...but for me with all my towing...RAS has been great.

And I know it is very confusing...but in all the threads I have read on this topic (trust me I have read a LOT...and I have written a few too!)...the three choices above when executed as a whole do improve things on the Ex...the choice is yours of course...for me...my choice was spend ~$250 and be done and I couldn't be happier.

Good luck,
Joe.

 

Well put X_Hemi.

 

X_Hemi_guy - good info.

I'm in rep lockdown @ the moment, but I'll get you
again soon! (hint to everybody!)

 

ok i think you have made up my mind for me. no air bags. RAS for me.

 

A little late to the thread, but yeah, you made the right decision IMO.

I don't have the RAS on my Ex because I've been happy with just the spring swap, even when towing my 10k lb 31' travel-trailer.

I used to tow my 10k lb dump trailer with the Ex too, but that duty fell to my F250 when I bought it a couple years ago.

Stewart

 

Joe,
Once again you concisely make sense out of stuff that confuses many of us trying to get our Ex's into proper safe towing shape. Thanks!

BTW--FTE site won't let me rep ya for now (guess I've gotta spread it around before I can give it back to you...seems like a strange system, this rep-lock thing...).

Anyway, I haven't towed w/ my Ex yet, but does it seem to wonder around a lot with normal driving and I can definitely appreciate that back-end steering-around when I hit bumps, especially going around curves at highway speeds (...axle wrap, no?).

So here's my strategy based on FTE Research to date (as a complete newbie and much less towing experience than the OP):

1) My 02 PSD doesn't have a tow package, so it'll need a sway bar (Helwig...rear only, I assume??) and then I need to upgrade the shocks (plan Bilsteins or Ranchos). Also plan to get an alignment with shimming specific for towing.

2) Then, from Joe's post above (with many others in agreement) it seems the next step is to go RAS for its low cost and relative install ease. After this, I should go to the CAT scales for weight dial-in (both WD-hitch and tongue weight adjustments with Trailer and TV loaded up), work on finding the proper inflation sweet-spot on my E-range tires, and hit the road to see how she does.

3) Then, if I continue to experience problems, go to V/B spring-swap vs. radius-rods+airbags depending on what issues exist. Does this sound like the right approach? Can anyone think of anything to add, something I left out, or doing anything differently...??

This site is awesome. Thanks FTE
dave

 

Joe prefers the RAS, while it's no secret I prefer the spring swap, so in my opinion, I'd do the springs to eliminate the problem and then add the RAS if you want a "little more"

Stewart

 

Dave,

I found that with a 9000# TT with 1100-1200#'s of tongue weight that the RAS was an awesome addition to aide with the rear end squat and the "pushing" sensation I felt while towing and braking.

From personal experience I wouldn't think you would need more than either the RAS OR V/B springs for towing anything within Ford's recommended weight trailer behind an Ex.

So to answer your questions:

1) Yes...add the REAR Hellwig only...All Ex's came with a front sway bar. Your choice IMO either Bilsteins or Rancho's and on the alignment...find a good old school shop that is willing to order the concentric caster shim set so you can get them to set your caster to the positve side of the spec range

2) Yes...RAS would be my recommendation...but V/B code springs would also easily fit the bill...but I feel both are overkill IMO...heading to the CAT scales is definitely the only recommended approach to having a well handling towing setup...load up like you would for towing and get weighed and move stuff around to insure you have proper tongue weight and you aren't overloading the TT. Playing with tire pressures is one of the easiest and least expensive ***** to turn to find the handle on these beasts...too much pressure really worked in the opposite direction for me on the handling front...don't be afraid to start at what is on your drivers door jamb sticker and work up in 5psi increments in individual steps front and rear axles until you find the best spot...the door jamb numbers will carry full GAWR's...so as long as you aren't overloading the axles on the Ex...you can safely travel at what Ford recommends.

3) If you go with either RAS OR V/B...I doubt you will find the need for #3.

Good luck and thanks for the kind words.

Joe.

 

Thanks to both Stewart and Joe!
Reps to both! (...sorry Joe, still on rep-lock--somebody help me out!)

d

 

I do believe this will be the first time I've ever disagreed with you bro.

In my opinion, Ford screwed the pooch with the springs they put on the 4x4 Ex. To me, the spring upgrade is a must on these rigs, whether you tow or not, but especially if you tow.

Stewart

 

Allow me to weigh in on this. Both Hemi-Guy and Stewart-H were extremely helpful when I was trying to make the same decisions.

I tow very heavy. My trailer, loaded for a typical trip is right at 10,000 lb, with a 1500 lb hitch weight (hate to admit it, but there it is).

First, I installed V/B codes with 3-1/2" tapered block in the back. Combined with all new ball joints, tie rod ends, track bar, the V/B codes were a huge improvement from stock and towing was pretty good. The wander was still there, so I also changed out the stock steering box to red-head gear. Again, an incremental but not dramatic improvement.

Then, I went back to original 2" straight blocks on the back springs and added the RAS springs to rear B code springs. This was a very noticeable improvement in straight-ahead stability with/without the trailer. The truck is very driveable in all conditions and I have towed maybe 10,000 miles like this. I would recommend combining V/B and RAS.

For me, I am toying with the idea of going to air bags along with radius rods. I used radius rods on my 2003 and they were extremely effective in the "wandering" issue. The only reason I am thinking of doing this is to cure the 'squat' that occurs when I set the big trailer down on the rear. OK--maybe just an aesthetics thing because the towing experience is very stable and relaxed.

I may be foolish to mess with my setup any further. It really is a stable tow rig now with V/B + RAS.