OK. I have been to two places that said I would be better off with rear air bags for towing and sway purposes than the Hellwig. Everyone on this site says that the Hellwig is the way to go and the air bags do not do the same thing. The last place I went to said that he thought ALL Ex's came with a factory rear sway bar. My question is this: Didn't only the heavy duty tow packages have the sway bars standard (also the tow mirrors)? And .. Does every unit come with the heavy duty transmission cooler, or is that the next thing to look at purchasing?

 

Air bags attack a COMPLETELY DIFFERENT issue than a sway bar...well I guess if you pumped them up to 100psi and made the rear SO STIFF LOL...

Air bags help to shore up the WEAK springs...i.e. SAG

A sway bar helps TIE the AXLE to the FRAME thru a semi rigid spring steel (i.e. sway bar) and attacks body ROLL...our Ex's are especially prone to this with the HIGH center of gravity (CG)...

The air bags do tie the axle to the frame but thru flexible (very flexible) air bladders.

NOT all Ex's came with a rear sway bar. My 2005 XLT did NOT have a factory bar in the rear...nor did it have telescoping tow mirrors. Simplest way to tell is poke your head under the rear...just below the rear doors (either side)...look for a round bar that goes UP and OVER the drive axle...just in front of the axle housing...

All Ex's have a tranny cooler from the factory and rear receiver (it is part of marketed as a rear blocker beam so small cars don't travel right under our beasts!)


What problem are you specifically trying to attack?

I'll clue you in on something I've learned in my Ex ownership...I have YET to find a shop or mechanic (even Ford) that knows the subleties of our BEASTS...this site is LEAPS and BOUNDS ahead for REAL information on our BEASTS...
joe.

 

X you are so right on. Before I do anything to my X I consult with the fellas at FTE forums. I have an 05 XLT, little mirros, no sway bar. I installed the Hellwig first, what a difference. Did new Bilsteins all around next, even more improvement in handling. I put airbags instead of springs for partime stability due to trailer towing (sorry Stewart). I usually roll around with 10-20 psi in the airbags, then pump them up to 80-100 when towing my 28ft Nomad TT. One thing that suprised me was that I could pump up the airbags with a bicycle pump. I use the guage on the pump to know how much air is in the bags.

Yesforprofit, be careful about getting advice from someone who doesn't know the Excursions like these experts here do.

 

Hey Profit,

As X said the sway bar help out with body roll. The airbags will help out with the load on the springs. 2 Speperate applications.

I have both and its night and day from the stock truck. I am getting ready t install RAS as well....