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I know there has been some mixed opinions about Airlift 1000 HD air bags on this forum.

A little background.  I have a 2018 Ram 1500 4x4 Big Horn.  Rams ride darn near like a car however, I believe one reason for that is Rams have coil springs on the rear vs. leaf springs. So with that comfort comes a little trade off of “firmness” when towing.  I have a e2 Equalizer trunion WDH professionally installed and while towing my 2015 2295 I still felt the rear suspension was a little soft and had some side to side movement not in the trailer swaying but just the truck rear end.  Nothing dangerous by any means.  I would feel semis passing before they were along side me. I looked at Sumo springs and read reviews and decided against them.  I have a friend whose business is delivering TT’s to dealers from Elkhart and he recommended air bags.  I thought it was more involved than I wanted to get but after talking with him and researching, it was the route I decided to go.  

After looking at the various options i.e. Firestone, Airlift, axle mount vs. spring insert, I decided to go with the Airlift 1000 HD vs. the 1000 spring insert based on weight capacity. I know the bags don’t increase the truck weight capacity but having the extra capacity helps due to downward forces and simple physics when going over bumps and dips.  Airlift comes with a lifetime warranty against defects. Another plus is that when not towing you decrease the air pressure to 5 psi and you regain all of the comfort of the original suspension design.

After pricing having a shop install them I decided to do it myself as I was capable and don’t get my hands dirty nearly enough lately.  One thing I didn’t like about any of the kits were the air hose fittings.  They were barbed and clamp fittings and the tee was plastic!  Really??! I purchased brass PTC fittings for all connections (Air filler valve, Tee, and air bag connection fittings) from a couple different sources including etrailer, King Bezos, and Firestone Industrial Products.   I also purchased a tubing cutter to ensure a nice clean 90 degree cut.  

The hardest part of the installation was rolling and folding the air bags enough and zip tying them in order to slide them between the coils. Airlift recommends a spoon shaped tire Iron to assist with sliding the bags through the springs but since I didn’t own one, I absconded one of my wife’s wooden cooking spoons.  I can assure you she didn’t want it back when I got done with it. One of the many tips and tricks I learned from YouTube is to spray the coils with soapy water prior to sliding the bags through the springs to provide some lubricity which helped immensely.  Once you get past that part of the installation the rest was easy.  Another required step (at least on my Ram) was removing the wheel well liners in order to gain access to the top of the coil spring where the air hose connects to the air bag fill fitting.  

Once the bags were in, I ran the air lines along the frame back to the bumper using plenty of zip ties to prevent movement and contacting any hot exhaust surface.  I’ve read complaints about having to replace air hoses and fittings due to leaks.  I imagine those leaks were caused by abrasion or heat.  I covered all my hoses with wire loom rated for high temperatures (no brainer to me).  I’d be surprised if any shops take that extra effort to install loom over the hoses.

I did not install an onboard compressor and have only one filler valve next to my license plate that controls both bags since I don’t have an uneven load. For my towing purposes, an on board compressor was not worth the cost or trouble of installation.

So after a few hours on a Saturday, they were installed.  I pressured up the system and leak checked everything with soapy water and everything checked out.  

So now came the decision on inflation pressure and field test towing my 2295.  After watching a couple of reviews I decided to inflate to 40 psi (max capacity is 50 psi)  The air bag does not fill the entire vertical travel distance of the coil spring so when I hitched up the trailer the spring did compress but once the spring compressed against the air bag the rear end did not go any lower.  I see lots of photos of rigs and despite having a WDH I still see some sag.  When I hitched up there was not even the slightest dip below perfectly level.  I stopped at a gas station and was talking to another RVer and he commented on how level my rig looked.  Ahhhh validation

We towed just shy of 1,000 miles round trip and I am extremely pleased with the results.  The springs stiffened up the rear end just enough to eliminate the side to side movement in the rear end without make the ride rough like Sumo springs tend to do, so I’ve read.  To be honest the bags did not increase the “roughness” one bit.  Although I could see the semi approaching in my mirrors, I never felt it passing as I had previously experienced before installing the air bags.  

Updated:  Link to PTC to schrader fittings for air bags.  PTC air valve filler fitting purchased on Amazon.  Cust and paste description below.

https://rideriteserviceparts.c...-ptc-straigt-fiting/

Schrader to PTC Straigt Fiting

VIAIR 11490 DOT Inflation Valve (for 1/4" Air Line) (DOT Approved, PTC Style, Nickel Plated) (Pack of 2)

Great modification IMHO

Cheers,

Jonathan

Last edited by JonathanC
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Great writeup.  I didn't know that Rams have rear coils.  I think the major issue with that design is there is no overload leaf so heavy payloads would be really problematic.  Airbags are the perfect solution.

I have the Airlift RideControl setup on my Titan.  It's a little more involved since the bags have to be mounted between the frame and the leaf springs, but same principle.  The coil setup makes it so much easier because the coil acts as the mount!  

The most challenging part of my installation was aligning the airbag mounting points.  It's a bit confusing because you want to mount them based on a loaded rather than unloaded condition, and that's a bit hard to do while the truck is in the air for installation.  Long story short, I had to redrill one side to get the loaded angles right.  I guess I should have read the instructions better (I know, character flaw).

I had a problem with a slow leak in one airbag, which led to it getting pinched and tearing.  Again you don't have to deal with that because the airbag is fully inside the coil so it is kept straight at all times.  The good news is Airlift has a great warranty and will send out a brand new set of airbags no-questions-asked.

I'm not sure what you use for an inflator but I have been really happy with my Dewalt 20V cordless inflator.  It is very powerful and takes just a few seconds to hook up and dial in the airbags to the exact pressure you want.

Thanks @JonathanC for the write up! I have a 2019 Ram and just installed the 1000HD. I’ve not yet towed with this setup so your psi information is helpful. If there ever is a next time installation, I will remove the fender liners first too! I spent far too much time on my back and reaching up to the top of the springs struggling to make the fitting connections. What a pain!   But it all worked out in the end and no leaks.

My Air lift bags ( a little different than yours) pretty much gave it up after 5+ years of real service with on the tc. They replaced them. I only paid for the labor from my guys @ trick trucks. Air Lift stands behind their product! Just sayin’ 😎

We had AirLift 1000 on our 2015 RAM 1500 and it was great, but we were towing a fifth wheel then and the payload was an issue (we were within limits) as was squat.  After lightning consumed that truck and RV, we bought a 2019 RAM 1500 with 1000 lbs more towing capacity and more payload and our Lance, which is 1000 lbs lighter than the old fifth wheel.  I am in the process of realigning the same hitch Jonathan has.  Once that’s done I’ll probably get the airbags installed again. I see no downside and I do want to stiffen the coil springs in the rear.  The RAMs have been great trucks (although a lightening rod would be helpful) with a  dry smooth ride, but the downside to the coil springs is the sag under heavy loads.  

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