Air Bag Helpers

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Vanny

Vanny

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Ladner, BC, Canada
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Is there an air bag helper that will work in the coils of an 80? This is the 80 with the new 2250 lb dry weight trailer. Hoping there is something out there that would work to get the back end up a bit.


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Vanny said:
Is there an air bag helper that will work in the coils of an 80? This is the 80 with the new 2250 lb dry weight trailer. Hoping there is something out there that would work to get the back end up a bit.


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Funny I was just reading JEGS. The green section had some Firestone ride-rite air helper springs. And they have them for the Tundra - which surprised me because I've not seen Toyota mentioned in JEGS before. Is that the kind of thing you're looking for?
 
My 80 came with a new set of helpers installed so I know they fit. Timbren I think. One of the first things I did was take them and the trailer brake controls off since I didnt need them. http://timbren.com/timbren-ses/
 
mechanist said:
Funny I was just reading JEGS. The green section had some Firestone ride-rite air helper springs. And they have them for the Tundra - which surprised me because I've not seen Toyota mentioned in JEGS before. Is that the kind of thing you're looking for?
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I am looking for the type that fit inside the existing spring. A friend has it on his Ford and it senses automatically when it needs help to level out.
 
yes, the airbags just install inside the springs, only are about 100 bucks and easy to install. Some say that it will effect your braking though as you are now changing the angle that the truck sits at therefore the system will not compensate correctly for the weight you are carrying.
 
air lift makes them that fit in. i've been using them for about 3 years now. low pressure you don't know they are their there are threads on here about extended lengths for list springs.
 
I have a 4" lift with 35's and would not want to sacrifice the ability to off road just so I have a level pull with the trailer. That is my concern with air bag helpers. I am very happy with how the 80 performs off road right now.
 
The placement of the axle on that trailer is way far to the rear causing excessive tongue weight. Unless there is a few dead bodies way in back that trailer could be a beast to tow. You may want to look at adding a weight distribution type of hitch setup. Dry you would only want 250lbs tongue weight (10 to 15% of total weight).
 
As much as the 80 platform uses the rear axle to flex out, I wonder how much articulation you'll still have with bags, before you're "bag-bound" as opposed to coilbound.

As much as your sig makes it seem like you have a real trail biased 80 in hand, I'd think you'll be severely impacting axle travel.

I have airbags on the Tundra but with leaves out back it's a whole different animal.

Whatever the bags, the more bellows they have the more you can compress them without damage. Mine have 3 pleats/bellows, and as low of helper pressure as you need there ought to be some with more pleats, to keep your axle compression from crushing the helper bags.

If not, overload / torque arms with custom welded mounts on your receiver may be the alternative - Dad & I use those for the truck as he doesn't really like bags.

My Tundra came with the bags from the prior owner, but I like the torque arms method myself. When not installed you don't sacrifice anything.
 
Do what @Hornd Said.

I have a set of Airlifts in mine ($100), took about 30 minutes to install. I carry a 400 LB wheelchair and a 125 LB lift on the rear of my 80 regularly and it is a HUGE difference.

To go wheeling, you simply let most of the air out. (Minimum 5 LB, Max 25 LB)

You have to remove the rear bump stops inside the springs. If you have lift springs, then you can either remove the bum stops and make a "tuna can" spacer to compensate for the lift, or just cut back your bump stops. (If you have a 2" lift, you leave 2" of your bump stop)
 
Great information. Going to put a set in the UTE.
 
I've been running Airlift bags in my rear coils for a good 8-9 years now. IIRC min is 10 and max is 30 psi. Fully inflate for towing. Deflate to min for offroad w/o towing trailer and I've never had a problem. No super duper hard core, but I've run Kane Creek, Metal Masher, etc. in Moab with the bags w/o any problems.

As others have said, bump stops removed. I run the air lines separate so there's no air transfer on 'hard' cornering, etc. My Kaymar rear bumper had two nice holes in the diamond plate top that I ran the separate air lines to and installed the schrader valve stems there.

The bags will wear out. I'm on my second set and went to air up for a trip this past weekend and noticed that one side was releasing air. Haven't had time to see if it's just the line or the bag. Last time it was the bag at the area where the nipple from the bag is. I'm hoping it's just the air line.

First time I had them installed. Second time around I just followed advice here and elsewhere - jack up the truck to completely unweight the coil and you'll have plenty of room to stuff the bag in. Instructions from Airlift say to run the air line from the bottom, not the top. It'd seem to me that running the air line that way would be more of a problem.
 
My first set wore a hole and blew out between the coils at 30 PSI. Airlift replaced for free.

My airlines run from the bottom. I put mine on a joined line with a Schrader in the gas fill door. Can't run from the top due to that's a contact point for the bag where the bump stop was. The bottom has a hole in the bracket to accommodate. Easy to stuff a bag through the coils.
 
I know AirLift offers a lifetime warranty, but 'technically' I've voided said warranty by installing them air nipple up instead of down. Don't know if it's worth a try to get them to replace it. Of course now that I've posted this on social media...
 
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