Aftermarket Air Lift Suspension Bags

My 2022 DC Limited did not come with factory air suspension for the rear axle but I am considering adding it. Never having owned a truck with airbags, I am wondering if they change the ride or handling at all when using the truck unloaded. Do you just deflate them when not in use and you are back to factory suspension feel? Any downsides to having them installed?

Thanks

 

Yes they do if you leave air in them. Each manufacturer will provide minimum/recommended psi when unloaded. Downside is the harsher ride and making sure you don't over stretch them when jacking up the truck. Again, manufacturer will tell you if it's safe to jack up the truck with the bags attached or not

 

I put airlift on my 23 TRD , I leave 10psi in them when not in use, it raised the back 1 1/2 inches with only a very slight ride difference, almost not detectable. It helped dramatically when towing my camper, I put them at 50psi .

 

who's system did you use? I pull a car hauler to take a car to shows. It is a dual axle aluminum trailer so i can put the car where i need to. i can just load the truck until i see it start to squat. But it would be nice to just put some air in a bag and just go. I pulled the trailer for two years with my Tacoma, so i think the Tundra should have no trouble with the load. just wondering about bags.
thanks
PT in Tennessee

 

I have around 6k miles on my AirLift Ultimate 5000 bags. I installed the wireless compressor and would highly recommend it as well. Little to no ride quality change. If anything, I feel like it may have improved the quality a tad. The TRD Off-Road has very soft rear springs which doesnt help much when loading up the bed. Afterall, the air bags are no different than using a heavy duty spring in the rear. The exception, you can deflate them when not in use. The AirLift pump will maintain a minimum of 5psi at all times, which is unnoticeable. I keep mine set to 8 PSI FWIW. See the link below for some photos of the install I posted a while back.

With all that said, I use a 10k Equalizer weight distribution hitch when towing my 5k pound camper. Does it have to have it? No. But it makes a huge difference in stability, and there is zero squat with no need to air up the bags. If I'm in a pinch, and hooking up to something that doesn't have a WDH, or hauling a thousand pounds in the bed, inflate the bags and zero squat. Some good load range E tires would be advised if you're going to exceed the trucks rear axle capacity, but the axle itself is plenty hearty and would likely take some work do any real damage.

https://www.tundras.com/threads/wha...-gen-tundra-today.104778/page-51#post-2935933

 

I have been waiting 8 weeks now for my Airlift bags to get here....Kinda sucks. I ordered from SD springs. Can't seem to find them in stock anywhere.

I second that installing a wireless compressor is a great and I'd even say necessary addition. It makes it SO much easier

 

You can try giving them a shout and see what they can do. I had a similar situation last year. Called them up and had them switch their supplier, shipped next day. I did however pay the difference in cost to SD but that was it. Maybe 80 bucks more IIRC? Guess it really comes down to how bad you need/want them.

 

I installed the AirLift Ultimate 5000 on my Pro. I opted not to install a compressor. I use them to tow my boat (about 5000 lbs total). At 20 psi, there is zero squat and cannot really say I notice a stiff ride. When unloaded, I run them at 5 psi. With the ultimates, you can run them all the way down to zero. There is no noticeable ride quality when they are deflated. That said, I have not done any extreme offroading. My offroading consists of forest trails to get to hunting areas.

 

Are there any restrictions on lifting/jacking the truck with the AirLift Ultimate 5000s?

 

https://youtu.be/o-4oL8zuvJ4

Here is the install video I followed.

 

Yes. I would not use the bags themself to lift the truck. At least not anything in the inches range. Reason being, the bags are designed to provide adequate flex while under suspension droop and compression that is comparable to the stock setup. Maintaining those compression and droop travel figures is important. If you pump up the bags under zero load to provide lift, you are eating into that droop, which will directly effect your ride quality. You can however lift the rear using conventional means (springs or spacers. Springs are cheap for this truck; see Dobinsons selection) and install the spacers that airlift sells for trucks that have lift. I believe the smallest they sell is a 2" spacer, which would be for a truck that has 2" lift springs in the rear. Last, if you're going to lift the rear 2", you should consider installing an adjustable track bar as well to get the rear axle back into alignment. Otherwise the axle will be shifted over enough to where it is noticeable to the eye, and cause the truck to not track straight. Dobinson makes a relatively inexpensive track bar for the 3rd gen that is adjustable. So does Icon, if you want to spend some coin.

I have a small 1/2" shim from Cornfed (vendor) and no air spring spacer. I noticed no ill effects from this, but they do not advise running a substantial amount of lift without the spacers. I'll put a link below so you can see what we're talking about.

Even with only a 1/2" shim and the airbags installed, I was not comfortable with how little slack (re: no slack) was present in the rear brake lines. I replaced both with the YotaMafia MY22+ stainless steel braided lines for 0-3" lift setups. Both lines you need come in the kit. They are center, above the axle, just in front of where the spare tire sits. You can take a look and you'll see what we're talking about.

Last, you're going to need (or at least want) extended travel shocks for the rear if you do lift the rear two inches, otherwise the factory shocks will likely be limiting your droop, not the bags. I would recommend replacing the rear shocks regardless, and there are lots of options out there. Some more aggressive valving typically pairs well with the airbags, making a happy medium for when you're carrying a substantial load and have the bags aired up. The more air, the higher the effective spring rate, which requires more aggressive valving at the shock.

https://www.airliftcompany.com/products/other/air-spring-spacers/

 

I finally cancelled my order with SD Springs. I have decided not to bother with air bags.