Air bags for 22 Tundra

@porterbc What do you think the tongue weight was and which WDH did you use? I'm hoping to get a travel trailer, maybe 7000 pounds wet and 900-1000 pounds tongue, then adding WDH to level it out. thanks.

 

My trailer is listed with a GVWR of 7400lb, I measured my TW with a scale. It's right at 1000lbs. I use an Eze lift WDH. It's nothing fancy, but it works great.

 

Interesting @Dfrink. So with a 1000 pound TW on a scale, then adding WDH which transfers about 300 pounds back to the trailer axle(s), you're at about 700 pounds on the Tundra, giving you 600 for passengers and gear, assuming a budget of 1300 like my 1794 4x4 CM.

I wonder about adding air bags to the rear axle? I understand that does not increase GVWR, certainly not by Toyota standards, but would help reduce load on rear suspension. Notice I didn't say rear axle, just suspension help. It seems that adding air bags is rather cheap and easy, maybe a way to just goose up the trucks ability enough to get more comfortable with hitting the max payload rating.

 

WDH has problems in backing up in tight corners. In some mountain camp sites I have to disconnect my WDH to back in to camp sites, without my air bags, the rear of my 2020 tundra will drops 4" in the back. Not fun. My tongue weight a little over 800 lbs.

 

Ah, interesting point @Half track. So air bags is a good way to reduce the sag for those occasions one does not have the WDH on. I'm getting more and more sold on air bags even if they don't actually increase GVWR per Toyota.

 

I have been following along with this this conversation, lots of great info and I appreciate it. Every solution seems to have a negative caveat. I think everyone can agree that a wdh is going to be required for anything more than say 500 to 600 lb tongue weight. I'm just wondering how a dual rate spring would work for those that are going to lift your truck around 2-3 inches anyway? Is there even dual rate spring out there that would work with our coils? For my truck, even though I don't do a lot of off roading, I do use it around the farm and would like to keep the articulation. Anyone one have any experience with dual rate springs or Timbren SES?

 

I have a set of Timbrens on the way. I am looking forward to trying them out.

 

Great, looking forward to hear how you like them.

 

Sorry @Paul Moll just seeing this now.. haven’t used a scale to measure tongue weight but verify it is over 700lbs for sure..

I use the curt 14K WDH it came with sway control but I haven’t used it yet.. might come in handy with a higher sided trailer but not for my dump trailer. I am waiting for a second set of rear springs from @GeneralSpring that will have a 1” lift and 20% payload increase over stock. So I’m going to weight for these before I add air bags.

Don’t forget air bags do level the truck out but do nothing for transferring weight to your front wheels which is huge problem for handling and braking FYI, bags are not end all be all

 

After you get your spring on and get some time on them can you tell us how you like them? Curious if they make the rear and harsh when not towing. I have a 1” spacer in the rear because I lifted my front 2”. Springs May be where I go next spending on how the truck looks next time I tow.

 

Absolutely.. there is a dedicated post in here to follow up on the reviews of the spring they gave me.. first ones in rear were bit rough

 

So I got a TT thats 4600 dry with a WDH. We will never run it filled with fluids as we wont be dry camping much so I suspect it would be 5500 load max when everything is loaded, maybe a 6000 at worse. With the WDH the Tundra was level but I could feel it being a little bouncy, which could mean I just need to tune my WDH a little better. Overall it towed it great. With all that being said, do I need or should I get airbags (Loadlifter 5000) installed? Curious if it will make a difference or if they are just overkill and the WDH is enough?

 

Pumping up air bags will negate some or all of the WDH transfer of weight back to trailer axles.

I would plan to use air bags only when WDH bars are removed such as difficult backing or rugged off road. IMHO

 

My trailer is listed at a 7400lb GVWR. I don't need bags to tow it. Hope that helps.

 

Good to know so it would just be overkill it sounds like

 

Air bags don't effect the wdh. Setup the wdh first then air up the bags but don't raise the truck with the bags.

 

I installed my Timbrens today. Super easy. The wheels stayed on but I used my jack just to give a bit more clearance to the bolts.

I took it for a spin unloaded and the gap was about 1/2” between the SES and the axle. You can feel the little road defects. This is the suspension moving and hitting the SES rubber. I imagine that once I load up the truck, the rubber will start to work and get a bit more pliable. They are 6” long and the space pr gap is supposed to be 1 1/2” to 1/2” unloaded.

I imagine the this would be like running airbags at maximum pressure with an empty truck!

 

Let us know how it'll feel when loaded

 

Did you go with the 6000lb or 7000lb load capacity set?
Timbren site has Severe rating for 7k.

 

Mine are the 6000 lbs SES units? I am thinking that the off road model might have been a better choice for all around improvement while providing some comfort. I haven't tried them under load yet. Too much else going on to hook up the trailer.

 

After about 6 months running a slide-in camper with Timbrens, I'm incredibly pleased with them. I have very little sag and very little body roll. The install was super easy and their customer service department has been very quick to answer my questions about the various versions of the SES kits and recommend torque specs when installing. With that said, I do think I would feel differently if I frequently took the camper off the truck. The Timbrens significantly reduce your effective suspension travel and I could imagine the ride getting really harsh off road.

 

I have the Air Lift 5000 Ultimate with compressor. Whe you have an empty truck the bags have only 5psi and you can't tell they are even there. I actually like to run mine with 7-10psi and I feel it smooths out the bumps (my opinion). I can tell you "I Love my Airlift Bags"

 

Can a fellow 2022+ stock suspension tundra with the air lift owner help me out. I’m looking for the distance in the picture. I just installed a 2022+ tundra air lift ultimate rear bags on my 2023 sequoia. My eyes says it’s a little cramped here. I’m just checking dimensions to see if I need a rear spacer or not (have a cornfed 1” spacer on hand). FYI for anyone doing this there is some slight mods required via band saw but it did bolt on without too much effort. Thanks in advance!