Air Lift bags made my 19 Tundra 4x4 ride hard

I should have sent them back. I took them off after one use and they just sit in the garage collecting dust. The internal joust takes up most of the spring travel when unloaded. Are Firestone bags better when unloaded? No one offers air shocks for my 19 Tundra.

 

I have the Firestones and they don't noticeably stiffen the ride when at the minimum 5 pounds of air. I have heard AirLift has an internal bump stop which causes harder ride but have never ridden in a truck with them.

 

Different application but I had the Firestone on a 2012 Tacoma. Loaded they were great at 5 PSI unloaded on the streets of NYC they were hell. I used Timbrens, Super Springs, heavy duty leaf spring and I came to the conclusion of buying a larger truck next time around hence the Tundra. ALL these products stiffened the ride to the point that I absolutely hated them.

 

Hmm..the Firestones were bad too huh. I'd hope not having the internal snubber they'd been better.

 

That internal snubber only allows about an inch and a half travel. When unloaded I could feel them constantly bumping.

 

I have AirLift and keep it little over the 5 PSI unloaded and no issues.

I actually think it feels a little bit better.

 

Ive been running firestones for a year now. With the 5psi minimum, the ride has definitely stiffened up. It’s not terrible, but is noticeable. I recently added daystar cradles and my plan is to add coachbuilder +2 shackles to hopefully lift them off the cradles enough that it smooths the ride back out closer to stock. If it doesn’t, I’ll still keep the bags as the towing benefits outweigh the slightly stiffer ride.

 

I honestly don’t know enough about the internal snubber…and like I said different vehicle so maybe it’s a different design. They were awesome loaded up but my wife really never wanted to ride in the truck after a while. I purposely went with the Tundra because I knew there would be minimal sag with the largest loads I would ever haul 4k ATV trailer or and ATV in the bed. But I realize that is not everyone’s case. I found the Timbrens to be the best semi solution. The problem with them is that if there is not enough weight in the bed it causes this weird rebound/bouncing sensation.

 

Wow, just reading all of your responses I am still as puzzled as ever as I have what I call light load sag and I dont like it at all. I have researched all of the above solutions. I want a solution that won't affect my truck ride or handling.

 

I didn’t put this in my last post, but like Oey12 pointed out, the ride is good with a little weight in the bed.

Not a cheap option, but in theory, the route I’m going should bring me back to a stock ride or possibly even better than stock (coachbuilder shackle poly bushings). But you would have to be ok with 1.25” lift from the shackle. With this setup, my bags won’t touch the frame unless loaded.

I say “in theory” because I’m still waiting on my shackles, so I haven’t tested this yet. The only thing I’d need to verify is whether the shackle I ordered will lift the bags off the cradles or not.

 

I have the firestone air bags and daystar cradles also. Usually run 2-3 psi when empty, and adjust as needed for when loaded. Was not really able to tell much of a difference in ride quality from no air bags.

 

The cradles make a big difference because without them they greatly affect the down travel. I used to cringe when my truck was on a lift because they looked like they were going to rip off.

 

I don't notice any more stiffness at all with Firestone bags at 5psi. I feel that the ride is improved a little. An additional slight damping effect from the bags.

 

I could see that, with the cradles, the bags are only mounted on the top, and are free floating, so it doesn't bother me to run super low air pressure, sometimes I have seen the gauge at 0psi. The cradles did give ma a little lift it seems. From this weekend, that's a half cord of oak firewood...

 

I had about a 1/4 lift after installing them at 5 PSI…

 

firestones at 5 pounds i dont notice anything