How much do airbags effect off roading?

I tow fairly often. Anywhere between 1500lbs to 8200lbs. As far as rear end mods I only have Toytec rear shackles on the lower setting and Toytec IFP shocks.

Weight distributing hitch is out of the question. Three different trailers.

I am considering airbags for towing. My only concern is even with Daystar cradles are they still worth a shit for off roading? I feel like there could be issues when stuffing the tire clear up in the wheel well. Educate me.

Here’s the roughly 8000lb load.

 

Are the Toytec shocks the same extended length as stock? If they are, you’ll be fine w/out cradles if you’re running minimum pressure in the rough stuff.

 

Not sure you could get full tuck, even with minimal pressure, isn’t that kinda what their designed to do? Prevent spring travel?

 

In my experience the ride-rites will allow the same tuck at 5 psi as the factory rubber bump stops that get cut off. Not so when inflated to higher pressures, which really is their point. An easily varied (air)spring rate to match the load.

 

It’s definitely interesting to seem them in a rear coil spring in that situation.

 

I believe the Toytec shocks are maybe a little longer? Only reason why I think so is because they require 1-3 inches (something like that) of lift to be installed.

 

I've been running Ride Rites with Daystar Cradles for several years for much the same reason that you are asking about them. I pull several different trailers with varying weight ranges in similar conditions as you. The only one with a WD is the travel trailer. Zero issues. Love the setup.

Offroad, they don't compress completely when stuffing a tire crossing a ditch unless you only run 5 psi in them - in which case they just act like regular bumpstops and will stuff a tire just fine. With the cradles, they don't hinder down travel on the other tire so I haven't seen any loss in articulation to speak of. High speed runs on forest service roads haven't caused any issues with the bags, either. I have a pretty constantly load on them with a topper and my typical loadout so I usually have enough air in them to return to stock height. I let a little air out when I know I'm going off pavement to give a little more compliance to the rear. With the weight in the bed it actually feels a little more balanced and supple than an empty bed on stock springs. I'm usually pretty good at getting the right pressure to compensate for whatever load I have. Had over 1000 lbs in the bed on a gravel road that only gets maintenance four months out of the year; I drove 45-60 MPH and it floated like the weight wasn't there without completely bottoming on the bigger bumps.

One of the cradles rubs one of the bags just a little, but every time I check it, it looks more polished and not gouging. They do make Monty-Python coconut sounds when the bag leaves the cradle completely and then re-seats. But overall, I would recommend them.

 

What psi do you run when empty? I know you said you pretty much have a constant load in the back. I have a second battery and a trunk full of tools that stay in my bed. But I can’t find a psi that isn’t a bit bouncier than before I had the air bags. I am running ride rites with daystar cradles as well. Down to 5 psi still feels bouncy. Probably need more weight in the bed. Or I may try RAS with Duro Bumps instead.

 

The issue with airbags off road is in the other direction... they don't extend far enough and at max articulation you'll rip them apart. The cradles solve that problem.

 

I typically have 500-800 lbs in the bed including a topper. When empty without a shell, I ran 5-15 psi. 5 was sometimes a little bouncy; 10-15 loads the frame a little differently at three points instead of two (each end of the leaf spring) so it can alleviate some of the bounce at the expense of a firmer ride. But most of the bounciness I felt in my truck was more of an oscillating interaction between the bed/frame, suspension, and tires. All three have different harmonics that sometimes interfere with each other or compound in a destructive manner. So tuning all three was sometimes necessary.

I found that replacing the rear shocks made more of a difference than the bag pressure when unloaded. I had the factory yellow bilsteins which were better than the black tokicos, IMO, but got choppy quick on certain roads like concrete highways. So I tried a softer, floaty-feeling Fox 2.0 and didn’t like them much. They were softer all around which took away some of the bounce but made it wallow with a bed full of stuff or a trailer over 2 or 3k. And they always felt like the back end was moving around and the vehicle was never planted. So I got kinda sea sick on some roads - like the concrete highway with seams. I quickly replaced those with Bilstein 5160’s and was much happier. Those have a few miles on them and I’ve got some Eibach’s to try out soon.. I did 6112’s up front at the same time so overall it made a huge difference. The 6112’s are getting replaced soon with Eibach 2.0 coilovers. Hopefully that setup with improve even further, but I really don’t have any complaints with thr 6112/5160 combo. They just have some miles on them.

Tire pressure also made a difference. If you don’t mind airing up and down from time to time you can run lower pressure in the rears to soak up the small stuff, then air up for towing and hauling. I don’t recommend dropping below what’s on your door sticker, but depending on whether or not you are running p rated or E rated tires, you have a lot to play with there. If the ride felt bouncy, I would drop 3-5 psi in the tires. If it felt jiggly bouncy, I’d add 3-5 psi. I know some guys that run e rated tires in the high 20’s, low 30’s (inflation table says 42-45psi for e rated 275/65r18) when unloaded with no adverse wear, handling, or tire temperatures because the back end is so light. I dont, but I know a few guys that do.

 

Eibach from what I've heard is a softer ride. Think you'll find them closer to Fox. If your Bilsteins aren't failing and you like them, why the switch?

If you like digressive shocks with firm damping... I'm really liking the Ironman FCPs. Hopefully before the year is up I'll be hauling a camper with a big load, and I'll see if they are adequate for that task. Planning on adding a leaf pack as well as bags and Daystars.

I run low pressure in my tires unloaded; 30 rear and 38 front. The Nitto tables actually put me ~25, but <35 is not recommended for these tires.

 

I put the pro truck eibachs on the front of my sequoia at the lowest setting and am impressed with them. They are a softer ride but they don’t float like the fox’s did. Road tripped to the Sierras and they were very comfortable while quite responsive. Leaps ahead of the stock tokicos. The fronts are digressive and give a very planted feel with a very comfortable ride.

I went with the 2.0 coilovers because I wanted a height adjustable setup. I run the 6112’s at the lowest setting but they still net over 1.5” of lift. I looked long and hard at the Ironmans but didn’t want 2-3” of lift in the front. I emailed them and asked about running them at stock height but they advised that the valving would be less ideal, and running at 2-3” would be better.

The bilsteins are fairy worn and the ride quality is degrading. The rears starting bucking pretty good with one of my trailers so I figure their done. Almost 100k on them. But I may find that they are just fine when I pull them off.

 

I will definitely be getting the cradles if I go this direction. My concern mainly is the suspension going the other way when bajaing around or climbing things. I'm concerned about bottoming them out and/or losing articulation.