We travel full-time in our Keystone Laredo 335MK travel trailer and pull it with a Ram 2500 pickup truck. Our truck has no problem towing our trailer. We use an Equalizer brand weight distribution hitch to even out the load. While traveling, we have noticed the rear of the truck tends to bounce when we travel over rough roads. Even with the Equalizer hitch, the truck tends to squat in the rear just a bit, this can affect the vehicle stability and reduce the headlight effectiveness. We try not to tow at night but the few times we have we got flashed at by oncoming vehicles quite often. To help these issues out we decided to invest in an airbag suspension system.
We went with the Air Lift, 57289 Load Lifter 5000′ kit. The kit is manufactured to fit our Ram 2500. I was able to install their kit using only standard tools. Start to finish was less than 4 hours.
The kit is made to replace the Jounce bumper located just behind the rear wheels. The instillation can be done with the tires on but it was a lot easier with them out of the way.
The upper section is supported by a mounting plate that replaces the Jounce bumper. The lower section is attached with a U-bolt clamp around the axle. The airbag assemblies were easy to put together using the clear instructions.
Once the airbag assemblies were in place I routed the air lines to the license plate area. The kit comes with two Schrader valve air lines, one for each airbag. I purchased a T-fitting so I could connect the lines and have one valve to inflate both airbags at the same time. This system requires at minimum of 5 psi, to prevent damage to the assemblies, and maxes out at 100 psi.
We are in the middle of our first road trip with the new airbag suspension. Right off the bat we both sensed a much smoother ride and the rebound bouncing, from the heavy trailer, was significantly reduced. The airbags allowed us to fine tune the lift on the rear of the truck to reduce squatting that can occur while towing, this improves stability, increases headlight effectiveness, and makes for a smoother ride.
[This post originally appeared on David’s Mobile RV Service on November 13, 2020.]
Hi David and Jennifer. I’ve been browsing for some reviews and info on Air Lif, then I found your blog. I’m planning to buy the same product that I found on 4WheelOnline. It’s great to know you didn’t encounter any problems during the installation. Also, I like that you say it improved the stability and made the ride smoother.
Hey, JJ thanks so much for your comment– good luck with the airbags! These were one of our best upgrades yet, and only wish we’d done it sooner.