Extreme Suspension mod frustration

[Tim DP]

Hi All,
I started my FWC journey last year with no suspension mods, and I thought I'd be OK. After all, I had a '98 Ranger with a heavier Skamper and rode it hard with no suspension mods for many thousands of miles with no problem. Not so. The cheaper/flimsier springs on my '03 Ford Ranger made something necessary, and I opted for a Timbren kit. It leveled it out somewhat and rode and handled better, but the '03 Ranger's flimsy springs meant I was riding on the Timbrens all the time. I smooshed one out (left the Timbren on the ground) on Boulder Mountain in Utah in October, necessitating a tow into Richfield, UT, cutting my fall trip short. I had Firestone sport-rite airbags installed there, and Timbren mailed me a heavier duty 2 piece kit free of charge which I have since mounted.
After storing the camper for winter, the unloaded ride on the Ranger is ridiculously rough - even at the minimum 10 psi. I left the ground on I-70 last week under the speed limit, and even the slightest bump feels like I am driving a WWII era jeep. It's really miserable.
Looking into the matter further, the shop in Richfield, UT installed sport rite 2172s that are specifically forbidden for my truck (not for use on a supercab with a 6 ft bed) to add insult to injury, they marked up the part 125% ($547.00). They say they will make it right (install air-ride bags and refund me some $) but I have questions in the interim.
Has anyone else had the ludicrously rough ride experience? Anyone else installed the 2172s on a ranger supercab shortbed? Am I OK running 0 PSI in the bags with the Timbrens to keep the bags from pinching? Is there anything I can do short of loading a ton of sand to improve the unladen ride? Thanks in advance.

Attached is a photo of the old ruined Timbrens. I have been really unhappy with the Timbrens poor fit and lousy engineering, particularly the platforms - they are not made to sit correctly on the axle.

 

[Phird05]

Hi All,
I started my FWC journey last year with no suspension mods, and I thought I'd be OK. After all, I had a '98 Ranger with a heavier Skamper and rode it hard with no suspension mods for many thousands of miles with no problem. Not so. The cheaper/flimsier springs on my '03 Ford Ranger made something necessary, and I opted for a Timbren kit. It leveled it out somewhat and rode and handled better, but the '03 Ranger's flimsy springs meant I was riding on the Timbrens all the time. I smooshed one out (left the Timbren on the ground) on Boulder Mountain in Utah in October, necessitating a tow into Richfield, UT, cutting my fall trip short. I had Firestone sport-rite airbags installed there, and Timbren mailed me a heavier duty 2 piece kit free of charge which I have since mounted.
After storing the camper for winter, the unloaded ride on the Ranger is ridiculously rough - even at the minimum 10 psi. I left the ground on I-70 last week under the speed limit, and even the slightest bump feels like I am driving a WWII era jeep. It's really miserable.
Looking into the matter further, the shop in Richfield, UT installed sport rite 2172s that are specifically forbidden for my truck (not for use on a supercab with a 6 ft bed) to add insult to injury, they marked up the part 125% ($547.00). They say they will make it right (install air-ride bags and refund me some $) but I have questions in the interim.
Has anyone else had the ludicrously rough ride experience? Anyone else installed the 2172s on a ranger supercab shortbed? Am I OK running 0 PSI in the bags with the Timbrens to keep the bags from pinching? Is there anything I can do short of loading a ton of sand to improve the unladen ride? Thanks in advance.

Attached is a photo of the old ruined Timbrens. I have been really unhappy with the Timbrens poor fit and lousy engineering, particularly the platforms - they are not made to sit correctly on the axle.


Sorry to hear about your ordeal Tim. I installed Firestone Ride-Rite airbags on my F-150, and couldn't be more satisfied. When the camper is off I just air down and it rides pretty much as I drove it home from the dealer. It sounds like the bags you had installed are not the correct product for your truck. If I were you, I would go on line and check for the correct product and make sure that is what is installed. As I installed mine myself I was sure I ordered the correct product. I would then make sure the mechanic that told you they would "make it right", installs the proper product. If so, I can't imagine you will be dissatisfied. Do you have the Timbrens on in addition to the bags at the same time? If so, wouldn't you have to air up the bags very high to override the height of the Timbrens, negating the purpose of the compression of the airbags? In addition, if you have "E" load range tires on your vehicle, you will have to air those down as well, to have a smoother ride.

Good luck!

Paul

 

[SunMan]

Tim,
I've never heard of sport rites, I'm running ride rites with stock leafs like Phird05 with no issues when the camper is off. I don't have the literature in front of me but I'm pretty sure you are not supposed to run the air bags with 0 PSI, I think the minimum is something like 8 PSI for the ride rites anyway, I run 10 PSI in mine when the camper is off. Hope you get your problem resolved soon.

 

[MikeBC]

Excelllent results with Firestone air bags on my '05 Tundra. Good ride with and without FWC.

 

[Lighthawk]

+1 for ride-rites.
I've got them on my 06 Tundra and run 10 psi unloaded / 45 psi with camper.
Ride is a bit stiff, but my E rated tires at 40 psi are part of the equation.

 

[teleturns]

Tim

I don't know any details about the specific brand/type of airbags you are using on your vehicle, but I am very familiar with air bag suspension. The load assist/helper air bag kits can give a rougher ride when unloaded due to the fact that your are increasing the stock capacity even with the minimum 10 psi in the bag. On a light truck like a Ranger this can be significant. Air bag kits are designed to replace the overload springs in the leaf pack. Many installers do not remove the overlaod spring. An option for you is to remove a spring or two from the leaf pack and then run a slightly higher psi when unloaded. On my 3/4 ton Dodge Cummins I built a custom air bag set up and removed 3 leaf springs and the overload spring from the spring pack. Unloaded I run 25 psi and with my FWC I run 70 psi. Air ride can be tricky when mixing leaf spring rates and air spring rates.

Check out this webpage
http://www.airbagit.com/category-s/1881.htm

 

[Tim DP]

Here's an update.

After nearly two months in the body shop due to hitting a deer at Butler Wash near Comb Ridge, I finally got the truck back to the shop in central Utah that installed the air bags. They replaced the Firestone bags (2172 - the wrong part for this truck) with an Air Lift 59516 kit.
The suspension on the Ranger Supercab with 6 foot bed did not have enough clearance for the Firestone bags, but the Air Lifts fit just fine, solving the rough ride problem entirely. The truck now rides as stock when unloaded. The shop even gave me a check for $200 for the orignal parts overcharge.

The beefed-up aeon spring Timbrens the company sent me after the old ones failed turn out to be junk as well. They contact the springs on the side under load (see photo), and the axle mount platforms just don't fit properly. I'm happy some have had good luck with them on this forum, but those with Rangers at least should steer clear. Their "universal" platform mount just doesn't fit the Ranger/b3000/b4000. It is not tapered as the axle is, resulting in crookedness. I was trying to cheap out with just the Timbrens, but I should have just spent the money on airbags to start.

Well, fixed is fixed, and I'm happy I again have a truck that I can drive without shaking out my fillings.

 

[busboy66]

Tim,

I have a B4000 - see my trials with Timbrens here:

http://www.wanderthewest.com/forum/index.php?/topic/3536/page__p__38012&#entry38012

I was able to fix them, and they did work, but I didn't like the ride. Will be trying Supersprings.

Firestones - I was given mixed answers regarding the fit. I called Firestone directly - they said the 2172's would fit. When they say no 6' bed with Supercab, they mean the non North American version of the Ranger where there are actually 4 forward opening doors. They said as long as there was 6 1/2" between the frame and the sidewall of the tire, all should be good. I guess you proved them wrong. Sorry to hear about all your problems.

 

[Tim DP]

Thanks Busboy,
I suppose it could have been a bad install on the Firestone bags that caused the problem. I called Firestone as well, and got the answer that the 2172 would not work with my US supercab with 6 foot bed. I'm puzzled by the answer they gave you - the four door crew cab Rangers I saw in Mexico have a much shorter bed - more like 4.5 feet. It looked to me like the same chassis with a shorter bed and longer cab. Whatever the case, the Air Lift airbags are working great. I wish we could get a true crew cab diesel small pickup in the US, BTW. What gives, Detroit?