Towing-Air Bags vs. Helper Springs

[MikeTEC]

Would appreciate comments from towing members who have used both or either air bags or helper springs on 95-2000 model Explorers. I have a lot of towing experience, as evidenced by some of my other towing posts, but have never used air bags or helper springs. I have found that air-shocks are not the best option for Explorers, in my opinion. While they do serve to level the rig, damping action of the shock leaves a lot to be desired. Mike

 

[JLP]

Mike, Im right there with you on the "air shocks" + I was always told that shock mounts are not "load bearing" (shocks control movement-ossilation), springs are what carry the load.

That said I have been looking for something that will not negatively affect the Exp ride without a load (95% of my driving time) but help when towing the boat. I have been looking at the Active Suspension helper spring/shock combo. this bolts to the leaf spring in a horizontal config and looks to provide the best of both worlds. If anybody has used these I would be very interested in hearing a first hand report.

Thanks

 

[jjue]

Air bags work pretty well for fixing wheelhop problems and for sagging rear when loaded. I noticed that mine were set to the recommended 10 psi, the rear of my '97 Mountaineer was raised about 1/2". To combat this problem, I torsion twisted the front about 1/2", which I like better anyway. I haven't had more than a couple hundred lbs. of stuff in at one time, but the ability to raise the pressure by 10-15 psi when carrying a load and a few people does help handling and the ability to see at night. I'll get my first real test in less than a month when I move after graduting college on May 11. Since I usually do load this vehicle down or pull some heavy trailers, I think that it was a good idea to get airbags and the onboard compressor.