Ride Rite Air Suspension

[Steelpoint]

A bit of advice please. I purchased an Eco Mate CT two months ago and did the Cape York trip with my wife and parents. Having loaded both the Hilux Dual cab and CT to the max, I subsequently found the vehicle down by the arse. I had already put OME springs and coils in the Hilux. So now it made the steering very light and we wondered a fair bit. I'm considering the Firestone Ride Rite air suspension. What are people opinions on these and are they a good brand?

[edz]

G,Day and welcome Steelpoint, Mate cant tell you either way on the Brand your looking at, but you may want to do a bit of reading a bit of prior discussion on the subject
http://www.myswag.org/index.php?topic=44221.0 .. seems duel cabs etc dont like air bags .. 
Another way might be Fred's 4wd Conversions Toowoomba .. think these guys up your way are a stockist ..http://ontrakdieselrepairs.com.au/
No affiliation etc ..
We did our own DIY version of this style suspension on a mates late 9o's leaf sprung Hilux duelcab and it worked well, without any troubles over a 15 year period .
Or look at a load sharing coupling with the camper trailer to help with sag

[Green rv]

gday Steelpoint

firestone are one of the good brands

first i would look at how the ute trailer was loaded
get all the heavy stuff for the ute up close to the front of the tray or in front of the axle
and in the camper all the heavy stuff over the axle

in my set up i carry about 500kg max in the d/cab ute tray
and try keep the ball weight on the camper no more than 150kg

in the ute tray i normally carry
1 x 80ltr fridge full
1 x 80 ltr esky full
16 x tarp pole pegs and ropes
1 x dbl bunk for the kids
1x 45ltr tub with all cooking gear
1x 45 ltr tub food ect
1x bag kids toys
bag or two of wood
plus what ever else the wife wants


2 x large tables and 4 burner bbq on roof rack (all cast iron taken out and packed in tray)
1 x kayak
fishing rods

+ tow camper (this also carries a bit of gear. but also has 2 x 120ah batteries on the draw bar ATM)

with a nice level ride 

IMO i would try adjusting the load before forking out extra money on suspension

 
Adam
 

[Steelpoint]

Green RV, it sounds like you have a lot too. The Ecomate is a forward fold so the bed, 100ltr water tank and kitchen sink/gas stove are all over or behind the CT axle. I also only had a 65ltr waeco fridge, extra battery and some basic camping gear for my parents in the Hilux tray. We tried to load most of the heavier gear in the camper but still...

I think part of the problem is the very long draw bar on the CT. Oh well.

We have another camping trip on Friday (with out the parents  ) so we'll see how the balance looks.

[edz]

http://www.myswag.org/index.php?topic=44187.msg741075#msg741075   may help you

[Green rv]

proberbly the biggest difference
i only have two little kids
and my camper would be a lot lighter
but if my ball weight got heavy i could see the back of the ute dropping like a tonne of bricks

 
Adam

 

[GeoffA]

.....
I think part of the problem is the very long draw bar on the CT. Oh well.
.....

The length of the draw bar itself won't be the issue.
It'll be all the stuff stacked on top of it that's causing problems.

 

[pank]

Pictures of your loaded ute and camper may help solve the probelm.

[Steelpoint]

The length of the draw bar itself won't be the issue.
It'll be all the stuff stacked on top of it that's causing problems.

I agree but its hard to place weight behind the CT axle as the back end is very short. I've even left the two spare wheels on just to add a bit of back end weight (plus 100ltrs of water).

I'm trying to work out how to load a picture 

[Steelpoint]

Might not be the best photo of the weight drop.

[Green rv]

Hi Steelpoint

in the pic is the hilux tray loaded or empty
can see from the pic that the ute is fair sagging

would be interesting to know the ball weight loaded of the camper
might be over the capacity for the ute (2500kg tow @ 250kg ball weight)

 
Adam

[edz]

The Ecomate is a forward fold so the bed, 100ltr water tank and kitchen sink/gas stove are all over or behind the CT axle. I also only had a 65ltr waeco fridge, extra battery and some basic camping gear for my parents in the Hilux tray. We tried to load most of the heavier gear in the camper but still...
I think part of the problem is the very long draw bar on the CT. Oh well.

Having only a loaded 65ltr fridge [ say roughly < 40kg ] + a spare battery [ 20+ kg] and say 50kg + of gear from the parents shouldnt have put the bum of the truck down that much
Going by the pic, did you have 4 x jerries of fuel / water [ that would be 80+ kg alone ] + what size fridge in the camper box [ 80ltr Waeco loaded would have to be 60kg at least ] + 1x 120 ah battery [ 20+ kg ] 1 or 2 gas bottles 10 + kg So roughly 170 kg + easy already, without the steel of the draw bar or what ever else you have in the forward storage bins ..
Think  load sharing bars / hitch set up might be a good option ......https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8QpIEVOziY ....https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4DC-lfNnKf4

[Steelpoint]

Green rv, from what I understand of towball weight, its the load ON the ball. Yes? I'm pretty sure there wasn't 250kg of load on the ball. But the back was full which made the bum sag anyway.

Edz, we only had 20lts of water and 20ltrs of diesel plus 9kg of LPG. The bin in front of the main CT had mostly Tent walls plus a few other bits and pieces. The main compartment on the CT had another 65ltr fridge plus pots, pans etc. The batteries are at the back behind the axle.

I have spoken to ARB Townsville who replaced my rear suspension earlier this year and they have confirmed that only light to medium springs were fitted. So maybe the main problem is simply too soft springs. Hence the question of air suspension.

[dazzler]

That design, with the drawbar used as a load platform, will always have a heavy ball weight.

Two safe ways to deal with it;
Higher rated rear leaves than the already high ones.
Load levellers to transfer the weight to the front wheels (prob hitch change).

Airbags will break the Utes chassis.

[Green rv]

Cheers Steel

tow ball weight is the downwards pressure that the tow hitch is putting onto the towball.
bit of a pain in the arse you upgraded the suspension already.
one thing i hate is spending money on something you already fixed

i fitted this gear to my hilux and love it.
was designed for towing and comfort
http://www.saxsuspension.com/3sds.html

this might be another option over airbags
i know ironman suspension did a similar product as well
http://www.saxsuspension.com/equalizer.html

at the last place i worked i sold and fitted these kits, the only reason i sold them was customers kept coming in and asking for them by name. from all the guys that fitted them it always got glowing reviews, so thats when i decided to fit them to mine. but the equalizer wasn't available then so dont know too much about them.

now saying that i would have a chat to some suspension guys to make sure your getting the right product to suit your needs

would be interesting to hear if anyone else has sax suspension fitted ??

 
Adam

edit: a wdh kit could also help. wdh kit fitted here have bought cars back up 1-2 inches (use this as a guide only)
http://www.coastrv.com.au/products/car-accessories/hitches-shanks/item/eaz-lift-600-series-22-23mm-tow-ball

edit: with all the gear on the draw bar check to make sure a wdh fits before buying one

now that your loaded up with all the options you'll be more confused than before