Your Opinion On Air Bags
Do air bag suspension on the rear of trucks help with towing? I was told that they not only help with towing but can also help to save gas when towing? They are expensive so I am trying to find out...
Forum Discussion
Larryzv7 wrote:
I had a shop a couple of years ago tell me that I could benefit from getting air bags, then recently I had some work done at Camping World and a person in the Service Department highly recommended air bags for towing, he was the one that told me they would improve gas mileage.
Camping World does not install air bags so they recommended a couple of shops to me. The shops I called also told me air bags would improve handling and gas mileage when towing. I did not ask how they improve gas mileage. But all of the shops I called wanted between $1,500 and $2,100, depending on whether I wanted an onboard compressor or not. I imagine they are a lot cheaper if you buy and install them yourself.
That is why I thought I’d ask for some input here on this forum. I did some research online and there are lots of websites that say air bags do help with fuel economy. Here are a couple of those websites:
StrutMasters
ATS
Quote from strutmasters: "The additional weight on the vehicle can cause the engine to work harder and burn more fuel. This is because towing heavy cargo affects traditional suspension systems’ performance. For example, the extra weight can reduce or flatten the arch and springs of a truck’s rear leaf spring suspension. This decreases the springs’ ability to support the weight so the back of the truck sags or bottoms out. As a result, the extra weight puts pressure on the axle and wheels, which presses the tires into the ground, creating added roll resistance."
What a load of marketing BS!!!
The only thing they said that is somewhat related to airbags & MPG is extra rolling resistance from heavily loaded tires....but the extra weight on the tires doesn't simply disappear with airbags. You might need different adjustments on your WDH with or without airbags but the weight on each axle should be pretty close to the same once you are done adjusting.
If you are bottoming out the springs, 10-1 you are grossly overloaded and you will still be overloaded with the airbags.
Edit: Maybe they are filling them with helium, so they actually create lift?
