Tacoma 4x4

[John in Santa Cruz]

yeah, I airbagged my tacoma 4x4 and it made a HUGE difference in how it rode when loaded, without any impact on running empty. it helped with heavy loads when not towing, as well as when towing.


(stopping at our son's place in Reno while driving the new-to-us Escape21 back from Lewisville, TX)

[John in Santa Cruz]

for a better comparision of relative size, here's the same trailer with our F250 longbed diesel from the side instead of 3/4 front. I use wide angle lenses (or my cellphone which IS wide angle), this tends to distort relative size if not square on.

[John in Santa Cruz]

my airbagged taco pulled that ~4200 lb E21 from texas to california mid winter just fine. never had any complaints about control or ride. we were running light, there was very little in the truck.

when I ran the numbers I realized we had almost zero payload left in the truck before we loaded anything in back. the gas mileage was atrocious for the 4.0L V6 pulling that thing westbound in near freezing weather at Texas truck speeds. and the gas tank was too small, so we had to stop way too often.

I actually kinda wish I had a Excursion 7.3 4x4 SUV, but finding a clean one of those that is not kid-puked, good luck. and I've used the longbed enough times that I'm glad I have it. my 7' ladder fits with the tailgate closed, nuff said. My astronomy gear only takes about 1/3rd of the space instead of most of it.

[John in Santa Cruz]

same scope in the Taco, without the ladder and rest of the stuff I need...

[barrry smithe]

First TV was a 91 S10, 4.3. Tow capacity was 3500#. Ok in flat lands. Had to add air bags, retired with 180k miles. GMC is not full size, but, mostly made by Americans and does the job

[slowpat]

I replaced my Ford Ranger with a Tacoma last year. I had airbags on the Ranger. I have been debating about airbags on the Tacoma, but it seems to feel just as well or better than the Ranger while towing.

I had problems with the airbags. The installer was a car mechanic, not an RV expert, and I guess they were installed badly. One actually popped while not towing. It took me a bit to figure out what the noise was. Then I had to check them frequently to keep the proper air pressure in them year round. I didn't like doing that during the 9 months of rain. One seemed to have a slow leak. I carried a bicycle pump to air them up. My 12 volt air compressor would not reach that far.

What I hate about the Tacoma? It is wider and bigger. I call it The Boat. It is higher. I haven't tried but I don't think I can load my kayaks on racks by myself which means no kayak trips anymore. I do have some inflatable toys.

On the Ranger, I could deflate the airbags, load the kayaks and then inflate the airbags.

Oh well. Sometimes I find myself wishing for the Ranger back, but it broke down on a trip with trailer in tow, and I didn't trust it anymore. Most people tell me that the Tacoma is a major improvement.

I do like the back up camera when it comes to hitching up time. Otherwise, I do not like all the bells and whistles and lights and stuff on the Tacoma, but all new vehicles seem to be loaded with that stuff.

[ZachO]

You can't avoid the bells and whistles. That's one of the reasons I love my 98. No screens, and nothing is connected to the internet or satellites.

When I'm in my camper in the summer, the back of my truck is pretty full. Still room for the dog and a few other things back there, but a little more than half full. Oh well. Fact is, it all fits. So it must be a big enough truck.

Everything is bigger now. The new Ranger is about Tacoma-size, though I haven't been inside either. Most of us, as we get older, will be used to what we know, and like what we know, but it will change and we'll complain. My truck is the perfect size for me. But no one makes a truck that size anymore and hasn't for years.

I wouldn't have an RV "expert" touch my truck. Or my trailer. Airbags installations are for car mechanics, or yourself. Nothing rv-specific about them. I'll be interested to hear how the rear springs of your Tacoma hold up. They still build them more for a smooth ride offroad than for "work", so the suspension is softer than you ideally want for hauling heavy loads. They're built really well, or at least used to be, but weren't built as "work" trucks. Being built really well, they will work (as work trucks), but it takes some suspension modifications. The fact that I started towing with my truck at 189,000 miles, and it's now about to hit 290,000, and still has the original clutch, engine, transmission and axles says something about it's "work" capability. But I definitely needed a more heavy duty rear suspension.

[slowpat]

I live in a small town and now take my trailer to the RV shop that fixed the airbags when I can't figure out how to fix something. They've earned it. They did the airbag before I moved here and did it in one day so I could go home on schedule. Since then, I've gone in and they've actually taken the time to tell me how to fix something--like the odd ball support for the gray tank pipe on the Casita.

The car mechanic was in a smaller not town, and I think they had very little experience in installing airbags.

As for doing it myself, I'd probably take a week to do it, I don't have a lot of tools, and I'd have parts left over. Not to worry about the latter, a logger told me that we should always have parts left over after fixing something.

[steve dunham]

Originally Posted by slowpat

I live in a small town and now take my trailer to the RV shop that fixed the airbags when I can't figure out how to fix something. They've earned it. They did the airbag before I moved here and did it in one day so I could go home on schedule. Since then, I've gone in and they've actually taken the time to tell me how to fix something--like the odd ball support for the gray tank pipe on the Casita.

The car mechanic was in a smaller not town, and I think they had very little experience in installing airbags.

As for doing it myself, I'd probably take a week to do it, I don't have a lot of tools, and I'd have parts left over. Not to worry about the latter, a logger told me that we should always have parts left over after fixing something.

My local mechanic installed my air bags in about 45 minutes which included dropping the coil springs , installing the bags and running the air lines
Total cost was under $50 . It ain’t rocket science and I would have done it myself but it was in the middle of winter and I don’t have a heated
workshop

[ZachO]

I'm with you on that Pat. People complain a ton about car dealerships, the quality of the repairs done there, and the parts department. I've had great luck with the parts department at my "local" dealership, so I use them a lot. If they earn your respect, that's great. My "local" rv shop mechanic earned my respect, but obviously not my business when I brought my trailer to him for something and he said "yeah, we could do it here, but it'll cost you a lot more than a trailer shop"...

The airbag install isn't for everyone. It's simple and only requires very simple tools, but I know plenty of people aren't interested in even changing their oil, and for them, it's not a job to tackle.

[slowpat]

That's odd. The guy I bought my trailer from is pretty competent at mechanical stuff--another logger. He spent an entire day putting airbags on his pickup then asked me what it cost for my Ranger. I told him. It was way more than $40 and he said even at that it would be worth it as it was a nasty job to do and took so long.

The car mechanic charged me plenty and after doing research, that price was normal. Dunno how much the local RV guys who are not dealers would charge. I'm on a different side of the state now, but I imagine it would be the same as their brake work done on my Ranger (they are also regular mechanics) cost the same as where I moved from.

I used to change oil but it got to be too much of a hassle and mess to haul the used oil to a recycling center.

[ZachO]

Yeah, the reason for deciding not to change your oil or do your own repairs runs the gamut from not being able to just not being willing. At some point your time is worth more than your money.

$45 for an airbag install is definitely dirt cheap. I'm no mechanic, but I'd say now that I've done it, if I had to do it again, it would take 1 hour for each side. At around $100/hr for a mechanic, that's definitely more than $45, but people can definitely find deals. I've had people be very kind to me before in charging. And I've known mechanics who are only really working for beer money anyway, and some do really good work for cheap.

[steve dunham]

I don’t change my own oil I take my truck to the local mechanic , who is located in a town of 87 people , I supply the oil and filter , he supplies the labor
Cost = $20 with tip . It’s not worth laying in the snow in below zero temps to save $20
The secret is , you have to be willing to fit into his schedule
I bought 4 new tires from him for my truck , his price OTD was lower than Discount tire and I only had to drive 4 miles to his shop
No credit cards - CASH ONLY

[John in Santa Cruz]

Originally Posted by steve dunham

My local mechanic installed my air bags in about 45 minutes which included dropping the coil springs , installing the bags and running the air lines
Total cost was under $50 . It ain’t rocket science and I would have done it myself but it was in the middle of winter and I don’t have a heated
workshop

FWIW, the Tacoma has leaf springs, so installing a Ride Rite airbag kit is pretty trivial, the only drilling needed is for mounting the air filler valves in the rear bumper (I didn't bother with an onboard compressor setup).

[steve dunham]

Originally Posted by John in Santa Cruz

FWIW, the Tacoma has leaf springs, so installing a Ride Rite airbag kit is pretty trivial, the only drilling needed is for mounting the air filler valves in the rear bumper (I didn't bother with an onboard compressor setup).

I didn’t install an onboard compressor either
The picture of your Ford truck and trailer combination brought back fond memories for me . I drove a 3/4 or 1 ton work truck for most of my working career . I am now retired and own a 1/2 ton truck . Retirement feels right ,
the 1/2 ton truck not so much . It looks like a truck but when I hook up my trailer I instinctively know something is strangely wrong . The feeling of being in control of the situation just isn’t there .

[ZachO]

Anyone who tows should be required to drive one of these. Nothing else is safe. I guarantee you'll feel in control of the situation!

[steve dunham]

Originally Posted by ZachO

Anyone who tows should be required to drive one of these. Nothing else is safe. I guarantee you'll feel in control of the situation!

Attachment 139101

Pair that truck up with a Bigfoot 25RQ and you just may have something

[John in Santa Cruz]

my son is building a camper on a F550 utility truck frame. truck's payload is at least 12000 lbs, and tow rating is something north of 20,000 lbs. The utility box is all aluminum, and so is his camper framing (6061-T6 thick wall box)

[Jon in AZ]

Originally Posted by John in Santa Cruz

my son is building a camper on a F550 utility truck frame. truck's payload is at least 12000 lbs, and tow rating is something north of 20,000 lbs. The utility box is all aluminum, and so is his camper framing (6061-T6 thick wall box)

That looks like an amazing build. It will be the functional equivalent of the $500K expedition rigs when he’s done. I know it has nothing to do with molded fiberglass trailers, but I hope you’ll share pictures as this project progresses!

[John in Santa Cruz]

Originally Posted by Jon in AZ

That looks like an amazing build. It will be the functional equivalent of the $500K expedition rigs when he’s done. I know it has nothing to do with molded fiberglass trailers, but I hope you’ll share pictures as this project progresses!

thats exactly his target. he's going to be putting 22" 'super singles' on that truck, and derating it to load range "F" (still way overkill for his actual weights). the skin will all be 11 ga. 6061-T6 aluminum. the back will open like a toybox, so he can roll his motorcycle inside for travel.

he's hoping he can ship it to Europe and drive it to the middle east when he's doing geology research there in a year or so, and use it as his home base.