Firestone Ride Rite Air Helper Springs Great Boost For Sagging Rear Ends
Is your pickup or SUV’s rear end sagging bit under a big load? An easy cure is installing a set of Firestone Ride-Rite air bag helper springs. These little beauties, which come in a kit for less than $300 through a number of e-stores, are the heart of Firestone’s air helper spring line. They are available for a wide range of pickups and SUVS—including the new Toyota Tundra.
The double-convoluted air springs are inflated by an air line and provide a great way to adjust your truck’s ride however soft or firm you desire.
We installed a set on our 2007 Tundra Double Cab 4×4 when we put in a Pro Comp six-inch suspension lift and 35-inch mud tires. The Ride Rite air helper springs allow us to keep the new Tundra’s unladen ride quality maximized and it’s heavily laden ride well-controlled and level.
This is especially true if you don’t like the Tundra’s harsh rear suspension and remove the big, flat bottom overload (diving board) leaf from each rear spring pack. Removing that spring gives the Tundra a very pleasant ride. That’s what we did on our Tundra Double Cab 4×4 SR5 project truck when we added the lift kit.
The Ride-Rite air helper springs are installed between the Tundra frame and the top of the leaf spring pack, providing the additional load support through the use of air pressure.
Installation is easy and simple. It will take the average do-it-yourselfer about 2 hours from start to finish. A hoist is not necessary, although a floor jack and jack stands make the job easier. A basic set of hand tools is also required. We used a ½-inch-drive GearWrench socket set and metric X-Beam open/box-end wrenches in our installation.
The end result is the ability to firm up the stability and ride of our Toyota Tundra at will using just a few pounds of compressed air from our on-board air compressor. You can have the same ability with your new pickup or SUV.