Towing with an F150

[Tundra 2014]

Look at Timben's. They replace the bump stops on your rear springs. They look like big Kong dog chew toys. They are about $300 @ E-Trailer.com. You do not notice them at all in normal driving, only under load. I put them on my Tundra 2 years ago. You loosen 2 U-bolts on each axel and swap out OEM stops. It installed w/ my air wrench in 45 minutes, including torquing back to original specs. No more bouncing over railroad tracks or bouncing on highway bumps w/ trailer. Solved my problem w/o expense of air bags and no maintenance.

[AlaskaErik]

Originally Posted by TheWolfPaq82

Drop 10k into shocks, tires, springs airbags....or start with the little stuff. Add some air to the TV tires, check TT tire pressure and go from there.

$2k will get you most or all of that.

[moose074]

Originally Posted by CentralMePistol

You have lots of options here...

Two quick thoughts for you- what size bars do you have on your WDH? sometimes having bars that are too big can cause bouncing.

I personally think SumoSprings are as good as airbags (for the job you are doing). AND they are significantly cheaper and you can install them yourself.

Yes SumoSprings work great but aircells from air lift half the price

[myredracer]

There's not going to be one single thing that will be the primary suspect. Start with ensuring the WDH is transferring the correct amount of tongue wt. onto the steer axle and make sure the spring bars aren't undersized. Too stiff can cause damage to the A-frame and too soft can result in more bounce and inability to transfer enough wt. onto the steer axle.

We had undersized spring bars on a previous TT because I pre-ordered them based on the dry wt. figure. While the 800 lb bars were well above the 540 lb dry TW, the actual TW with TT fully loaded ended up at 950 lbs (and 14.5% TW). The TT bounced like crazy. 1200 lbs really reduced the bounce, including movement transferred onto the truck.

Ensure you have adequate TW and at least 10% of actual TT weight (GVW). Average is 12-13%. More is better if the TV can handle it. We have just under 15% and have no bounce issues (or sway).

If LRE tires, try inflating the rears to, or near, the 80 psi sidewall max and also raise the front to 70 psi or even more. The brand/type of LRE tires can be a factor, even if the same size. Some tires have a kevlar sidewall which helps. Just bought a new set of them for our 3/4 ton truck instead of the Michelins I wanted at first which have very soft sidewalls in comparison. You don't want P rated tires for towing. The placard on the GM says to inflate the rears to 80 psi which surprised me a bit.

Inflate the TT tire pressure to the sidewall max. - 50, 65 or 80 depending on load range.

Stiffer shocks on the truck will help a LOT. The Bilstein 4600s are excellent. Had them on our F250 but the engine "exploded" last week (long story) and we bought a '12 GM Sierra 2500 as a replacement. While the shocks on it seem good, I'm ordering a set of new Bilsteins for it.

Shocks on the TT will also help a LOT. The reduced vertical movement on the TT means less vertical movement transferred onto the truck via the coupler/ball connection. You'd be amazed by how much they help regardless.

I wouldn't bother with air bags. Some swear by them but you should address the various factors related to the bounce first as outlined above.

[Thurman]

Let's just say that you feel as if you have tuned in the WDH the best you can and still have some "porpoising" at times, and possibly a little bit of a strange sway at times. I tuned my WDH until I felt that I had done the best I could and still had a little bit of porpoising after a bump and still had a weird little sway, particularly when a big truck passed me. An older gentleman at one campground and I were talking and he suggested the following: He showed me that I still had the original "P" tires on my GMC 1500 and explained how they had somewhat soft sidewalls which gave the truck a smooth ride. He highly suggested that I look into some tires with at least a "D" rating and possibly go to an "E" rated tire. He also showed me that he had added an extra heavy duty leaf spring to his truck, a Ford F-150 and stated that it helped a lot. Well I did just what he suggested. I changed out my tires, with only 26K miles, to an "E" rated TOYO tire, which my trusted tire man suggested. The next trip out was like the difference in night and day. The rig drove better, handled better and rode better. I did eventually add a heavy duty "Hellwig" brand leaf spring, again my tire guy suggested these. The truck rides very well with nothing hooked up but when I put a load on it the extra springs kick in and help. Now my rig goes down the road much more comfortable to me.

[CentralMePistol]

Originally Posted by moose074

Yes SumoSprings work great but aircells from air lift half the price

Didn't see those when I was shopping...
I actually paid $150 for my SumoSprings. I had a price watch on them on Amazon and they dropped to $150 one day so I jumped on them.

The AirCell looks like its the same thing, basically. Definitely worth the money!

[bikendan]

Originally Posted by CentralMePistol

Didn't see those when I was shopping...
I actually paid $150 for my SumoSprings. I had a price watch on them on Amazon and they dropped to $150 one day so I jumped on them.

The AirCell looks like its the same thing, basically. Definitely worth the money!

I've been waiting for a better price on SumoSprings. I went to Airlifts website and they don't show a Aircell kit for a 2014 F150.

[bikendan]

Originally Posted by bikendan

I've been waiting for a better price on SumoSprings. I went to Airlifts website and they don't show a Aircell kit for a 2014 F150.

Just talked to Airlift. They said the Aircell is not for unloaded vehicles, only for fixed load support. They said it's different from Timbrens and SumoSprings.

[CentralMePistol]

Originally Posted by bikendan

Just talked to Airlift. They said the Aircell is not for unloaded vehicles, only for fixed load support. They said it's different from Timbrens and SumoSprings.

Interesting... Sumo springs would probably say something similar. Unloaded my sumosprings are .5-.25" from touching the axel. Well, I live on a dirt farm road... you can bet I feel them back there. With a load they are great... but a little rough without. I'm willing to trade the firm ride for the stability though.
Oh- and I have E-rated tires.... "Tighten bra-straps and remove dentures!"

[moose074]

Originally Posted by bikendan

Just talked to Airlift. They said the Aircell is not for unloaded vehicles, only for fixed load support. They said it's different from Timbrens and SumoSprings.

I can’t argue with what they say. I had Sumos or Timbren on my last two 1/2 tons and AIRCELL On my 1 ton other than color they look the same go in the same place. Here is a pic on my Ram .

[frank4711]

I run these on my Ram ... Quality product ... bumper-stop to axle ... call them owner will answer the phone Steve will answer all of your questions no cutting .. about $400 out the door ... https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_c...&v=gtycv4En0Zc

[ppine]

check the adjustment of your WD hitch. Make sure you have the right spring bars. If they are too stiff and designed for a heavier trailer it will make the ride harsh. Back off one link or space on your hitch and see if that helps.

[CurtPutnam]

Question for the group wisdom: is it possible to distinguish berween truck related problems and hitch/loading issues by simply loading the tongue weight in the truck and moving on down the road?

[Martsing]

I had a very similar problem with my set-up when we towed with a 2011 F-150 3.5l EB. I had 3.55 rear on it and the factory tow package. I added Airlift 5000 air bags and BFG light truck K02's. Solved the problem in my case.

Marty

[lsullysr11]

I put on 10 ply tires and ran at 50 psi. Bounce disappeared.

[Nightrainzzz]

Where is the bounce? Front or back of tow vehicle. Both have different causes.
Do you have max. tire pressure?
Bounce in front move tdh chain up a link or two. Bounce on rear axle, install timbren blocks, approx. $200. I like them better than airbags. At a fraction of the cost.

[myxkp]

Originally Posted by Tundra 2014

Look at Timben's. They replace the bump stops on your rear springs. They look like big Kong dog chew toys. They are about $300 @ E-Trailer.com. You do not notice them at all in normal driving, only under load. I put them on my Tundra 2 years ago. You loosen 2 U-bolts on each axel and swap out OEM stops. It installed w/ my air wrench in 45 minutes, including torquing back to original specs. No more bouncing over railroad tracks or bouncing on highway bumps w/ trailer. Solved my problem w/o expense of air bags and no maintenance.

Same for me. Timbrens don't engage until the load compresses the leaf springs. Great, easy correction for bounce.

[Lecia]

We have the same set-up (both truck and trailer). You are actually well within the towing parameters of the F-150, not near the limit. We experience occasional bouncing and it is normal. If it really bothers you, you might consider something like a Firestone Ride-Rite system. There are a variety of systems, most in the $400+ range (without installation).

If you want to research the exact towing capacity of your truck, you can find it on the Ford website. They have a table that shows towing capacities with various options. Do you have the heavy duty trailer towing package? 18" or 20" wheels? 4x4 or 4x2? All of that makes a difference in towing capacity.

Hope this helps!

[jd50i]

OP hasn't been back since 6-11.

[MamaLaura]

I have a 2015 F150 Lariat with Ecoboost with MaxTow, the 4 pt equalizer and just towed my Rockwood 2902ws over the pass (Denver to Grand Junction and back I70 sucks btw). Before I left, I added Roadmaster Active suspension. Made a difference in the 'bounce' and that 'truck vortex' sway. I find that concrete highways exaggerate that bounce v asphalt as well but that maybe my imagination.