My Yukon is starting to squat a bit, new springs/airbags/ or these?

[jetboater4life]

These being a helper spring that adds to the existing spring. http://www.etrailer.com/susp-2002_GMC_Yukon+XL.htm

I know the real answer is to upgrade my tow vehicle but I'm still saving up the 35 to 70k that a new or lightly used one costs.

Just wondering if anyone has tried those springs or if they are a snake oil product.

 

[-klb-]

I'm sure there is a pool noodle fix for it.

I would lean towards air bags or air shocks. Wedging a spring seems like a great way to cause one part of the spring to do more work and become an early failure point. Even airbags supported inside coil springs retain the natural travel of the spring. Wedges or inserts alter that.

 

[Cotay]

These being a helper spring that adds to the existing spring. http://www.etrailer.com/susp-2002_GMC_Yukon XL.htm

I know the real answer is to upgrade my tow vehicle but I'm still saving up the 35 to 70k that a new or lightly used one costs.

Just wondering if anyone has tried those springs or if they are a snake oil product.

I have these on the rear of my Expedition EL to combat squat when pulling our Outback Terrain 250TRS. They don't obviously help with load capacity, but they do help keep the front end plated when trailering...which results in increased stability. They are definitely not snake oil and they help eliminate eliminate about an inch if drop. I had the Ford dealership put them on and they had no issues or concerns with installing them. Some people note that they cause a harsher ride when not trailering, but we haven't experienced that. I highly recommend the sumosprings if you only have an inch or two of sag to adjust. More than that and you should look into air bags.

 

[sysinu]

Get the firestone bags. They are a little more expensive, but they are worth it.

Timbren are okay, but they are nothing when put head-to-head with the firestone bags. The only thing that sucks about the firestone bags is filling them up, there are auto-levelers that you can install to fill them up with a remote, but those run like 600$ so I haven't done that. If I were going to do my firestone bag install again, I would put a couple in-line shut off valves (one for each main line to your air bag) that go to a single T which is the point at which you would fill them (instead of filling two air lines independently). That way you just flip the valves to open, fill both bags to the desired level, flip the valves to closed and be done. Otherwise you have to fill each independently.

edit: regarding installation, do it yourself. You don't need to be a rocket scientist or a mechanic to figure out how it's done. It will save you some $$

 

[0627Devildog]

Depending on the vehicle the bags may not work with an integrated strut design where the strut rides through the middle of the shock.

 

[davel501]

I have the Air Lift bags on my Armada. Seems to help.

 

[biglar155]

Go with the bags. My '05 Suburban has auto-load leveling which involves air bags built into the shocks. It REALLY helps with heavy loads. The aftermarket bags will have a similar effect, you'll just need to pump them up manually.

If you want to get fancy they make a compressor that mounts in the truck and a switch in the cab with a pressure gauge - but you don't need to get carried away if you don't want to.

If you've got the tools and a little mechanical know-how it's a do-it-yourself project.

 

[KXCam22]

I am an air bag guy too. Put a set on the truck, put a set on the wife. All is good. Cam.