Firestone Ride-Rite Airbags suspension not yet available for 2021 502a+

[HCFX]

I sent an email to Firestone to look into whether my 2015-2020 Ride-Rite Airbag kit will work with 2021 trucks as I have a Lariat on order. Apparently due to the (very odd and rudimentary) headlight leveler arm things on the rear leaf springs the 502a+ trucks will have to wait for them to figure it out. Probably not in time for camping season ?

Looks like lift blocks should work in the meantime and not conflict with the levelers. I personally think there could've been many better engineering opportunities than this for the headlight level sensors... But I'm no engineer.

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[Norris McCarty]

Just today I was wondering about this. I’ve had bags on every truck I’ve owned for years.......oh well
wonder if timbrens will work. I’ll check tomorrow

 

[Pedaldude]

By isolating the rear suspension, the self leveling headlights will work as they’re meant to. Only adjusting with the truck, not the incline of the road.

If anything, they could use the sensor to adjust the psi in the airbags. My Lincoln has these front and rear and they’re for adjusting the air suspension. The sensor is inboard, right next to the pumpkin. I am sure that the OEM sensor can be relocated or replaced with one compatible with a location that won’t interfere with the aftermarket airbags.

 

[HCFX]

By isolating the rear suspension, the self leveling headlights will work as they’re meant to. Only adjusting with the truck, not the incline of the road.

If anything, they could use the sensor to adjust the psi in the airbags. My Lincoln has these front and rear and they’re for adjusting the air suspension. The sensor is inboard, right next to the pumpkin. I am sure that the OEM sensor can be relocated or replaced with one compatible with a location that won’t interfere with the aftermarket airbags.

I'm sure they will find a way to relocate the bracket to make it work. Having an airbag kit with on-board compressor that talked to the level sensor and automatically adjusted would be amazing... but I doubt they'd ever go that far into it.

I've always said that Ford should be offering a rear air load leveling suspension option from the factory. Not necessarily full air ride, just a factory helper bag setup as part of a payload+ package or whatever.

 

[Pedaldude]

I agree 100%!

Pretty much what some OTR tractor trucks have been using for a while now.

I have the HDPP and with the regular cab; empty, the ride is stiff to say the least! I don’t mind the ride in the dry on pavement but I am worried that it might not get the best traction in the wet or other low traction situations. I drove it 1/8th of a mile off-road to test out the 4wd and over some washboard, it was absolutely brutal. I am sure that the 48psi in the tires didn’t help either.

 

[HCFX]

I agree 100%!

Pretty much what some OTR tractor trucks have been using for a while now.

I have the HDPP and with the regular cab; empty, the ride is stiff to say the least! I don’t mind the ride in the dry on pavement but I am worried that it might not get the best traction in the wet or other low traction situations. I drove it 1/8th of a mile off-road to test out the 4wd and over some washboard, it was absolutely brutal. I am sure that the 48psi in the tires didn’t help either.

I've never driven a HDPP regular cab but we have a few crew long bed HDPP's at work. They're definitely firm almost like a 3/4 ton ride. I would imagine the shorter wheelbase and lighter weight of the regular cab HDPP would make for a pretty stiff ride.

The biggest difference in comfort I find with F-150's is the type of tires and the amount of pressure in them. I bet if you knocked back your psi to 38-40 you'd notice a little bit of difference.

 

[Expowerguy]

I sent an email to Firestone to look into whether my 2015-2020 Ride-Rite Airbag kit will work with 2021 trucks as I have a Lariat on order. Apparently due to the (very odd and rudimentary) headlight leveler arm things on the rear leaf springs the 502a+ trucks will have to wait for them to figure it out. Probably not in time for camping season ?

Looks like lift blocks should work in the meantime and not conflict with the levelers. I personally think there could've been many better engineering opportunities than this for the headlight level sensors... But I'm no engineer.

Interesting. I did a search on the Firestone site and came up with the 2582 kit that is supposed to fit a 2015-2021 F150 4WD, all except Raptor.