Do I really need aftermarket shocks?

[Frost]

New here, been lurking for some time. Wife and I towed a 3500 lb rv trailer for 8 yrs with an F150, sway bar only when I remembered but no wdh. Sold both of them over the past year, believed I was done with the rv lifestyle. Just turned 70. I bought a slightly used 2021 Ranger Lariat FX4 with tow package, 2.3. Wife talked me into buying a new 19' Airstream. Could not say no, she's supported me in so many ways and she loves getting away from the Adirondacks for a few months., it was her dream trailer.
Here's the particulars. Gross trailer weight of 5k, tongue weight including propane tanks and battery of 525. That's what they claim. As you might imagine, the Airstream has bit into our retirement savings so not looking to spend a lot extra this year. We would like to leave the Adirondacks mid-late Feb and head south then west for a few months.
I'll be buying a wdh, leaning towards a blue ox, but could change my mind. The Blue Sumo springs also seem like a wise buy. How much value do you all put into something more, like Bilsteins?

I'm older and loved the way my F150 drove, my Ranger feels twitchy to me, a bit worried about driving it under load. I know it can handle the weight, but I'm all about safety now.
Thanks in advance, you've all helped so much already just by me reading past posts.

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[Langwilliams]

I don't know about "need" but I think replacing the rear shocks was the best change I made especially considering how inexpensive it was to do it. The rear seems to keep rocking after a bump an with the new shocks it would rock once an stop an stay steady/stable. The only towing I did was fairly light at around 2500 pounds total for the load an trailer an only with the new shocks.

 

[Frenchy]

I won't argue that changing the rear shocks with the front struts(that right, do it as a set) would help with overall ride quality even with towing, but if you have not done so I would wait until you tow.

With that said you are wondering if you should get an actual WDH or sumo strings right? If you ask me do yourself a favor and do the WDH. The WDH will actually spend the load across the truck and trailer. The sumo springs simply keep the rear of the truck up. The sumo springs are on a similar concept of air bags. Yes the will make the vehicle level as needed, but don't do much to control the load.

 

[ctechbob]

Bare Minimum new rear shocks should be on your list. Bilstein 4600's are a proven and can be had for under $200 the set. Don't get talked into 5100's, they are valved the same as the 4600's according to Bilstein. Install will take no more than an hour, tops.

That and blue sumo's will go a long long way to making your towing experience much better and much less twitchy.

The shocks Ford uses in the FX packages are just garbage. They are by far the worst factory shocks I've ever driven on car or truck. They somehow manage to be both underdamped and stiff/crashy at the same time.

Fronts are a little more involved, but if you want, those will actually make another marked improvement with towing.

WDH may not be necessary, but something like the Blue Ox 2 point or E2 Roundbar will again add some comfort to the assembly and is worth the money spent.

Up your tire pressure when towing to somewhere between 38-40.

 

[notsolinear]

I just recently took my 20' Airstream to the CAT scales and there were a few surprises from the measurements: Without the spring bars of the WDH installed the trailer added 940 lbs to my rear axle even though the listed tongue weight of the trailer is only 535 lbs. Some of that due to weight shifting off the front axle, leaving the rear axle surprisingly close to its GAWR. With the BlueOx TrackPro setup normally the weight on front and rear axles became nearly identical. After seeing that I would definitely recommend a WDH with built-in sway control.

 

[Frost]

Thanks for the replies, especially the info about the Airstream. Bilstein 4600's it is, plus blue sumo's. Do plan to get a wdh, just not certain what brand. Also been waiting almost 2 months on Ford to get a trailer brake controller for me.

 

[raytwntrvlr]

I tow a smaller trailer (4000 lbs.) with my Ranger. I have owned much larger TTs and tow vehicles. I am very pleased with how the Ranger handles the towing. One thing I do regret about by latest setup is going with a Blue Ox WDH. On my previous outfits I used Fastway E2 hitches. It's a lower priced but capable hitch styed after the Equal-I-Zer brand. The Blue Ox spring bars have a cheap painted finish and rust easily. Also the L brackets are poorly designed and don't fit the spring bars well. Another issue is the handle that snaps the spring bars onto the L brackets. Very clunky and not user friendly. I have not changed anything on my Ranger for towing. Stock shocks and all. BTW, I have over 15K Miles of all types of towing this trailer in the last 2 years.

 

[Rocketeer61]

First mod I did to Strider was a set of Bilsteins on the rear. Ranger roll was gone and I don't miss it.

 

[Racket]

@Grumpaw may be the one to give you the best suggestions.

 

[Deleted User 61245811]

I think replacing the oem shocks on the Ranger is a great idea regardless of what you are doing with it. As for the springs, I think the oem springs are great under load. Its empty that different springs become desirable. That's not something I would spend money on, certainly not for towing, anyway. Also there are alternatives to installing a brake controller like the Curt Echo for example.

Since my trailer is 8.5' wide-body, I found towing mirrors to be the most important upgrade that I made. https://www.clearviewmirrorsusa.com/towing-mirrors/ford-ranger-north-america/

Just a tip on the clearviews, I found that when folded they didn't save much width (when not extended). If I had it to do over I would have bought the less expensive ones that don't power fold as I never use that feature that I paid several hunderd extra for.

 

[Grumpaw]

Thanks for the replies, especially the info about the Airstream. Bilstein 4600's it is, plus blue sumo's. Do plan to get a wdh, just not certain what brand. Also been waiting almost 2 months on Ford to get a trailer brake controller for me.

I went with the KYB rear shocks and have been very happy with them. I just replaced the rear's as the front struts on my 2 wheel drive Lariat handle the load OK.
I replaced the OE tires with some load range E 10 ply Yokokhama"s due to the heavy trailer/tongue weight of my rig....needed more psi than the OE tires would handle....run 45psi front and 50psi rear, and got fid of any flex/squiggle in the tires.
Also went with the Blue Sumo's....but be aware, they are not and do not act like air bags. They are replacements for the plain hollow rubber bump stops that will bottom out very easily when going over a bump/pothole giving that abrupt "jarring". But, be aware that some have had problems removing the OE bump stops as it just depends on how they were torqued down at the factory/any rust around bolts.....look up on the forum about "removing factory bump stops"
The Sumos are made of a different material and act as a "progressive bump stop".....no more slapping of frame into the bump stop. Worth every penny.
If your thinking of an air bag set up or a rear sway bar, look at the Roadmaster Active Suspension set up. It acts like both and a traction bar set up, but costs less than any of them individually.
WD hitches are a personal preference to each....I use a Blue Ox Sway Pro.....much better than the friction type, but just my opinion.
I also have a pair of the ClearView Mirrors and have found them to be excellent. But, they are expensive, but if your going to tow a lot, may be worth looking at.
I am no "expert, but have been towing travel trailers for more years than I want to admit and just know what works and what's a waste of money.
Also, to get a good idea of what your Airstream's tongue weight is, google up "homemade tongue weight scale".....very easy to make a scale from a few pieces of 2x4, some 1 inch diameter pipe, and a regular home weight scale, and very accurate. I think once you weigh your tongue weight, as its ready to tow, you might be very suprised what it really is.
Have a Scan Gauge 3 to keep tabs on the coolant and trans fluid temps. I use a tried and true Tekonsha brake controller as I don't need the Ford version with the emergency braking feature.
Yeah, the Ranger may seem a bit "twitchy" as you noted, but just the simple addition of good rear shocks, the Blue Sumo's, and a few more psi in the tires will make a big difference. Once you get it set up right, the Ranger is a pleasure to tow with. The other stuff I listed makes it more so, but that's just my needs for our heavier trailer.
You appear to be well versed in the towing/trailer/camping area, so I'd advise to look at the Towing section of the site.......lots of info about those of us who tow/equipment...
And, welcome to the forum !!!

 

[Burnt Money]

I tow my boat dang near year around and did a 1200 mile round trip this year with it. Changing from the stock FX4 shocks to the Bilsteins was a noticeable improvement. Changing trailer tires to a higher load capacity with the ability to run higher PSI helped also. As someone else said @Grumpaw has great insight into towing. Especially travel trailers. I feel he is the default resident towing guru lol.

 

[Frost]

You guys are killing me. Now I need $400 mirrors? Just joking. Had not even considered mirrors. Previous trailer was 7' wide towed by a wider F150. New trailer is 8' and pulled by a skinny Ranger. Trailer does come with a rear view camera though. Hoping I can sync that to my phone and take some stress off. For this year I'm hoping that's enough. Would be great if I could sync it to homescreen on Ranger and have it toggle back and forth with the navigation system. I'll find out. Off to the Airstream forum I guess.

Just ordered the Bilsteins and Sumo's. WDH next. Thanks again for all of your help and insight. I've been surfing this site for a few weeks and it's clear that this is the place to come for help, no talking down just valuable sharing. Great platform.

 

[ctechbob]

Whoever is installing the Sumos.

Pull the factory bumpstop out of the mounting cup, it will pull right out.

At the first sign of the factory bolt getting tight, STOP.

Heat the head of the bolt with a torch, doesn't have to be glowing red, but get it good and warm.

The bolt should back right out.

Lots of people break them off.

 

[notsolinear]

I tow a smaller trailer (4000 lbs.) with my Ranger. I have owned much larger TTs and tow vehicles. I am very pleased with how the Ranger handles the towing. One thing I do regret about by latest setup is going with a Blue Ox WDH. On my previous outfits I used Fastway E2 hitches. It's a lower priced but capable hitch styed after the Equal-I-Zer brand. The Blue Ox spring bars have a cheap painted finish and rust easily. Also the L brackets are poorly designed and don't fit the spring bars well. Another issue is the handle that snaps the spring bars onto the L brackets. Very clunky and not user friendly. I have not changed anything on my Ranger for towing. Stock shocks and all. BTW, I have over 15K Miles of all types of towing this trailer in the last 2 years.

I can confirm the paint on my TrackPro spring bars is also affected by rust after one season but it isn’t affecting function. I have been refining my technique but I don’t have any real issues with the L-brackets or handle at this point (except my brackets were put on crooked by the dealer). When I was looking at WDH options I liked that with the TrackPro could be connected/disconnected safely while under no tension.

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