tstockma Posted September 4, 2019 Share Posted September 4, 2019 I just bought my dad's 1986 New Horizons, quite excited about it, it's my first RV. One of his operating instructions is to use the old bicycle pump to air up the rear suspension every 4 hours while on the road. I plan to modify that instruction by fixing the problem. What's the setup in these things? (I have the Haynes manual on the way, but not yet in hand....) Is this an "Air Lift", separate from the shocks? Are these a custom fit, or a generic RV "air lift"? I have googled a bit & seen posts here in the forums, I'm beginning to think it's a generic air lift bag of some kind & not to be confused with the separate shock absorbers. I'm a Rock Auto kinda guy. Thanks for your insights here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AtlantaCamper Posted September 4, 2019 Share Posted September 4, 2019 5 minutes ago, tstockma said: What's the setup in these things? The "Air Bags" are inflatable bladders that help to support the weight of the truck on the axle. Get under the truck and take a look and see what you have. These are put in by the RV manufacturer, not Toyota and your setup may be different from other's, but the basic setup is that you have a rubber accordion looking air bag inserted between the axle and truck frame. There will be plates on top and bottom of the air bag as mounting points. There will be plastic tubes, usually 1/4" diameter that connect each air bag to a separate 'fill connector' on the side wall or in some other location. this is where you fill it with the pump. They are separate and operate in parallel with the shocks. It's not that hard to trace down a leak. You should not have to stop and fill every 4 hours. Get a soap solution in a spray bottle, pump up the bags to like 50 psi or so and start spraying around. First place to check is the schrader bicycle type fill valve. These go bad over time and are very easy to replace. The valve part screws out and you put a new one in. I had to do that recently to one of mine that started leaking. If that's not it start spraying and looking for bubbles. Then you know what to fix. Hopefully it's just a tubing connection somewhere. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tstockma Posted September 4, 2019 Author Share Posted September 4, 2019 Thanks, I'll look for leaks instead of just replacing the bags. If it is the bags, sounds like I'll have to eyeball those & try to suss out exactly what they are. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ctgriffi Posted September 4, 2019 Share Posted September 4, 2019 If you’ve got the actual “Air Lift” brand bags, there’s plenty of info on this forum about them. Lifetime guarantee on the bags themselves, and they don’t make you jump through many hoops to get the replacements. Swapping out bags is pretty straightforward too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tstockma Posted September 5, 2019 Author Share Posted September 5, 2019 (edited) NICE. I'll be taking a very close look at the kit on mine & hope I can ID the brand. Edited September 5, 2019 by tstockma clarity Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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