Towing - What other upgrades?

@Plain Taco I have a Grand Design 17MKE that is probably 5100 lbs. the Roadmaster is fantastic. My truck TRDOR rides better empty with the setup too.

 

i am a KDMAX Pro tuner and it is great for towing. 5100 lb grand design 17MKE.

 

I have an appt set up for the KDmax next week!

 

thank you all for your very helpful responses. I will definitely be purchasing the Redarc brake controller after reading so many great things about it.

 

great! You will love it!! Like getting a brand new truck.

 

Does anyone have info on the KD Max tune you speak of?
How much does it set you back?

 

tuner local to me is charging $375. I think that's about average...?

 

Check with you local tuner
https://kdmaxprotuning.com/

or pm
@PapaRee or @TWTaco

 

Thanks I will check it out for that price!
When I first got this truck the power was not impressive. But when we started pulling the whale tail around at 6000 miles. This V6 started to come alive when it was not towing. I guess that proves the old saying,”if you want it to run good break it in hard.”

 

From the Taco Manual-
● If the gross trailer weight is over the unbraked TWR, trailer service

brakes are required.

● If the gross trailer weight is over 2000 lb. (907 kg), a sway control

device with sufficient capacity is required.

● If the gross trailer weight is over 5000 lb. (2268 kg), a weight distributing

hitch with sufficient capacity is required.

We have a T@B 400BD camper that weighs around 3500 pounds, so I installed the Andersen WDH for the excellent sway control. We also have Summo springs, the black ones which do stiffen the ride. I think the blue springs would do, and soften the ride. Our Curt Echo brake contoler is working well and was easy to set up with a cell phone app. Our ride over our last 2300 miles has been solid.

 

I couldn’t decide on which suspension boost kit to use, it seemed that they all had their +&-.
I don’t really like using Amazon, but in the spring of 2020 they put the Firestone air bag kit on sell for 270.00. I bounced on it for this price, and have had no regrets.
I am not sure if the onboard air compressor would worth the price, just to pump up the air bags?
Anyone have comments about them?

 

Love that compressor. I have one in my garage.

 

Yes I would recommend this air compressor, hook it up, set the pressure you want, and hit the go button.
Also I a have 10 year old DeWalt drill/driver, this one was their first version of the 20 volt line. Back then they made a solid drill/driver, I dropped the drill in the lake about six years ago and it is still going strong. I carry this for the RV jacks, and it is great that it uses the same battery as the compressor.
Here is a picture of the hair ball that occupies the rear section.

 

You've made a good choice. Towing my 2800lb pop up is very noticeably different with the KDMax tune.

 

I’ve got

• Reese WDH hitch
• Firestone airbags and onboard compressor for on the fly adjustment from an app
• OVtuned
• Redarc trailer brake controller (amazing company, I will forever be a customer. Genuinely the best customer service I’ve ever experienced.)

I do shit tons of towing and hauling, so the airbags have been my favourite mod thus far. Nothing like being able to level out the truck and determine how stiff you want the suspension on the press of a phone screen.

(Some pics are pre airbag hence the squat. Truck is perfectly level with bags.)

 

What a face! GOOD dog!

 

I checked out your thread, but still have a question. Where is the compressor located? Any info on the kit?
My problem is that when the air bags pumped up to >50psi,(where there is less bouncing). The ass end of the truck is jacked up and drops the rear of the camper too low. This runs the danger of dragging the sewer outlet when going in or out of parking lots. Being able to change air bag pressure on the fly may have more benefits, than I thought.

 

50psi?!? The bags I have are rates for 10k of payload lbs and max pressure on them is 80 lol. I’ve never needed more than 30, and that was with about 1500 lbs on the rear end.

Compressor is mounted on the firewall, will take a picture when I’m outside.

 

I can tow with the bags set as low as 25psi OK, but I have learned that when set that low. It leads to porpoising when crossing bridges or such with our heavy camper. When the bags are at 40psi it is like the bags react to the bounce first, then the WDH will react slightly behind the bags. It seems best to get them to stage their reaction. So at 50psi there is almost no porpoising at all, but it makes the rear of the trailer too low. Works great on the highway, but need to be very careful going in parking lots. Maybe convenient to be able to change pressure on the fly. The only downside that I can see, it is one more thing for my old ass to keep in mind.

 

I may need to clear up some confusion here. Last year we had to have the black water tank in our RV replaced. The repair shop used a non OEM tank, and this resulted in the sewer outlet being relocated. It went from behind the rear wheel to just in front of the rear stabilizer jack, and it was left hanging too low also. So now we have a sewer line hanging about 10 inches below the jack,(as if the jack wasn’t low enough already). This repair job was a complete sh*t show from start to finish.