Considering a 2021 RAM 350 with Cummins diesel

^^^ A screenshot of that could come in handy, in the future.

Was glancing at a hot shot Superduty and saw he had some type of trailing link/arm mounted to the front hanger, which ran across the top of the axle and dropped straight down behind and then horizontal. On the horizontal was a sleeve-type airbag between it and the frame rail. I’ve not seen an air ride system so robust, before. Looked very much like a Class 8 design and was pretty slick.

 

Ugh, That's the one. Yes "robust" to the point of total overkill, and the reason is surprising* But real trailing arm suspension is rad! I'm building my '57 chassis like this right now:


Designing a kit like that Kelderman one (using the existing front leaf spring hanger mounts as the forward pivot for a trailing arm type suspension), means there are three, MAJOR (and unavoidable), geometry issues:

1) The link arm has to be much too short. Action/re-action. Because that lever is so short, I has a very strong force, opposite to wheel torque. Accelerate and the arm pushes up HARD, uncontrollably raising the rear. Brake, and the arm twists down on that mount, yanking down on the rear, pulling up on the rear tires, lessening traction when you need it most. The longer the arm, the less the force, thats why real trailing arms are long.

2) The arms are parallel as seen from the top. See how functional trailing arm suspension like that sweet Class 8 truck has the arms that get closer in the front (like a capital A)? It allows the rear end to work independently without binding. Parallel trailing arms are literally trying to twist the arms and your rear axle like a Twizzler with every left or right bump

2A) If you try to loosen that shit design enough to make it work independently (with big, sloppy bushings etc), those parallel arms will now cause the rear axle to point left and right (as seen from above), steering the rear of the vehicle towards the high tire.

2B) Don't even get me started on that super short pan-hard rod. As your rear axle is now forced into a non-independent locked position, lets make sure is has to sweep left and right over every bump

*The 'solution' is to make those arms as fantastically overbuilt as possible, eliminating any independent rear suspension motion, only leaving #1 as an issue to band-aid with massively overvalved shocks. And beat bushings/rod ends into submission just after the warranty expires.

True trailing arm suspension that works (i.e. class 8 truck, 67-72 C-10 Chevy, NASCAR, etc) is very, very, different than that kit. Air assist/air suspension can be very effective as well but I think I'm well past the de-rail limit on this thread.



TL;DR
No.

 

No problems here at 193k miles.

 

$170K setups aren’t included.

 

If you throw some of the inside the coil air bags helpers...you'll love them. They'll get the ass end back up to normal height, which will put the right amount of weight on the front wheels, and help with steering, braking, and tow quality. They were an inexpensive, simple and quick install, and the best thing I've done for towing my 6x12.

 

I actually have them, but they weren’t pumped up in this pic. Best $100 I ever spent.

 

No troubles at 214,000. YMMV.

 

They are great. Here’s my daily/ Baja chase megacab. I miss my super duty keypad and mirrors. This truck, to be fair, has quite a few suspension upgrades and never runs out of urea-water. The difference in interior quality from gen 3 to 5 is significant. The Cummins Aisin combo is better than the ford/ford combo, especially the exhaust brake. With the “performance exhaust tip” it sounds so awesome coming down western passes with the toy hauler. Easily holds 35mph down Stevens pass with 15k trailer and 0 brake applications.

 

Carli life!

 

Hell yeah. The dominator install is a lot of work. It was odd to start cutting and welding on a brand new truck in my driveway, but hillbilly deluxe is my motto.

 

The average person has no idea what that truck is capable of. To them, you just have a lift kit. Haha.

 

I prefer it somewhat stealth.

I started ripping some fire road up near mt st helens. It’s totally inappropriate how fast that thing can move over roughy ground. I’m not saying it’s a prerunner, but it’s a massive truck to be going that fast. Axle trusses would be needed next and I have no desire to go that hard. It’s really just so we can get around Baja and not bottom out all the time.

 

Here is one of the HD Cummins for sale. I didn't read any of the comments, If you are interested and haven't played on BAT before, the price seems low now, but they jump towards the end. Also at the very end, once under 2 minutes, the auction automatically resets to 2 minutes after a bid, so there is no sniping.

https://bringatrailer.com/listing/2007-dodge-ram-13/

 

We prefer the term Hillbilly Fabulous.

You know living in a trailer worth 18,000 but driving 80k of 4x4 diesel and payday loans to fill dat bitch up

 

I have a buddy, original owner, selling his 2012 (last year before DEF) 2500. I think he has 90k miles, old mans hunter top, black everything, and best part is he had it rhino lined all the way around since new, doors inside and out, hood, fenders, etc, and the rhino is paint matched. I'd buy it myself but it's a short bed and not a 3500

No crashes, and he's an engineer at Caterpillar and his wife is an engineer at Cummins so you can guess how well it's been taken care of

 

A couple 50 foot chains over the top to the front bumper should get you home lol.

 

Ram 3500 w/dump bed for sale.

 

Obviously recycled steel from Toyota Tacomas went into that frame…

 

Tie-downs, rachet straps, zip-ties, duct tape and safety wire...duh.