Video Transcript for Pacbrake Alpha Air Bag Suspension Kit Review and Comparison

Hello, neighbors, it's Brad here from eTrailer, and today, we're taking a look at the Pacbrake line of rear suspension airbags. Now, there's a bunch of brands out there that we carry, and that could be Firestone or Air Lift traditionally, and I've installed tons of them. Pacbrake is fairly new to eTrailer, and I'm excited to tell you this is an awesome option. And I'm gonna show you why I think this might be a fantastic option for your truck. And even when you compare with those other ones, there's things that make Pacbrake stand out that I think might become my favorite. Now, if you've heard the name Pacbrake before, it's potentially from a lot of commercial trucking.

They've done engine brakes and exhaust brakes and have been around for a long time. And part of that is gonna be the airbag systems. Just like your Firestone and Air Lift that you find on semi-truck, Pacbrake is gonna be from that commercial aspect. So you know that it's been tried and true in heavy duty applications. And here we have three different styles of what they offer.

With the SD, you will get 1800 to 2000 pounds of load leveling in either sleeve style or in-coil bags. With the HD, you'll get 5,000 pounds of load leveling with either single or double convoluted bags and an internal jounce bumper. With the XD, you'll get 7,500 pounds of load leveling, double convoluted bags, and internal jounce bumpers. Now, as far as different styles, it depends on really your application of your vehicle and the height necessary. So here, we have a double convoluted.

That's pretty common that you'll see in a lot of different airbags. You have your roll plates and really, really nice brackets, something that's unique. These are all from different vehicles, and all of their brackets are extremely thick. They feel really good, and they have this hammered powder coat finish that looks really good and generally will hold up to chips, scratches and rust long-term. Now, with that being said, all these brackets are custom-fit to vehicles, so they're gonna be a bolt up application.

With that, are you gonna get anything different from those other brands that are out there Well, yes and no. I mean, at the end of the day, you're really getting airbag suspension and brackets to bolt up to your vehicle, but it's the little touches that I've noticed so far with the Pacbrakes that really make it a nice option. I got our Pacbrake airbags installed on our Tundra and I'm here to tell you that installation's probably not gonna be much different from other brands, but really what it comes down to is all of the touch points that I handled while putting this in place, very nice. Instructions we inchesre very thorough, the hardware was really good, the airlines we inchesre really good. So I have zero complaints. I'm not gonna say that if you go with Pacbrake, you're gonna have an easier installation. I don't think that's the case. I think it's definitely dependent on which vehicle you have. And that brings me up to another point. As you're looking for airbags, whatever brand it may be, make sure you're using our fit guide to get the specific fit to your vehicle, because many times, there's gonna be variances on trims or years, and it really can make a huge difference because these are custom fit. Now, this was a no drill application. I did cut some U bolts, and I didn't necessarily have to, but I wanted to get it a little bit cleaner-looking under here. And the reason those we inchesre so long is because they're separate brackets for those other years of trucks. So this is a wide range of them on this one, and they account for all of that. Little things like having a new clamp for your e-brake bracket. That way, it's not rubbing against everything is, again, them really doing the R&D, installing it, and putting themselves in the end user like you in their shoes. And that way, you get a really great system overall. So overall, when it comes to the installation, probably not gonna notice a huge difference, but I'm pretty happy with this. I did use the included tubing cutters and they worked fantastic. In fact, better than the one that I have, which probably needs to replace the blades. So this makes a huge difference, because really, the only connection points that I had to check for leaks we inchesre at the bottom on our air fitting. So as long as you tighten down the air fitting, it really comes down to getting a clean cut. And again, they didn't have to include this, but this keeps you from having to go out and guess or get a blade or whatever it may be. You have to go purchase that and hope that you made a clean cut. This does a really good job. And it's the little things like this that make Pacbrake I think stand out. Just thinking about the end consumer, Pacbrake does little stuff like this that really makes me think that they do care. There's a sticker that you can put in the door that has the replacement part for your spring. If you we inchesre to ever have these wear out, which these are a wear item. After multiple years in heavy use and especially in some Midwest weather like we have here, eventually, they can wear out. That's something to look at is their warranty. It's really good. But also, if you ever needed to replace that, you could take a look at this sticker. Instructions, it's really straightforward. There's pictures and it all makes sense. So that's another thing too. Generally, airbags aren't that hard of an installation, no matter what brand you get, but having concise and clear instructions will make it that much easier. So obviously, if you've landed on this page, you've probably already decided that you wanted airbags and you maybe considering Pacbrake over some of the other competitors. And I'm here to tell you that at the end of the day, I've had great luck with all of them, and all of them can be used with any air compressor that you wanna pick from any manufacturer, 'cause at the end of the day, you're just tapping into that same quarter inch airline tube. So why would you choose Pacbrake over the others I mean, it really comes down to personal preference. If you have a brand loyalty over one or the other, that's completely up to you. I didn't really know about Pacbrake until I started working here and we brought these on. We've had a few people install them and they had nothing but good things to say. And really, it comes down for us, ease of installation and all the touch points. When I see that these brackets have that hammered powder coat finish and it looks really good, that stands out to me. And a lot of that might come down to it's made and built in the USA. If you're looking at airbags and you've looked at all the different brands and Pacbrake is just one that there's not a whole lot of content on yet because we've just brought them on, hopefully, this video kind of helps maybe be a deciding factor for you, because at the end of the day, if I was to get airbags on my vehicle, Pacbrake might be the one that I look at first. And it really comes down to looking at prices between all of 'em. That's gonna be up to you. They tend to be pretty close to each other and maybe even a little bit under some of the other brands. And seeing all the fit and finish, all the quality features on it, I think Pacbrake is gonna be a huge great addition to your vehicle and to eTrailer. So if you're on the fence and you're not sure what this brand is and if it's gonna be the same as your Firestone and Air Ride, which you've heard of before, I'm here to tell you, you're gonna be equally, if not more happy with your new airbag setup.