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2,000-lb Capacity. Convert your vehicle's leaf springs into a mechanically active suspension system. RAS adjusts to your load to level your ride. The system also increases stability, handling, and control by improving traction and reducing sway.
Features:
Specs:
All-In-One Suspension System
When towing or hauling a heavy load, you may encounter a number of problems that can make your driving experience difficult or dangerous, such as sway, body roll, or bottoming out. When your vehicle is weighted down, your factory leaf springs can't counteract these problems to the extent that they are supposed to. The weight will overpower the leaf springs and cause them to twist or flatten out. When that happens, they cannot support, level, or stabilize your vehicle effectively. Additionally, because your factory leaf springs are passive, they won't begin to tackle problems such as sway until those problems have already started.
Roadmaster Active Suspension (RAS) kits enhance those passive leaf springs by converting them into a mechanically active, all-in-one suspension system. RAS kits have variable-rated coil tension springs that automatically adjust to your heavy load. Other suspension systems only solve a few problems and usually at the expense of other improvements your factory leaf springs may need. RAS, on the other hand, is a unique kit that provides everything you want in a suspension system without any trade-offs. It eliminates bottoming out like air springs, reduces sway and body roll like sway bars, keeps your ride level like helper springs, and improves traction and braking control like traction bars. This improves your vehicle's stability, handling, and control while you are towing or hauling, as well as when your vehicle is unloaded. RAS also makes your overall driving and towing experience safer and more comfortable, which greatly lessens driver fatigue.
Each RAS unit has a powerful variable-rated coil tension spring that converts your passive leaf spring into a mechanically-active system. Once your vehicle is loaded, the tension springs immediately activate to absorb and support the weight. This allows your leaf springs to maintain their bowed position and keeps them from flattening out or flipping over, which greatly hinders their ability to bear a heavy load. The tension springs are variable-rated, which means that the heavier your load is, the more assistance they provide to your leaf springs. Because of this design, RAS reacts instantaneously, whereas hydraulics, air springs, and other suspension systems take time to react. And unlike your factory leaf springs, RAS stops sway and sag before they even start to happen. Additionally, when your vehicle is unloaded, the tension springs disengage, allowing your leaf springs to perform as intended without hardening your ride. RAS won't hinder your leaf springs' movement, nor will it cause any friction between any of the brackets.
When under a heavy load, leaf springs are especially susceptible to axle wrap, which can cause wheel hop. Wheel hop is when the tires lose their grip on the road, causing a jarring, up-and-down movement. Axle wrap occurs when the circular motion of the tires cause the leaf springs to twist or rotate. If the leaf springs twist far enough, wheel hop can occur. RAS stabilizes your leaf springs by absorbing the force of the load they're trying to support. This eliminates axle wrap and wheel hop, as well as prevents your vehicle from bottoming out. Because of this, less strain is put on your vehicle. And by reducing some of this wear and tear, RAS helps extend the life of your leaf springs, shock absorbers, shackles, and even tires.
When driving along a curve while towing or hauling a heavy load, the back end of your vehicle or trailer can start to shift with that weight. If your factory leaf springs have flattened or twisted under this load, they won't be able to prevent it from shifting. Because of this, your trailer will sway away from your vehicle. This makes driving challenging and dangerous, as it increases the risk of body roll, which is when your vehicle drastically leans to one side. This can often cause you to completely lose control of your vehicle. Body roll is especially prevalent with multi-passenger vans and vehicles towing long campers, trailers, or boats. RAS provides a much safer ride by reinforcing your factory leaf springs and stabilizing your load. This helps prevent sway from occurring and reduces the chance of body roll while cornering, turning, and swerving. RAS also lessens the rocking motion that happens during windy conditions or when a semi passes by on the road.
When your vehicle is overloaded, the bulk of the weight transfers to the rear axle. Your factory leaf springs then become overwhelmed by this weight, as they are not strong enough to support it. This causes the back end of your vehicle to sag and the front end to rise, which means that the front tires have lost some of the grip they need with the road. In addition to loss of traction, it can also cause poor headlight aim, unintentional swerving, and an extremely bumpy and uncomfortable ride. RAS bolsters your factory leaf springs and enables them to provide support for your load without compromising ride quality or comfort. This keeps your ride level from front to back whether you are hauling a load in the bed or towing a boat, trailer, or camper. RAS also ensures that your tires have the traction they require while braking and accelerating, which improves the overall driving experience.
RAS is also customizable. During installation, the coil tension springs can be adjusted to 2 different tension settings or anywhere in between for improved road handling and support. To do this, rotate the springs while keeping the threaded rod still. As you turn the spring, use one of the 2 included spacers as a gauge to measure the widening gaps between the coils. In order for the RAS units to work as intended, you must tension the coils to a minimum of 25 percent with the 1mm white spacer and no more than 40 percent with the 2mm spacer. The springs can also be independently adjusted to compensate for off-center loads such as a handicap lift.
This custom-fit kit comes fully assembled and is easy to install. Each RAS unit simply bolts onto your factory leaf spring with the included hardware, and drilling, welding, and cutting aren't required. First, position the eye hook bracket so that it wraps around the top of the factory leaf spring eye. Then the axle bracket secures under the leaf spring and around the factory U-bolts on the other side of the leaf spring pack. Once the maintenance-free RAS units are fully installed, you won't need to monitor them as you would with air springs.
RAS is extremely durable and corrosion-resistant. The units are constructed of high-grade alloy steel, and they have an epoxy e-coat on the coil springs to provide extreme corrosion resistance. The brackets on the ends of each unit resist the effects of water and other elements, and they have a salt spray rating of more than 800 hours.
Average Customer Rating: 4.7 out of 5 stars (441 Customer Reviews)
2,000-lb Capacity. Convert your vehicle's leaf springs into a mechanically active suspension system. RAS adjusts to your load to level your ride. The system also increases stability, handling, and control by improving traction and reducing sway.I have a 2020 Silverado 1500 6 cyl Duramax with the Diesel Off Road package (3.73 diff). Travel trailer loaded is probably about 6,000 lb. I took several measurements during and after the spring kit installation. All measurements increased about an inch including the stock suspension with trailer and equalizer bars and with the spring kit installed at 1 mm spacing. A one inch improvement overall. I took the truck on a short drive and didn't notice any difference in ride (wasn't stiffer) which is what I wanted. Good to know that I can adjust the springs to the 2 mm spacing if I want to increase the suspension assist. Going camping next week and looking forward to see how it improves handling and porpoising.
Rick M - 03/27/2022The bed of the truck measured 37.5" with a tool box weighing 200 lbs. The truck felt weighed down with passengers weighing 600lbs. Total weight 800lbs with a tank full of gas. After the install the truck rides smoother and certainly " like new". The stopping distance and acceleration distance have shortened drastically. I'm planning on loading up the bed and the Roadmaster Active Suspension RAS4611. My wife even drive it and she could feel the difference. "It drives like a muscle car." Buy it. Install time at a reputable mechanic shop was a 30 min. Install. I received them today at 1 pm and got it installed at 3:00 pm and finished the install at 3:30pm. It's an investment worth the price over traditional air bag system. Mechanic installed this on 2011 Nissan Titan SV.
Sergio R - 08/13/2021 Sergio R - 08/16/2021
Overall, very happy with the product. GMC didn't have any way to improve the truck from squatting when I hooked up my trailer. This kit didn't stop the squatting but significantly reduced the bounce on bad dips in roads, bridge/road transitions and bad railroad crossings.
Installed this on my 2020 GMC 1500 Denali. The one thing I hated about my Denali was how much a small amount of weight made it squat. The Denali is meant for smooth ride not towing! These springs brought the back of my truck up by an inch. Truck doesn't squat when being "exuberant" leavin red lights. Ride quality when empty hasn't changed. These springs are AMAZING but, are not a cure for all your hauling needs! When I'm hauling my 1800lb side x side on my trailer they work great! Hauling my 4500lb tractor... Load stabilizer hitch still recommended!
2005 Silverado 1500 4x4. Best suspension upgrade including trying multiple shocks to cure rear hop and shake. Wish I had done this a decade earlier. Improved travel trailering stability as well.
I am on a Nissan titan 08. The roadmaster active suspension is really easy to install here for someone who has very little knowledge when it comes to stuff like this. I was able to do it on my own. I’ll write another review in a couple of months see how it works out here in the Coachella Valley California here we get to 123° weather sand storms so I’m gonna put it thru trials see how good it is.I own a landscaping company and I haul a lot of rock, and DG, boulders.
The RAS arrived on time and was super easy to install. It took my son and I about 45 minutes to install. It helps when you have all the right tools handy. The only thing I didn’t anticipate was the Allen wrench needed to reinstall the cross bolt in front of the leaf spring shackle. Fortunately, we had the right size on hand. So far so good. Haven’t had a chance to hook up to my RV yet. I’m optimistic it will take some stress off the leaf springs.
The install was straight forward, no lift so it took a couple hours, no problems following written directions. Drove my 2020 Silverado 1500/Diesel around and didn't notice any significant change in the unloaded ride. Very happy with the product, we'll see how it performs when I get my RV behind it.
installed them in 30 minutes. Super easy. Made a huge difference when towing my 8000 lb camper with my 1500 silverado
Ok well so ce I have put it on my truck I haven't haul a whole lot with extra weight but I did put a very heavy trailer on it and it did make a big difference in sag the ride is not affected by the system either glad I put in on my truck
I order these on Friday afternoon and I received them Monday afternoon. I had watched the clip on installation before ordering and it looked pretty easy. The installation instructions are very self explanatory and they were easy to install. From the time I starter until I had the tools picked up and put away it was about an hour and that was with taking a few phone calls. My initial ride after installing these was very good. I drove over a fairly rough road and tracks. My real test will come when I hook up to my trailer and load my tractor or car. I may have to readjust to a heavier setting but it is there if needed.
Installed on an 04’ Nissan KC w/tow package. Helped tremendously with towing my travel trailer and leveling my load even with spring bars. Highly recommend for heavy towing or on large loads.
This was by far one of the easiest installs that I have done in a while. The item shipped quickly and the instructions were very clear and concise. It took about 45 minutes total to install and the resulting handling performance exceeded my expectations, and I set the gap at 2mm. Thank you etrailer for another great product offering and an awesome buying experience.
Stacy is nice and helpful and easy to deal with. My order arrived sooner than expected, which was nice. I think this is my 4th purchase from etrailer. They are well stocked and the shipping is quick.
I installed this kit on a 2017 Nissan Titan and can be installed very easy. The handling on my truck has improved tremendously. I would recommend this product to everyone.
Bill - 06/29/2019These helper springs were easy to install and adjust-approximately 25 minutes total. I pull a trailer that has a tongue weight of about 625 lbs. and these helped reduce the squat and sway of the back end of my GMC 2500 pickup. I feel like they did what they were supposed to do and am happy with them. I think the only draw back is that it does lift the bed of the pickup up a little bit when not attached to the trailer which makes climbing in the back a little more difficult but the trade off is worth it.
Easy T - 03/30/2021I'm overall pretty happy with The RAS system. I added them to my service body work truck and what I like most is how it helps stabilize the vehicle in turns. I would definitely recommend. I haven't experienced any negative aspects since installing them.
Shipping was fast and item arrived damage free. Cannot comment on installation as I will not be doing that until end of April
Robert - 04/01/2022Works well for my application. I pull a 2 car enclosed trailer with a 01 GMC 2500hd with the 8.1L gas motor. Helps with axle wrap and the tongue weight of my trailer. Even when not pulling, they help with the ride quality.
This system doesn’t increase my trucks capacity but greatly improves handeling when I get close to capacity.
I've attached two pictures regarding the items I've recently purchased and installed upon my truck from etrailer.com
ordered on tuesday arrived on friday Free shipping that was fast. Installed on Saturday morning. after I got the truck on the Jackstands took all if 20 minutes to install. haven't towed anything yet going camping this coming weekend will report more, truck rides better unloaded that before, great customer service
They are great! Easily adjusts for the load I always carry in the back of my truck for work. No more sagging in the back with 700 to 800 pounds in the bed at all times. Put a trailer on the hitch and it even lower. Can be adjusted up or down as needed. Highly recommend.
Install was effortless I set to 20% have not put under a load yet. purchased for added stability pulling my flat bed trailer with my tractor. body roll is definitely better thank you.
Doing what it was intended. Easy to put on. Handles fine with it on there loaded or unloaded.
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