Airide springs can reduce your costs and increase your profits.
- Last at least twice, and as much as four times longer than steel springs
- Require little or no maintenance
- Increase life of tires and brake linings
- Substantially reduce breakage and maintenance of other vehicle components, including electrical, air conditioning, cab mounts, exhaust, chassis, seals, wiring and drive train
- Let you haul anything; eliminate expensive deadheading runs
- Reduce driver discomfort and dangerous fatigue; improve driver safety, productivity and loyalty
- Allow perfect load equalization between axles; let you run at the maximum legal limit
- Provide smoother ride for payload, reducing costly insurance claims and the expense of overpackaging
- Pay you back at trade-in time; trucks and trailers with air suspensions are worth more
- 100% of all air spring assemblies are pressure tested before they leave Firestones factory.
- 2 year / 200,000 mile warranty.
- Firestone is the original designer of composite pistons.
- Firestone rubber compounds have superior 'flex' range through temperatures of -65 F to 135 F.
Air Spring Components
Inside the World’s No. 1 Air Spring:
Airide springs are available in single, double and triple convolution types plus reversible sleeve models for virtually every conceivable heavy-duty vehicle suspension application.
1) Stud - Manufactured as a permanent part of the bead plate assembly for maximum strength and durability. Used to attach the spring to the vehicle’s suspension.
2) Combo Stud - Serves the dual purpose of mounting the spring to the suspension and providing an entrance for air.
3) Blind Nut - Also a permanent part of the bead plate assembly. Provides an alternative mounting system to the stud.
4) Air Fitting - Usually 1/4 N.P.T. Provides an air entrance to the bellows.
5) Bead Plate - Crimped onto the bellows at the factory for a more durable design and maximum quality control. Allows 100% leakproof testing prior to shipment.
6) Bellows - The 'air bag' includes four plies of material: an inner layer, two plies of cord-reinforced fabric, and an outer cover. Natural rubber construction provides functional properties to –65F.
7) Bumper - A solid rubber or engineered plastic device designed to prevent significant damage to the vehicle or suspension in the event of a sudden loss of air pressure in the spring.
8) Piston - Provides a lower mounting arrangement for the air spring. Controls the characteristics of the spring under changing pressure loads.
9) Piston Bolt - Attaches the piston to the bellows. Sometimes extended as a means of attaching the spring to the vehicle suspension.
10) Girdle Hoop - A wire-wound ring molded into the bellows to provide lateral stability in convoluted type springs.
Composite Piston - Firestone offers a composite fiberglass reinforced plastic piston into its reversible sleeve Airide springs for bus suspensions.
These pistons are manufactured from a high percentage, glass filled thermosetting resin using stateof-the-art SMC technology. Compared to conventional steel or aluminum pistons, they are lighter, more impact-resistant, and impervious to atmospheric corrosion, water, salt, and ice-melting chemicals, plus their smooth non-porous surface finish virtually eliminates the buildup of harmful dirt and grit. This allows the rubber bellows of the air spring to last much longer due to significantly reduced wear as the bellows flexes up and down the smooth piston. At temperatures as low as -40°F, the new pistons are 100% functional.
Common Applications for Firestone Air Bags
Firestone Airide springs make big differences on heavy duty trucks and trailers in many ways.
Primary Trailer Suspension Air Springs provide outstanding cargo protection while reducing maintenance problems caused by road shock and 'trailer hop' when empty. Trailers last longer and can be used to haul a wider variety of cargo, reducing expensive empty trailer miles.
Lift Axle Air Springs allow you to lift the axle without ever leaving the cab. Saves tire wear under empty or partial load conditions and lets you negotiate tight corners with spread tandems.
Drive Axle Air Springs substantially improve the ride and handling of the tractor, resulting in greater driver comfort and safety, less tractor maintenance, longer tire wear and higher trade-in value. They require little maintenance and last more than twice as long as steel springs.
Front Axle Air Springs significantly improve steering and handling while improving tire wear and reducing problems caused by cab vibration.
Cab Mount Air Springs eliminate most problems experienced with standard cab mounts and help reduce damaging cab vibration.
Seat Air Springs increase driver comfort and help alleviate hazardous driver fatigue.
About Airride Springs
Although air springs are produced in single, double and triple convoluted and reversible sleeve styles, only those manufactured by Firestone Industrial Products Company bear the trademark 'Airide'.
Airide springs were pioneered and perfected by Firestone, and only Firestone offers a complete line of Airide springs, with replacement springs available for virtually every vehicular air suspension system. Today, Airide springs are used by practically all manufacturers who offer air suspension on their vehicles.
While it may appear simple, an air spring is actually a highly sophisticated and complex product. Even slight changes in design, methods of construction, or materials used can make vast and significant differences in performance.
It makes good sense to specify Airide springs by Firestone. That trade name on an air spring guarantees you the benefit of the very latest technical developments and improvements. It is your assurance of a product not only engineered and perfected to perform, but which also has a long history of superior performance in actual use.
Air Bag Identification Tips
Replacing worn out or broken air springs? Need help indentifying which air springs or air bags you need for your heavy duty truck, trailer or bus suspension? Review this air spring identification guide, or call 1-800-358-4751 to speak to a firestone air spring specialist.