Magnetic Ride Control on '15 Tahoe LTZ

[mjpopp]

Thanks for the help. I will talk to my dealer. I am not a car tech guy so this is beyond my scope of what I thought was possible. Will let you know the results.

 

[mjpopp]

Anybody trade for 18's instead of 20's?

 

[ae1m]

I crawled under a bunch of Tahoes and Escalades trying to get codes to help decide what springs to change to. All the LTZ's as well as Escalades with trailer option that I looked at had the air shocks. The air suspension is incorporated into the shock. Look at the top of the rear shock on your Tahoe and you will see (or feel) the air bag. They all had electromagnetic front shocks with air assist in back. Now I am curious because it appears you lose the electromagnetic feature in the rear shocks if you opt for the max trailer package with air shock. I didn't check for any electrical connections on those air shocks. It would be interesting to compare the ride of a standard LTZ against the ride of one with the max trailer option which has increased capacity springs and air shocks.

When comparing ride quality, another factor would be the tire size. The 18" tires have a bigger sidewall to compress than the lower profile 20" or 22" tires. The 18' tires might not look as nice but should give a better ride.

The Z71 does not offer the max trailer package but has fancy looking red shocks that of course don't have the air bag. They have the better 3.42 axle ratio but don't offer the electric brake control. Of course manually filled air shocks could easily be added inexpensively for trailering. Adding the factory electric brake might be pricey but universal units to mount below the dash are available. The Z71 also has neat chrome steps and a sexy grill #22936488 that carries a whopping list price of $644.

Question on your post here. You mention the Z71 is not available with the max trailer package, but IS available with the 3.42 axle. This doesnt make sense to me, the owners manual says vehicles with the 3.42 can tow over 8000lb, with the 3.08 only 6500. So why would the 3.42 axle be offered WITHOUT the max trailer pkg? Did I miss something?

Bob

 

[RiverRunner]

Anybody trade for 18's instead of 20's?

I have factory 20's on mine. I don't feel or hear them making a difference on my ride. I would only change for 18's if I used it off road, they would be better for off road, especially here in Eastern Arizona, lots of sand and rocks.

 

[73Vetteman]

Question on your post here. You mention the Z71 is not available with the max trailer package, but IS available with the 3.42 axle. This doesnt make sense to me, the owners manual says vehicles with the 3.42 can tow over 8000lb, with the 3.08 only 6500. So why would the 3.42 axle be offered WITHOUT the max trailer pkg? Did I miss something?

Bob

The 3.42 also functions as a performance ratio - needed for off road use. It makes a significant difference in acceleration, just like performance ratios in the older muscle cars and to me is mandatory for my vehicles.
The springs included with the trailer package are significantly stiffer and that contributes to the additional capability of the trailer rating. I would assume air bags in the rear springs (if needed) would give you the ability to handle the extra tongue weight and you would have the same pulling power of the 3.42 ratio. Then you would have the best of both worlds without a rough ride.

 

[RiverRunner]

The 3.42 also functions as a performance ratio - needed for off road use. It makes a significant difference in acceleration, just like performance ratios in the older muscle cars and to me is mandatory for my vehicles.
The springs included with the trailer package are significantly stiffer and that contributes to the additional capability of the trailer rating. I would assume air bags in the rear springs (if needed) would give you the ability to handle the extra tongue weight and you would have the same pulling power of the 3.42 ratio. Then you would have the best of both worlds without a rough ride.

There are no springs on the Max Trailer package, just air bags that automatically level the vehicle based when adding a load. That package also includes integrated trailer brake controller, and the 3.42 axle.

 

[73Vetteman]

No Springs????

There are no springs on the Max Trailer package, just air bags that automatically level the vehicle based when adding a load. That package also includes integrated trailer brake controller, and the 3.42 axle.

Not sure what you were trying to say by "There are no springs on the Max Trailer package, just air bags". The Max trailer option, in addition to the brake controller, 3.42 ratio, and auto level system adds stiffer front and rear springs to some vehicles. I crawled under several Tahoes and Escalades to check spring codes. I found that code AAS2 rear springs were used on late built LTZ and Escalades. AAS3 springs were used on Suburbans and XL's. LS and LT vehicles had different springs than used on LTZ versions and LS and LT trailer springs were different than without that option.

The auto leveling system utilizes a form of air bag surrounding a portion of the rear shock absorber to provide up to 1,000 pounds extra lifting to help support the additional weight of a heavy trailer tongue. The air lift shock absorber has been around for over 50 years and came as standard original equipment on my 1964 El Camino and an option on my 1969 GTO. Air shocks and manual hose kits are probably available for our SUV's since they are for other vehicles.

Air bags are a very different device that is installed inside of a coil spring and adds even greayer lifting ability. They are available for Tahoe/Yukons as they are for most vehicles. I am not aware of any optional air bags offered by GM but aftermarket bags are available.

A plug and play brake controller combined with Air bags or an air shock kit and should make a fine towing combination for any Z71 vehicle.

 

[RiverRunner]

I wasn't "Trying to say there are no springs on the Max Trailer package, just air bags" I did say that and I'm wrong. I looked again and yes, I'm wrong. Thanks for correcting me.