Too much rise?

Scaler1

A newbie looking for a bit more advice. My tow vehicle is a 2016 Toyota Tacoma TRD Sport crew cab. I’ve added Pacbrake airbags to the rear suspension, and am currently using a 2” rise ball mount. My trailer is a 2021 320S Boondock. Last trip, with truck and trailer loaded up, the trailer was sitting level but the rear of the truck had dropped 1”. What I’m wondering is, whether I should switch to a 0” ball mount and use the airbags to level the truck, or is this a negligible amount of settling that I needn’t worry about? Or am I overthinking my situation? TIA for your thoughts…

Verna

The purpose of the airbags is to lift the rear of your Tacoma, as Tacoma’s tend to “squat” when towing. Add enough air to compensate for the 1” drop. When finished, the Tacoma snd your 320 should form a perfectly straight line, as measured from level ground. 

Scaler1

Yes, I had the airbags installed knowing of the Tacoma’s rep for having a soft rear end. However, as things sit now, so to speak, if I compensate for the rear end drop with the airbags then the trailer will be nose high, which I don’t think is desirable. Hence my question about using a zero rise ball mount, instead of the 2” rise, to allow me to use the airbags to level the truck without lifting the trailer nose too high. 

Verna

@Scaler1, you will need to measure how high your T@B is when level, subtract the 1” squat of your Tacoma, and if the difference is 0, then, yes, you will need to change the ball to be a straight 0 ball. If that is what it needs to be level, then you’re fine. Sometimes you just need to not overthink and just do the math to make reality appear.  

Beware, as you add cargo to your truck bed and cargo to your T@B, these measurements may change. Keep in mind that you will always have the same height from the ground for your T@B and the Tacoma’s ball has to match the T@B’s tongue.