How to Replace Front Air Springs on 1963-99 P30 Motorhome RV Chassis 

This type of knowledge will earn more than my money ... respect and services....

The best tool I found for cutting out the old bags is about a 12" long serrated butcher knife. I started out with a razor knife on the first one, trying to work my way around it and having to move back and forth in front of and then behind the wheel. I eventually got the first bag out but I thought there had to be a better way, then I got the idea to use a butcher knife on the second bag. It easily sliced completely through the bag at each opening in the coil spring from one side without having me having to move back and forth around the wheel or remove the wheel. After slicing the bag completely through at each opening of the spring, I was able to pull a little of it through the coil spring, cut through the ribbon with the knife, and then pull it out the vice grips. Using that method, I got the second one out in less than 15 minutes completely from one side of the coil spring.

I did mine a few months back. It was by far the most physically demanding job I've done to date on our 94. It took me two days to get over it lol. Well done on another great video for the P30 owners.

Thanks very much.I have a '96 Cruisemaster on a P30 chassis.This is helpful.I live in Wales,UK,and will get this job done.I have the valve to pump up the bags already in the waste hatch,it's showing 70 psi,but bags must be original ones.WD 40,good idea.Thanks for that GARGANTUAN EFFORT👍

I applaud your skill and determination young man

You are so talented! I came across this video looking how to install a radiator on a 454. Idk how it brought me to this but the fast forward in the video cracked me up. Ha! Maybe I'll need this in the future, so I have subscribed.

Little classic music in the background like in the building lifts :-)

The reason those airbags are there in the first place is that the chassis manufacturer didn't know how the coach manufacturer would load the chassis. If you get a front axle weight at a truck scale, you can order springs that will be correct for any conceivable load you might put on the vehicle - without the need for air bags. Supersteer and others sell them, they're not terribly expensive, and removing the lower control arm is certainly not more of a hassle than trying to finesse airbags in and out of the springs.

Enjoyed Watching. Interesting!!!

Use a sawzall with a long blade to cut out the old bag! Better than any knife

I saw another guy replacing the same Air bags in his. He heated them up with close to boiling water and then rolled it up like a sausage and ziptied it in that shape. They he just slid it right in clipping the zipties as it went in. Just another option. I am getting ready to replace both my rear and front air bags. Going to be fun.

Thanks for sharing

Thank you so much, i saw a comment about using a moving car to deflate the bags before inserting them. Is that safe? Having a hell of a time trying to fold these over by hand.

Thanks for a very good video on this project. Will be doing ours on our P32 chassis hopefully tomorrow. By the way.... I see you did not put the blue plastic spacer piece on the tops.... did you forget???

what was the total time to complete the total installation? do you think a 75 yr old man can do this job? or is it a job for a much younger buck?

Foreshadowing: maybe you should think about replacing the back ones too. :P

Might be a good time to change the swaybar and bushings as well. Looks a little beat up and loose

like the chroom wheels

I got rid of mine totally. I put in heavier springs and got rid of the bags. I got tired of changing them.

May as well fix the exhaust manifolds as long as you're at it ;)

How to do your headlights I own a super chief also same year just a 27rq I put my new led headlights in and not turning on but I put the old one back and it's working the new ones check out as they are new and working to help me out thx

Class A Living hi did you know where can i find a vin number on fleetwood bounder 1989?

What brand Air Springs did you go with?

merci pour votre message et votre site de vente

When the Ads pop-up for jack etc . . did You do this or do they just pop-up on their own because they show up in the video? Thanx

I had a P30 chassis on my first motorhome. Worst chassis ever put under a motorhome. It is basically a chevy 1 ton pickup setup and I spent a lot of money trying to get it to drive well on the road. Never did.

I bet you’re videos are not being spread. Because they don’t want the new generation to see if they get a rv they own it and can modify it way better than a house. It’s our chance to. E owners instead of renters

i am not looking forward to doing this....... just purchased the same airbags last night, will probably put it off until spring, man that does not look like any fun at all. thanks for sharing

😂👏👏👏👏👏👍👌 how bout rear ? LoL 🤣

Hello I just saw your video jais me also a camping car a pass aroow I am french and I would like to buy two air damper at you in amerique but I do not know how to do and I do not address if possible maider I thank you in advance cordially

Options: 1. Brake bleed vacuum then attach hose and pump the air out of the bags. 2. Use radiator hose clamps 3 & 4in type. Slip over bag then use drill to close them down in size to slip thru hole.

If you tie your 2 air lines together with a tee you will have 1 fill valve but more important you'll have always equal pressure in both airbags

Thanks! Great video that allows us to see all involved. Will tackle this when needed.

This is a great video.You save me a lot of money by showing how to do this!!!

🇷🇺👍👍👍👍👍👍

I highly recommend AirLift brand bag system as keep 5lbs min at all times and lifetime warranty. They have very helpful staff to answer questions too. #AirLift

Better and quicker (instead of zip ties) use radiator worm hose clamps (4). Just get the appropriate worm clamps that will size down enough so the bag slips thru the opening.

Im getting ready to do this on my fleetwood thanks for posting

It would be nice to find a set of air shock's for the front..the springs are to light for the RV,,they do make a set of heavy duty springs you can replace to eliminate the bags,,the air shock's and the air bags would compliment each other so I'm searching for air shock's as well..if it was a newer RV I would change the springs..I may at some point on my 95 winni..I'm looking in to it..I think springs are a few 100. And not as easy to change as the bags but it's a one time deal with the springs...no more bags,,,I have changed springs in the past on vehicle's it's not all that technical either...just a little more work...I didn't see him re install the spacers,,I think he will be doing this again soon.....they will get cut and leak with out the spacers in place...so make sure you re install them correctly guys..I watched this twice he didn't put the spacers back in ... SMH...he will be doing this again soon...a little rtv or whether stripping adhesive works well to keep spacers in place... during install...read the instructions guys...a few times and pay attention to what ur doing...

Great Video Nice Job On That !! I have a 97 National Rv Having issues with Auto Park Brake Light On While Driving.

In 1951 Milwaukee invented the reciprocating saw, commonly called a saws-all ???

Thank you. Geart video. I'll be doing this shortly. Appreciate your help.

I have 82 Chieftain on P30. Question. What made you change the front springs? and How was the ride after being replaced? Thanks and great videos!!

What are two big springs going to the spindle

Very good video. I just bought an older Damon Challenger (P30) and I've been redoing everything upfront. I was changing shocks when I saw that my bags were rotted out. Thanks for some much-needed info!

Fiddly

I just pulled mine out,, second go round,,,I don't cut them just fight them out,,takes about an hour or so..no need to remove tiers,, deflate new bag install cap to keep deflated,,, twist it up in there I don't use zip ties,, little lube helps,,glue that spacer back on top of air bag when half way installed so it's in the right position.. fight it the rest of the way in ,,, install bottom spacer,,,ur done,,inflate to , proper PSI ,,,ur done. it's a bit of a ball buster but not all that technical of a job,,,my line's are in front ,,,iv done this twice in ten years,,,on my winni,,,good luck guys..

Legal 👍 it would be great to have one of those air bags here 😂

good job

I noticed you only have one shock on each side. I have a total of 3 on each side of my front..Do you have a p30 chassis or is this uncommon? For the p30 chassis

the green fix a flat works great on these and is a quick easy fix

Great job, I just bought a 87 Vouge with P30 chassis, rear air bags are trash and will be replacing them and front spring like you did in your video. I would ask that on the parts you got as replacement to tell us where you got them from and what the price range are. Again Thanks for your help. It save thousands of dollars if you know how to DIY. 5 STAR Video. Joe from Drums Pa.

I just received my air bags the other day and the heat shield for the starter. I like removing the wheel, when I got under mine I could see the work area was going to be cramped with the wheel on. I am going to try to make 2 videos one for the starter and one for the airbags. Too bad there are only 24hrs in a day.

Just did this on my 1997 Winnebago Adventurer about a month ago

A different RU-vid poster with the same P-30 chassis Winnebago separated the lower ball joint and removed the springs to make the installation. Way more work. Glad to know the air assist bags can be installed this way. I'll be doing mine this summer -- I have the exact same Winnebago, year, color, length etc. My paperwork says mine is equipped with an anti-sway feature -- that inflates/deflates the bags according to lean at speed. I need to look into that. Concerned about the upper spacer that seemed to be omitted. You say it wouldn't fit? Also glad you didn't slice open a finger with the razor knife -- it looked close a few times.

Would it not be easier to take lower or upper ball joint off and take the coil spring out..??

I have watched several of these videos on replacing these airbags, and I haven't seen a single one that shows how to get the top spacer in place. I have a 1988 Dolphin and I am doing this replacement now but I can't figure out how to get the top spacer in!

I'm just curious as to the dual spring set up on your lower control arms. Can you explain them?