Hi,
I have a 99 Miriada 28Q Coachman class A. It has a Ford F53 platform. The ride is really ruff and I am looking for ways to attain a better ride if possible. I did install new Triangle radial tires 2 years ago and that was a small improvement.
I have had this motor home for 3 years. The front shocks look as if they may have been replaced at some point before I bought the RV. Was just wondering what improvements others have made to get a better ride? New shocks? what works best? Air bags with just a little air to help absorb some of the shake rattle and roll?
thanks
Steve B
4100 lb 8.872@ 156 MPH naturally aspirated
Square peg in a round hole is the way to go
Lots of good info on F53 suspension updates via search. Suggest besides this post, surf a bit, especially in the Greater Then One Year old section!
Easy by important basics (suspect you have done these):
-Try and get as much heavy weight towards the front as possible
-Four corner weight, the set the tire PSI based upon the tire manufacturers weight/PSI settings. (Many add a 'contingency' 5 extra PSI. (On our small 99 F53 Chassis, our fronts could have run at the lowest PSI setting for the Goodyears G670's.)
-Normal maintenance and replacements of bushings and tie rod holders. We went with urethane, as I wanted as much feel as possible.
After that, it's a matter of how much you want to spend. In order of least to most (I think, as I have not had this coach for a few years now):
-Shocks. The Koni FSD's on front, get lots of good feedback on this and other boards.
-Air Bags. The Firestones are not too expensive, but don't recall if they have front bags or not?
-The Kelderman (Keldermen?) system. Expensive, but if keeping the coach for the future, probably the best improvement on suspension.
I won't go int adding sway bars, pan hards bars, etc. As you mentioned a more comfortable ride, as opposed to wanting crisper handling. In any case, I'm a firm believer that the Safety-T-Plus is a good item to add. That extra bit of stability in a dangerous situation, may make all of the difference. (Blow outs. Dropping front tire off the shoulder of the road. Sudden shifting strong gusts of wind.)
Best ride improvement I made to my '99 Mirada was to SELL it.
Local truck suspension specialist shop couldn't understand how the cabinets hadn't ripped out of the walls!
Called Coachmen to be told "It's a Fedex delivery truck chassis, what do you expect?"
That did it for me!!
Keith J.
1999 Sunnybrook 27RKFS Fiver.
2005 GMC Sierra 2500HD CC/SB/DA 2WD, LBZ air cleaner, 52 gal Titan tank, Bilsteins, Line-X, Westin steps, Prodigy, Retrax cover, 16K Superglide, 5th-Airborne pin-box, Multi-vex mirrors, TST TPMS.
69gp,
Smitty gave you a great response. I was about to make all the same suggestions, he beat me to it. Yes, certainly get the weight of the coach, front and rear. On ours, a '99 Bounder 34V with a single slide and the F-53 Chassis, and V-10, the front end was a 7,000 lbs front axle. The rear, a 13,500 lb axle. With the coach completely full of fuel, water, equipment, everything, including two front passengers, the front end weighed, 5500 lbs. The back, was at 13,200 lbs.
So, as you can see, the front end, fully loaded, was not matched to the set of springs the factory placed on the coach. It would be like driving your car with truck springs on it. AIN'T HAPPENING! So, the smartest thing to do is match the vehicle weight to the coach GAWR as possible so the springs are working more. As it sat, the springs are not being compressed very much at all.
So what does all this mean to you, well you might have the same situation brewing. It's often said on this forum to throw a set of special shocks at it. Well, if and when you understand how shocks work, both compression and rebound operational characteristics, you have to know how the springs work too. The shocks simply control the amount of wheel hop, keep the wheels and tires on the ground, keep the coach from swaying too much and a bit more. But, adding shocks that have any "compression" resistance at all will only add to the stiffness that the springs are already providing because it's quite possible that your rig has much of the same weight distribution issues many of us have had.
I'm not saying a good set of Konis or the best set of Bilsteins won't be any good, but, the springs must be matched to the weight of intended load. Smitty suggested a "Kelderman" system. The Kelderman system is a complete new front suspension system for the F-53. You throw away those super stiff set of factory springs and install a lighter duty set, and a set of air bags to take up the slack. Those that have installed it, to my knowledge, are very, very happy with the system. The last time I checked, it's a bit pricey, around $2700-$3000.00 if I recall, could be off some.
But, first get it weighed with all the normal setup in it, including yourselves. Then, if you find you're lacking in weight in correlation with your front axle weight capability, then make whatever possible equipment changes you can, as Smitty suggested, by moving stuff forward so those springs are working correctly. Sometimes, as in my case, it's not possible to move enough weight forward to "work" those springs the way they're needed.
On ours, I ran the minimum amount of air in the front tires pressure I could, based on the chart for the tires I purchased, and keeping safety in hand etc.
Scott
Scott and Karla SDFD RETIRED
2004 Itasca Horizon, 36GD Slate Blue 330 CAT
2011 White Honda CRV EX-L,4WD w/NAV Toad 2008 Caliente Red LVL II GL 1800 Goldwing KI60ND
Keith and Scott pretty much said it all. The F53 chassis is designed for a wide range of applications and just happened that the coach builders saw a potential source of a chassis and built a house on it.
There are some minor changes you can do to help body sway but calming the ride is hit and miss. Better shocks will help to eliminate wheel bounce with a small bit of ride improvement and body sway. Too soft and sway becomes a problem, too stiff results in a harsh ride.
Adding airbags alone may make matters worse. The addition of airbags without changing the leaf springs will help if you have weak springs and raise the frame up off the axles and stop the suspension from contacting the frame or bottoming out. For a pickup truck they help when loading to the vehicel limits but for an RV not so much considering we are normal close to limits already. Air up the bags too much and you are more or less stiffing the suspension but I could be wrong.
About the best you can do is start saving for a Kelderman retrofit. The kit will replace the OEM leafs with a softer set and add air bags. It isn’t cheap. $2200 for the front and $1600 for the rear. Add another $100 or so for freight charges.
In the meantime use the Ford Specification and check the height of the frame. This will show if your leafs have weaken causing the suspension to bottom out. Also check your tire pressure. If your running at sidewall maximum rather than coach builder’s recommended or based on a four corner weight test you will get a harsher ride.
Good luck on your quest,
Dale
2006 Hurricane 31D aka 'Moby' the Whale
FCC(SW) US Navy Retired 1980-2003
Stella my Navigator
Bogart the All American RV Dog
and
Cocoui waiting for me at the Rainbow Bridge
I have not heard anyone outside of your post who mentioned Triangle tires so I have no idea if the are good bad rough or ? But making sure they are inflated enough to carry the load of your motor home and no more will help with the ride. Weigh the coach on all four corners and then put in just enough air for the load.
I have rented and driven several motor homes that used the chassis that you own. They generally ride rough.
You are correct the Kelderman is a great improvement. Many of us have posted here on our suspension changes. I have had three coaches. I started with air bags on my first. Did nothing for harsh ride but allowed me to alter ride height for weight. Next coach I installed mor/ryde and koni shocks. Helped significantly but as they say "no cigar". In my new 2012 Winnebago Vista 30T I went straight to the Kelderman and this is the cadillac. It has been great. 8,000 miles this winter and I have learned to adjust the inflation to maximize the effectiveness. However start with your tire inflation. Get that right and then move on to mods. On an older rig with proper tire inflation and springs that have softened a bit I think the Koni FSD's will improve things for a lot less than a Kelderman. I paid a pretty good amount for my mods but love to drive this coach now so worth it to me.
Hi,
Thanks for all the advice, guess I will start by scaling the vehicle and go from there. I do not want to put to much money into this RV as I intend to upgrade in a few years.
I have not heard anyone outside of your post who mentioned Triangle tires so I have no idea if the are good bad rough or ? But making sure they are inflated enough to carry the load of your motor home and no more will help with the ride. Weigh the coach on all four corners and then put in just enough air for the load.
I have rented and driven several motor homes that used the chassis that you own. They generally ride rough.
Hi Bob,
Triangle tires have been around for awhile now in the US, I have about 10,000 miles on them and have had no issues with them. I will put up a new post about what happened to me and how I ended up with new tires.
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