ron.dittmer wrote: Just mount an E350 rear axle on it and they would have it done right for the US market.
...and an E350 axle will do what?
Offer a wider stance than seen in those pictures above. The ambulance shows the narrow stance best.
All that does is give you space between the rear wheels. It is more an artifact of laying an 8x4 sheet of plywood on the floor between wheel wells than any feat in suspension design.
Gene in NE wrote: I would prefer the wider stance of either the E350 or the Sprinter for added side to side stability.
Wider track does not guaranty stability. There are too many variables. Spring rates, anti roll bars, damping, and front suspension geometry (of which the Ford is particularly bad) all get a vote in vehicle stability. Back to back my Sprinter C is more stable than my E350 Chinook, especially in heavy crosswinds. The Sprinter also has electronic stability control for when it all goes bad.
No matter what you drive, if it has a high profile (side and front), narrow stance, it is going to have instability issues even with the mass heavily concentrated on the lower part of the vehicle.
Electronic Stability Control (basically software activated / controlled brakes / engine throttle modulation) can tweak that a bit, but it is fighting the laws of physics.
It is very hard to roll a modern car or truck, but if you go down an 45 degree sloped embankment with a tall truck, it is going to roll unless you are a stunt car driver.
Gene in NE wrote: I would prefer the wider stance of either the E350 or the Sprinter for added side to side stability.
If you spend some time reading both this forum and the very large View/Navion usergroup posts at yahoogroups, you would see that almost no one has any stability problems with their Sprinter-based class C. No one reports handling issues in high-speed corners, or in high winds, or on rough roads. On the other hand, you can easily find many posts here that talk about stability issues with the Fords. Just look at how many Ford owners need something called a steering stabilizer. Even Dittmer, who posts so often in these kinds of thread, had to spend several thousand (yes, thousands) dollars of extra money in order to make his Ford's suspension run right. Therefore, it appears that the Sprinter is the more stable platform.
It's funny that the only ones who state that the Sprinter has or might have stability issues are the only ones who have not ever owned one, and therefore have no idea or experience of what they are writing about.
p.s. no matter what platform you drive, please don't drive it down a 45 degree slope. Motorhomes are not designed for that....
Quote: No matter what you drive, if it has a high profile (side and front), narrow stance, it is going to have instability issues even with the mass heavily concentrated on the lower part of the vehicle.
Electronic Stability Control (basically software activated / controlled brakes / engine throttle modulation) can tweak that a bit, but it is fighting the laws of physics.
Very well stated. This captures the narrow width versus tall height issue of Sprinter-based Class C motorhomes very well.
However, you're probably wasting your time trying to convince anyone. Until an owner actually flips one over - or we all hear about one flipping over on CNN - no one will believe that physics has anything to do with what your eyes are telling you whenever you happen to a look at one from the rear.
To me it's scarry to watch one going down the road from behind ... which every once in a while I get a chance to do.
PhilR. wrote: Even Dittmer, who posts so often in these kinds of thread, had to spend several thousand (yes, thousands) dollars of extra money in order to make his Ford's suspension run right.
This is very true. We spent $3900 on our 2007 E350 chassis's suspension. Admittedly we did go all-out for best possible results. I don't recall anyone on this forum saying they spent nearly as much as we did. After our experience with our first motor home of 24 years, we did not want to stop short.
So PhilR. your point is well noted.
I would imagine that one could spend $3900 on a Sprinter to make it handle best possible as well. But as you say, Sprinter owners don't talk about handling issues like E-series owners do.
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