wandering and wind pushing

[mr. seaview]

i have 31 ft Seaview on a f53 ford chassis. am having problems with
the motorhome being pushed when a big rig passes or if i drive in a pretty
windy area i can really feel my coach being pushed and have to fight the
steering wheel to keep it on the road.

was wondering what is the best steering stabilizer to add to help keep her
on the road and is it worth the money to invest in?

what is the most economical after market stabilizer to add? all opinions
are appreciated. i dont want to spend a lot but willing to try something that
will really help and make a difference? thanks

[twinboat]

Search out the CHF. ( Cheap Handling Fix ) and do that before spending $$ on anything else.

[Richard S.]

what air pressure are you running in your tires, tire pressure and weight distribution make a big difference in handling.

[kennersonf]

I don't know that you'll find a cheap fix. I handed rear and front trac bars, a Safe T Plus steering stabilizer and Koni shocks. All of this really helped with the handling of my MH. Start with front and rear trac bars.

[EdInArk]

I did the CHF (free) and added a Blue Ox Tiger Trac bar to the rear axle and our F53 based RV handles the wind much better. The track bar was a tad over $600, and I did the work myself.

Passing trucks don't bother us at all anymore, and it takes some pretty heavy wind to affect us.

[twinboat]

Here is a link on the CHF, there are others.

It costs nothing to do, takes maybe an hour and is reversable.

Sure beats hundreds of $$

http://www.irv2.com/forums/showthread.php?t=354065


CHF Pros and cons

[Podivin]

First get your rig weighed and set the tire pressure correctly for the load they are carrying.
Over inflated tires can cause some wandering. You DON'T want to be under inflated because that way lies blowouts.
That's cheap (I just got mine weighed and it cost $11) and it something you should really know about your rig anyway.

[Sweetbriar]

A rear trac bar and CHP will give you the most bang for the buck for the problem as described. I have both and have been surprised several times when a truck suddenly appeared outside my window. I still feel weather related winds but the effect isn't nearly as bad as it was. 1/3 of my coach length is behind the rear axle which gives wind a pretty big lever against the fulcrum of the rear axle to push the back end around.

And check your tire pressures as suggested. I played with pressures when I first got my coach. At 10 PSI over recommended cold pressure for my load the coach a hand full to maintain lane position.

[hohenwald48]

CHF (front and Rear) and new anti-sway bar bushings (front and rear) fixed mine. Bushing were about $80 and the CHF cost me like $4 because I needed 4' of 1/2" pipe to lengthen the connecting links. Most say that lengthening the links is not necessary but for $4 what the heck.

Do those first and if things are no better then you can do the high dollar fixes.

[Waiter21]

Three things to consider;

1) CHF (Cheap Handling Fix. This relocates the adjustable links to firm up side to side motion.

2) Verify / adjust front end alignment to a slight toe-in

3) If your F53 is greater than about 10 years old, consider replacing the shocks, as they are probably worn out..

Improve the handling of F53 – 1999 Southwind 35S

..

[mr. seaview]

twin boat

thanks again. i plan on doing the cheap fix as suggested. i watched the cheap fix
video and it did not mention anything about extending the links?

i went and looked under my coach and noticed i do have z connectiors on my coach.

it looks to me like i can remove the z connectors and the adjust the links up but i am
not sure that my stock links are long enough to reach the position of the second hole
on the sway bar?4

do i need to extend the links? has anyone done this fix on a 99 seaview without
extending the links? i do not weld but i could remove the links and take them to
a welding shop and have them extended? i do not mind doing this if it will make a
big difference in the handling of the coach? it looks like in the video that all he did was
remove the bolts from the links and said he used a floor jack to push the sway bar up
toward the motor so as the sway bar second hole lined up for the link to slip into?

i am somewhat handy and can do this but it looks like original links might be too short
to reach the second hole in the sway bar? thanks again for your help.

[wa8yxm]

Since I do not do Ford this is generic. But should still apply

First as others have said check tire pressures. HAVE RV WEIGHED )4 corner weights) so you have the proper pressure in the tires for the load upon them.

Alignment.. Have it checked

Finally there are 3 upgrades to many RV's

SWAY (Side to side rocking like fans at a rock concert)> SWAY bars on many RV's can stand an upgrade

WAG.. or Track, Leaf spring suspension lets the body move side to side over the axle by a small amount. IF the front moves one way while the rear moves the other you think you need to adjust steering. s you do, this makes it worse, then the ends "Swap" sides and now you correct the other way TRAC BARS (Front and rear) Stop this DEAD. 100% effective if you have two of 'em. One is often enough.

Steering Stablizer.. Assists you in keeping to the strazight and narryw

I have the Blue Ox Tru-Center due to the ability to adjust from the driver' sseat.. Safe-T-Steer now offers that as an option as well.

Happy travels.

[twinboat]

Remove the bolts on both sides, while the MH is sitting level on the ground.

Push the bar ends up and swing the links back, so the holes line up. Getting the second bolt aligned may take some pushing or pulling but not much.

If its too far off to align, drive one front tire on a 2X6 board to get it aligned.

If it looks like the Z bracket could hit, you may want to have the links lengthened. How much, depends on how far you pushed the bar ends up.

You could take a bolt out, swing the link back towards the inner hole and measure how much to add to the link, to make it reach the hole.