Brand new 2007 HR neptune 36 PDQ

[lela]

Last month we bought a brand new 2007 HR Neptune 36 PDQ. Even though it is almost 3 years old it had never been sold.

We moved from a 5th wheel to this. Everything is going okay except for a terribly rough ride. When we go over some bridges or dips it sounds like metal on metal and feels like is has bottomed out. Several friends of ours that are motor home owners have ridden with us and state something is very wrong.

We took it back to the dealership last Friday. They took it out on a test drive with us and agreed something is wrong. One of the service guys says he thinks it may have to much air in the back. Another thinks it's the shocks. They are not sure what to do with it yet.
Anyone else out there have any experiece with this problem? Thanks!

[Latitude]

Check out This Thread

Trailing Arms Cracked on Roadmaster

Rick

It is in the Chassis forum under Roadmaster

[Diplomat Don]

lela......Unfortuneately, the model you bought has the R4R chassis (4 airbags) and are terribly rough riding. A couple of things you need to have checked. Make sure your dealer checks the ride height and as mentioned above, there was an issue with the rear trailering arms.

Once you get the above items checked/corrected, you can improve the ride some by changing to the Koni FSD shocks. There was also a kit to change the air bags to larger/softer bags. I feel bad telling you this about your chassis, but the dealer (if he's a Monaco dealer) should have known about the rough ride on this model. Maybe you can shame them into helping you improve it. Keep it full of water, propane and diesel to help soften the ride.

Finally, get the coached weighed so that you know what the front and rear axle weights are when loaded. Once you know this, go to Goodyears website for your tire size and find what the minimum air pressure is for your coach weight. I would run that air pressure plus 5 lbs. This will also help your ride.

[hardy1000]

Lela,
It's good that you took it to the dealer and they agreed that something is wrong. You should post this on the chassis forum and speak with fellow 36' Roadmaster owners.

Congrats on the new rig.

[Nonno]

lela,

Welcome to iRV2 and congrats on the new MH.

Being brand new, I assume your mileage is close to factory delivered mileage so I would think the place to start is the ride height. I have the same year and model and the measurements I was given by Monaco, were FRONT 6 15/16" REAR 8 1/2". If they are off, adjusting them to specs will improve (not perfect) the ride. However, even if this adjustment resolves the problem to your satisfaction there is a Trailing Arm design flaw with this chassis that you need to know about and decide how you want to handle it.

I know it's frustrating, to say the least, when problems like this happen but I also know it's a nice coach. I hope you can resolve this problem quickly.

[lela]

Nonno, is your coach ride smooth and enjoyable? What I am asking is - is it possible to get this particular make/model to ride like we all know it should or did we trade a great 5th wheel for a steel tire wagon riding expensive motor home?

[bkphotog]

Hi Lela

Congrats on the new MH

First I must tell you that we have a 07 Neptune but it is the 34SBD model which is just a foot smaller than your unit when it comes to measurements from front bumper to back bumper. Also moving from a 5th wheel to a MH is an experience. When towing you do not hear all the things "rattleing" around in the trailer or 5th wheel when sitting in the tow car, but you will in the MH. There are tips available to help with some of the things in the inside cabinets that might be making all that noise. I am sure all the members here on IRV2 have their little "helps" and would gladly pass these on to you.

I would agree with everyone so far with the concern with the "TRAILING ARMS" I would recommend you have the dealer really look at your unit and have these things inspected. This is a safety issue. Please go to the portion of this forum mentioned above by "Latitude" and review all that is there. I do not want to scare you but this problem may have something to do with your comments about "bottoming out"

Next we have had our unit's "trailing arms" replaced with the new ones from SOURCE ENGINEERING and this has improved our ride. It really has helped with the porpoising and the riding over rough roads. In addition we have added the KONI FSD shocks all around. I think this has also helped with the ride. Now remember this 4 bag unit will not ride as smooth as a more expensive 8-10 bag motorhome, but a person can only buy what a person can afford and our Neptune was in our price point at the time that we bought this unit. We have made several trips to OREGON to see our son and we really like our unit.

Other factors to improve the ride would be to have the ride height checked and corrected if it is off, weigh the coach when fully loaded and adjust the tire pressure based off the charts from GOODYEAR for that weight. (I would add about 5 psi more on all tires just for safety-under inflated tires are not good.) and lastly when loading the coach make sure you do the best you can in balancing out the weight side to side and front to back. I have seen some coaches on the road that look like "lean to's" because of the way these owners pack some of the basement storage compartments.

So I hope you can get to some point where your coach rides a little better than it is now and I really would encourage you to have those "trailing arms" inspected and replaced if they are bad. Maybe you can work out a deal with the dealer.

Good Luck and drive carefully in your travels.

Bill

[lela]

bigkphotog,
Thanks for your reply but the ratteling and noises do not bother us. What bothers us going over a bridge or the dips leading onto or off of a bridge feels and sounds as if the front of the motor home has bottom out. Again it feels and sounds like someone is using a sledge hammer and hitting the end of a metal pole. It is so rough and hard that the cabinet above the driver is seperating and will fall on to the sterring wheel with many more hard hits. Also it is so bad it jars me right up out of the driver's seat which makes it difficult to hold onto the wheel at times.
The dealer called me yesterday and said the ride height is correct. I asked if they had checked the shocks. He said you don't have shocks. I told him that I may be a girl but had seen a shock on each side at the front of the coach. I did not look for the shocks in the back so don't know if I have them or not.
Dealer said he is going to take it to a place that works on motorhome/camper chassis and suspension. I asked them to check the rear trailing arms but they said they are not set up to do that but the other place would. We really want to like this motor home but may be getting a little bit sorry we bought this one. LELA

[lela]

Was the cracked rear trailing arms ever a recall?

[bkphotog]

Lela

I mentioned the interior noises only because when we first went to a MH we also came from driving (towing) a trailer. Those noises were a bit of a surprise to us.

You should have 4 shocks on that RR4R chassis. There should be two in the front and two in the back (one on each wheel) I can not believe that your dealer said you do not have shocks.

As for your question concerning a RECALL on the "trailing arms". Yes there was one back in 2002 -2004 units. Monaco at that time was forced by the NHTSA into correcting the problem. The problem had to do with some welding of a shim to the trailing arm. The problem is that Monaco corrected the issue by replacing the bad arms with the same type of arm. Now those arms are now failing after (xxx) number of additional mileage. Again I would encourage you to take the time and read all of the messages in the "BROKEN TRAILING ARMS in the ROADMASTER CHASSIS forum on IRV2, if you have not all ready done so. This information will give you a good deal of background information on this TRAILING ARM concern. The problem now is that Monaco Coach went into bankruptcy and the new MONACO LLC (Navistar) will not cover the replacement of the trailing arms on coaches made prior to the bankruptcy date.

As for your continuing problems with the ride. All I can say is that you may have to have your complete chassis inspected. There may be other issues involved here.

Bill

[Mandys Man]

I would also be tempted to think that if the dealer does not know that there are shocks on the coach, they definitely do not know how to check or adjust Ride Height. Nor do they know what the specs for the ride height are.

[Jim Stewart]

Lela,

Below is the contact information for Source Engineering, they developed the current Trailing Arm replacements that people with problems (failures or pre-emptive) are using. They also have the most experience with the RR4R Chassis. They have just developed a complete upgrade for the RR4R Chassis that they can discuss with you. If your ride is as bad as you describe, the problem is more than just the ride of the RR4R, there is a problem with your specific RR4R. The people at Source will probably be able to help with symptoms and possible reasons and solutions. They are great people, give them a call.

Scott Zimmer
Source Engineering
541-935-0308 or
541-915-1149
E-Mail info4rvadvisors@yahoo.com

[Nonno]

lela,

Sorry for the delay in getting back.

I haven't experienced the terrible ride or metal on metal sound but have come out of the seat a couple of times after a dip in the roadway. On a scale of 1 for terrible and 10 for smooth & enjoyable I'd give mine a 6. Items added since I bought it are a Safe-T-Plus and new trailing arms from Source Engineering. Since S-T-P helps maintaining controll in case of blown tire, I hope I never have to evaluate it. Just added the new trailing arms so I can't confirm reports from those saying the porposing and ride on rough roads is much improved.

I also recommend you call Scott Zimmer. I believe, the chassis upgrade they are working on (will be available soon) addresses the front end issue you have.

There was a thread on this forum last year that may have similar problems to yours. It's lenghty but you may find something to help Holiday Rambler Neptune nightmare

Hang in there an try not to get too discouraged from what you're experiencing and the replies you've received.

[Rex]

Lela, what state are you in. Perhaps someone can suggest a company that is competent to inspect and adjust your chassis.