Hard ride!

[supercub]

I have I believe a W-20 chasis......it's an 03 Fleetwood Southwind 32VS.........the ride is fine if the road is perfectly smooth........but if it gets a little rough, it beats the heck out of you and the motorhome. Very sharp, jarring ride. I installed Koni shocks and that helped the handling some, but didn't seem to change the ride. I'm carrying about 90psi in the tires....which are Goodyears, new about 1 year ago. Any recommendations on improving the ride? Reason for the 90psi in the tires is for best mpg. Thanks for the info.
Brian

[supercub]

I have I believe a W-20 chasis......it's an 03 Fleetwood Southwind 32VS.........the ride is fine if the road is perfectly smooth........but if it gets a little rough, it beats the heck out of you and the motorhome. Very sharp, jarring ride. I installed Koni shocks and that helped the handling some, but didn't seem to change the ride. I'm carrying about 90psi in the tires....which are Goodyears, new about 1 year ago. Any recommendations on improving the ride? Reason for the 90psi in the tires is for best mpg. Thanks for the info.
Brian

[John-D]

Well. Shocks are supposed to absorb shocks, however it's a trade off.. By my standards the better the shock the better the handling and.. The harsher the ride.. Some folks like a smoother ride (this means the handling is not as good)

Another thing you said "I'm carrying 90psi in the tires" you did not say, nor do I suspect you know, the proper pressure for those tires

Two or three pressures all but guarenteed to be wring are

1: Pressure stamped on the sidewall (This is the proper pressure for the maximum weight stamped next to it only)

2: The pressure on your sticker inside (This may be proper if the rig's empty)

3: The pressure at time of delivery (Be it of the rig or a new tire)

Have the rig weighed by someone like Aweigh-We-Go (The RV safety institute) and inflate per the chart they give you.. This may result in different pressures in different tires

[Oemtech]

I just weighed my rig about a month ago at the local Feed & Grain store. Then I weighed the 4 corners with my own scales to verify the weights. I needed to add 5 lbs to the rear tires.

After checking the weights I add some weight to the heaviest wheel on the frt/rear axle for a cushion. Now I check the charts and see if I need to add air. I am running 90 psi all around and the coach is about 2,000 lbs UNDER the GCVWR pulling the toad.

GCVWR = Gross Combined Vehicle Weight Rating This the maximum allowable loaded weight of the motorhome and any towed trailer or vehicle.

If this all works out... Replace the Bilstein's with a set of Koni's. A bit expensive but well worth it in my opinion. I did it.