2007 F53 chassis sway

[jupoa]

I just test drove a couple of Rexhalls on the 208" 2007 F53. Both had smooth ride, tracked well and had better acceleration than my 97 460 with the Bank's upgrade, also 208" wheelbase. The thing is, they both rocked like a cradle. It was like they had no sway bars at all and very soft shocks. There was no wind but every tweak in the road sent them swaying side to side several times plus they leaned excessively in the corners. The swaying did not transmit to the steering, though, and they continued to track true even while swaying.

Supposedly, they had Bilstein shocks. I've always heard that Bilsteins tended to be on the stiff side but the soft ride and excessive swaying seem to contradict that.

Maybe I'm just spoiled by my 97 F53 with FSDs, polyurethane swaybar bushings and rear track bar, but this seems like a major problem. I have to wander how the units would handle in a cross wind.

Any insight into this issue would be greatly appreciated because other than the sway issue, we loved the Rexhalls. Even though the units we drove were only 30' and 32', with the two full wall slides extended, they lived like much longer coaches.

Happy trails.

[Wanabee FTer]

That's funny, because you just described how my '97 f53 rides to a T. I bought it completely bone stock with the OEM Ford shocks still on it. I just replaced the front shocks with the FSD's and in process of adding rear air bags, but have not driven it yet.
How is the power comparing your 460 to a newer V-10 chassis?

[jupoa]

Wanabee,

Sorry to hear of your problems. My chassis is stock except as follows; FSD shocks front, Bilstein rear, polyurethane sway bar bushings rear, Bilstein steering damper, homemade rear track bar, Ride Rite rear air bags (not sure if they are original or not), Michelin LT235/85R16 tires at 80psi all around. I also adjust my cargo to load the front axle to the max. It drives pretty sweet if I do say so myself .

Just a seat of the pants impression, but the 3 valve V10 seems to accelerate stronger even though its hauling a heavier coach than my full Banks equipped 460. Seems noisy though.

BTW After doing a little more research, I found a post titled "cheap handling fix" that seems to have the solution for sway problems on the newer chassis.

Happy Trails

[TW]

Ours is a STOCK F 53 (2007 Chassis and 2008 House) and I have no complaints.... tracks just great. Rides super. I hope, that we do not have to invest more money in it. Sofar - so good

TW

[Wanabee FTer]

Jupoa,
I didn't read the whole thread but sounds like a "free" sway bar link reposition may solve your concern. Wish I was so lucky. I inspected my rear sway bar bushings and they look fair so thinking about getting the poly bushings on ebay to go along with everything else I am doing.

[billyb]

personally i would remove the rear track bar and keep it for your new unit. the ford chassis does ride nice and i think by changing the sway bar links, it does help with the higher box sway. the newer units, both ford and chevy do run higher rpms and use the gearing to get more power. some coachs might be noisier then others, and i guess it depends on how well they are insulated. the unit we now own is pretty quiet , other then real good hills, but it still isn't bad. 19k miles so far and i'm impressed after owning a chevy rig for 10 years, and 5ooo pounds heavier.

[howdja]

We have a 2006 Damon on the F53 chassis (recently purchased) and fortunately do not experience the sway you described. We are presently on a trip home to the Austin, TX area having traveled to Elkhart and several other points in between. We have experienced crosswinds, tail winds, headwinds and no winds and have not had any sway at all. We have had very rough roads to very smooth roads, narrow, curvy country roads to wide straight Interstates, again with no sway. The coach holds the road very well and doesn't tend to wander like our 2000 F53 did.

I wonder why the difference?

[jcthorne]

You should check out this related thread:

Cheap Handling Fix

Made a BIG difference in my 2007 chassis for a very small amount of money invested.

[jupoa]

jcthorne,

I've read your entire thread and your ideas seem sound. Thanks for posting.

All

After reading the posts from people with 2007 F53s not having problems and reviewing other facts, I think I have an idea about the problem about the units I test drove with a bad sway problem. The units were 2007 chassis with 2010 coaches. They both came equipped with Ride Rite bags on the rear to handle extra load. Ride Rite bags leach air over time and must be checked monthly or so. I bet noone at the dealership has ever aired up the bags and they are empty. That would mean the rear suspension is overloaded and account for the mushy ride and excessive swaying. The air bags could even be ruined form running empty. The manufacturer recommends never letting them get below 10psi.

Yeah I know the tires are as old as the chassis or older and that will have to be dealt with in negotiations. Other than the tires and air bags, are there other problems with buying a new coach on an older chassis? Did Ford make major improvements after 2007?

Thanks to everyone for your replies.

[mavric65]

i have a 33 foot 2008 coach on a 2007 chassis which is 208" wheelbase and it drives and tracks nicely and i am very happy with it

[frankdamp]

Our 02 Georgetown (F53, V10) sways a bit but tracks well. It is an 11-ton truck, after all. I can certainly live with it.

If I do any mods, it will be to the driving position so that DW can drive it comfortably. At 4' 10", and with the FlexSteel seat, she has a real tough time reaching everything. I'm thinking a Gillig transit coach steering column (two swivel joints and a telescoping section), a shorter seat cushion and maybe adapting the Taurus/Sable electrically adjstable pedal cluster.

[mikron]

Quote:

Originally Posted by TW Ours is a STOCK F 53 (2007 Chassis and 2008 House) and I have no complaints.... tracks just great. Rides super. I hope, that we do not have to invest more money in it. Sofar - so good TW

Same here with our 2008 35B Windsport. I am replacing the shocks with Koni shocks but as rides great. Had a 2000 33B Windsport and never changed a thing while we owned it and ride was great.