Windy....

[R1Kirby]

Today I drove from Oklahoma City to Joplin. The wind was from the southeast at 20 to 30 mph with windy gusts of 35 mph. It was slow goin' but we made it. Any experiences of driving in the wind??? I would like to hear them.

[RVDude]

Newmar first adopted TRW's "Column Drive" computer assisted steering on a Spartan chassis and branded it "Comfort Drive" back in the 2007 (I think) model year. This innovation completely solves the side wind problem (and many other steering control problems) - especially when you duck under a bridge or get passed by an 18 wheeler during a severe broadside wind. The computer assisted steering makes it so you hardly know the wind is blowing nor do you have to steer into the wind and hold the wheel cocked that way to stay straight, it does all that for you.

Newmar's exclusive on this expired last year, I think. Several other coach manufacturers are adopting it under different brand names. The original product is a TRW product "Column Drive" used extensively in heavy equipment and a lighter version on many rack-and-pinion cars.

If you are looking at a newer coach, it might be something to consider. Search irv2 for “comfort drive” and there are numerous threads to review. One of the chief engineers of this product (co-inventor I believe) is also a regular on irv2.

[Ray,IN]

Experience, yep! about 10 years ago in IA while West-bound on I80, a strong South wind was blowing so hard the MH I was following could barely keep in our lane. A sudden strong gust hit us, blowing the MH towed out of the lane, onto the berm, MH was still in the lane. That gust blew a window out of our 5er. We both stopped to assess damage, then decided to drive into DesMoines (about 30 miles). The guy in the MH laid-up until the wind subsided. I found a RV service center to replace my window. We both needed something STRONG after that experience.

[Wayne M]

Last year, pulling a 5er, we had 40+ mph gusts on our trip to Corpus Christi as we were heading south on I-35. The wind was from the right side/quarter. We stopped for lunch and everything was fine on a walk around. We left and 1 hour later I stopped for fuel. DW said, as she got out on her side, "The awning is shredded!" It had billowed out about 2-3 feet and was just torn to shreds. Both arms were up and the roller was tight to the RV. Tight is not the word. I could not get the locks loose and had to cut the fabric off, and we were on our way again. I now believe in awning locks for non-motorized awnings. I have heard the morized ones do not have that problem.

Insurance paid for new awning.

[RedneckExpress]

Yup, been in my fair share of ugly wind along the Oregon Coast, always on the broadside. My solution, drive slower. If its shoving me over when I'm going X amount of miles an hour, it always seems to do that less when I doing X-Y miles an hour. Usually, anything over 20-30 mph broadside, I'm going to be going really slow, usually with the hazards on.

Now, if I had in-cab controls for the air bags, I could easily adjust the PSI in the suspension to make the truck lean into the wind and reduce the broadside sway effect it has on me.

[two2go]

I have witnessed two awning "blow-ups" by folks who passed me as if speed was no factor in strong winds. They pulled up to assess their damage while I putt-putted on down the road. Once, I heard my driver side slide-out awning thumping on the side, so slowed to 40 which was necessary.
My cousin totaled a Suburban and his Airstream by losing control driving in a strong cross-wind.

[Forest Grump]

Highway 58 from Barstow to Bakersfield, the extension of I-40 and any NS route through the Mojave like I-15, 247 or 395 can be interesting. Gusts from 60 mph plus are not that uncommon. Today is one of those days. We are going to Death Valley for Easter and I expect wind.

I added the trackbar and steering stabilizer which helped a lot. You really have to be careful at the entrances to Mt. passes. If you see big rigs on their sides, common on the 15 in the Cajon Pass take a different route. California has an excellent system warning for high winds and if you see a windsock be prepared.

I've been on 247 and I-10 in high winds on several occasions and you just have to stick to the right lane and speeds where you can maintain control. You can always wait but our wind has been blowing now for 3 days, that's a long wait.

[GaryKD]

Hi R1Kirby,
Comfort Drive is the solution. However, if you are not in the market for a new coach, consider Blue Ox at http://www.blueox.us/TruCenter/tru_center.html or Henderson Products at http://supersteersuperstop.com/uncat...ering-control/. I recommend these products because I have the Howard Steering System. Unfortunately, it is no longer available. The Blue Ox and Super Steer products have the same re-centering capability as the Howard System. They can be re-centered from the driver's seat. After driving in all kinds of cross winds and all day cross winds, being able to recenter the steering control from the driver's seat (on the fly) is a very important feature.

Driving in cross winds is a very tiring and can be dangerous. Installing an after market steering stabilizer makes driving much easier and safer.

[RayandPamT]

This is something I don't want to happen to me!

YouTube - LKW kippt vom starken Wind um (Truck Blown Away)!

[Jocat54]

We took a trip to Big Bend NP this week. On I10 between Junction, Tx and Fort Stockton on Wednesday it was a white knuckle drive for me, (don't know wind speed or gusts), but it was strong enough to break one of the locking pawls on our slide topper awning and shred it. Spent awhile on the side of I10 cutting the fabric the rest of the way off and unbolting the roller off the side.

Other than that a great trip.

John

[Finhawk]

I installed SteerSafe on my 2000 Adventurer and on this one. It took care of the "white knuckle" grip and made my day a lot more fun. Use that, slow down and enjoy yourself
Bruce