Community Forums

JhnsnDavid · 09-10-2014, 12:53 PM

I'm a "Snowbird" (Connecticut home to an RV lot in Florida) and I just traded in my 95 Airstream Excella travel trailer for 2014 Thor ACE 29.2 at Longview RV in Connecticut. I did a lot of research before buying this rig. It has a slide out (my travel trailer did not), and extra sleeping quarters (over the cab) and it's a motorhome that's only 29' 7'' long! I like to camp at small campgrounds in my travels. Small campgrounds charge small campground prices. I know the 40-45 ft. motorhomes are more roomy but I don't want to travel only on super highways that look the same everywhere and pay the large motorhome campground prices. Will register my ACE 29.2 motorhome in Florida as money hungry Connecticut is one of the few States that tax motor vehicles. I'll be getting my ACE 29.2 next week after their one-day driver training program. I bought tire covers as the Florida sun can be brutal on the tires. Plan later to get solar panels and maybe a roof rain-catching unit to make the ACE be more adapted for remote camping. Might even consider a "compost toilet" too. Does anyone know what I need to raise the motorhome up a few inches? Bigger shocks I think..hydraulic ones?...but which ones do I buy for the ACE 29.2?

myshaggydog · 09-10-2014, 02:37 PM

Welcome to the Forum and congrats on your MH. Sorry I have no idea what you will need to raise your MH but I am sure someone will be able to help. Best of luck.

Happy RV'ing

**CLIFFTALL** · 09-10-2014, 02:44 PM

Welcome to irv2 I've moved your post here to see if any Ace owners can assist. Congrats on the new MH.
Cliff

DieselTech39 · 09-10-2014, 03:51 PM

Glad you're aboard. Congrats on the new rig. Just wondering why you want to raise the RV a couple of inches? Best of luck, enjoy your adventures and be safe.

**JohnRR** · 09-10-2014, 06:56 PM

Good luck with your plans.

JhnsnDavid · 09-10-2014, 11:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DieselTech39

Glad you're aboard. Congrats on the new rig. Just wondering why you want to raise the RV a couple of inches? Best of luck, enjoy your adventures and be safe.

I have a little dirt road behind my house where I would like to sometimes
store the RV when not in use (many neighbors don't like to see motorhomes in front of houses). The road has a little incline that then levels out and I want to make sure it clears this incline. Also I've found that some small campgrounds have large pot holes filled with water after a rain and you don't think they are deep until you go into one! And I once crushed one of my rear stabilizers on my Airstream travel trailer after going over a railroad track that crosses a road in Virginia!

JhnsnDavid · 09-10-2014, 11:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DieselTech39

Glad you're aboard. Congrats on the new rig. Just wondering why you want to raise the RV a couple of inches? Best of luck, enjoy your adventures and be safe.

Hi DieselTech39. I have a gravel road that goes behind my house that I would use sometimes to store the RV when not in use (neighbors don't always like RVs parked in a front yard). This gravel road has small incline than then levels out and I want to make sure it clears the incline. Also I have found out that small campgrounds sometimes have large potholes that are hidden by water on rainy days until you drive through them! Even driving on local roads while traveling can be problem as last year I crunched my rear stabilizer pad on my travel trailer after driving over railroad tracks that crossed a road in Virginia! A lot of motorhome manufacturers know this and make the back end of the motorhome a little higher to compensate for the "bump in the road". Thor did this too. I guess I will have to get out my tape measure before I drive up the incline and have someone watch me.

Bdhicks · 09-10-2014, 11:41 PM

have not lifted my ace so can't help you there, Read all the ACE threads lots of mods and upgrades done that might make life a little easier. Love my 29.1.

EricGT · 09-11-2014, 04:40 AM

Welcome!
I think this may become a pretty big undertaking to perform properly. I cannot imagine actually raising the center of gravity on one of these tings. Maybe you should have bought an EarthRoamer. lol

mgscott4 · 09-11-2014, 05:23 AM

"Back in the day" we would install longer shackles on the leaf springs. This would give us an inch or 2 of extra clearance for the bigger tires we were putting on.

There is a big difference between a 2 ton vehicle lift and a 10 ton vehicle lift.

But, I could see airbags between the axle and frame, that you could temporarily fill to maximum only when you drive down the dirt road, then minimum air for normal driving.

Farmer Steve · 09-11-2014, 09:40 AM

You probably can go to a spring shop and have them add extra springs to raise it up, BUT I would go slow with this mod.. Drive it awhile. Before we did the CHF (look it up) my wife would almost get sea sick from the wobble. Higher up would be worse. I live on a farm and deal with pot holes everyday, somewhere, and the best solution is to go slow and straddle the worn paths.

EricGT · 09-11-2014, 11:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by mgscott4

But, I could see airbags between the axle and frame, that you could temporarily fill to maximum only when you drive down the dirt road, then minimum air for normal driving.

Yes. I didn't think of this. My previous class c had Firestone air bags on the back. I could inflate them to 50psi and one could notice a difference in ride height. It really helped when towing our atv's on a trailer.