Community Forums

jpspaz · 05-30-2022, 04:28 PM

Our new to us 2018 has a vibration that seems to be coming from the rear and I wanted to throw it out in case anyone has any ideas. We purchased it in March and this is my second F-53 chassis coach. The vibration comes and goes and at times resembles the rumble of a subwoofer. It comes on over 30 MPH but again, it isn't a constant type noise. It happens under load or when coasting. I am hoping it is not rear axle related and is tire noise. It seems to vary with road surfaces and when it hit a bump it is louder for a split second. My pass through storage between the axles is one large metal box and I thought maybe it was that vibrating but I am not sure. Coach has 24k miles.

Skip426 · 05-30-2022, 06:15 PM

Check the U joints , and drive shaft , for damage and " phase " between the front and rear haves of the shaft .

Some times if the rear section of the two piece shaft is removed for towing of the coach , and it is not properly re-installed causing a vibration .

The change of sound on bumps maybe due to bad drive shaft angle , that requires the center steady bearing, mount be shimmed to correct.

NOTE: 30 MPH start of the issue almost completely rules out a tire problem ; but you could have a look for something wedged between the duals .

jacwjames · 05-30-2022, 06:21 PM

X2 on checking U-joints.
Same with checking to make sure the driveshaft is in phase, do you know it had been towed recently.

DFord · 05-30-2022, 10:37 PM

Get a frequency meter to measure your vibration. Knowing the frequency will lead you to your problem. Tires turn much slower than the driveshaft - about 5 times slower. I'm leaning to problems with your tires.

jpspaz · 05-31-2022, 04:33 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jacwjames

X2 on checking U-joints.
Same with checking to make sure the driveshaft is in phase, do you know it had been towed recently.

To my knowledge it hasn't been towed. There has been no obvious mechanical work done to the chassis other than routine maintenance and the previous owner did not mention any issues. The house part had a few repairs done but that's all I know. The difficult part is finding someone with the expertise and willingness to look at the drivetrain.

hohenwald48 · 06-02-2022, 10:36 AM

When I bought my 2019 Canyon Star (on 2018 26K chassis) I had a problem with a leaky pinion seal. Crawled under and took a bunch of photos then took it to Ford. They replaced the seal. After that I had a serious vibration. Using my previous pix, I was able to figure out they put the drive shaft back on 180* out of phase. Moved it to it's original clocking and problem solved.

I have since painted all the connections so I can be sure everything goes back properly in the future. It was a real problem diagnosing the phasing by trying to line up random scratches on the drive shaft, connecting bolt and U-joints.

I think there's an app you can load on your phone that provides frequency information. Sometimes that can be helpful info when trying to track down a vibration problem.

jpspaz · 06-10-2022, 04:20 PM

I have an appointment with a shop in the coming weeks for some other issues. I will mention it to them to see if they'll look at it or recommend a chassis shop that will. I told my wife that when I finally get all the issues straightened out with this coach, it will be a sweet rig.