Changing shocks on F-53

[Truck55]

I have a 04 gulfstream sun voyager. It is in need of shocks.
Anyone know how hard this is to do it yourself. I am pretty handy and can do most stuff
Also if you take off shock will the springs hold the coach up? I know on a car it won't fall if you remove shocks
It doesn't look to bad I can get to the front through doghouse and wheel well. So won't have to get under it for that. But the rear I will have to get under it and it is fairly low to the ground

Anyone have any good advice or experience with this

I just hate to pay mechanic 3-4 hundred dollars for something I can do my self.

I removed leaking jack in about an hour and that was a pain

[SoCalGlide]

Removing the shocks will not cause the coach to drop. All of the weight is supported by the springs. The shocks simply dampen the oscillations of the springs so you don't go bouncing down the road.
Shock replacement is a fairly easy job. It's going to be dirty under there, but there's just 2 bolts/nuts attaching each shock to the coach. One goes to the frame, the other to the axle.
Have fun!

[WinnieView]

We have replaced the shocks on all of our motorhomes and have always used Koni.

Minimum 1/2" drive, impact would be easiest on the shoulders and arms, sockets for whatever size nut and/or nut the manufacturer used.

There's almost always plenty of room to get the old shock unbolted and new one installed but some chassis can be more of a challenge.
*We have never owned the F53.

Double check the existing shocks prior to ordering for configuration of eye and pin mounts top and bottom, front and rear.

As mentioned, no issues with springs or movement when changing shocks.

A shock keeps the wheel on the ground when rolling and does not support the chassis. Except to the extent that the right shocks can dramatically improve the ride in so many ways!

[purrin along]

All good points made above.The only thing is make sure you eat your Wheaties to get the bolts tight.

[jelag]

I just did the shocks on a buddies RAM pickup and my 1/2" (high quality) air impact wrench wouldn't budge the bolts on the lower mounts.... so I grabbed a 1/2 breaker bar and cheater... about 3 ft long and broke the breaker bar... so I'm now retired and was lying under his pickup and it finally dawned on me that I was working against LOC-TITE and not against a stubborn bolt...

I grabbed my little propane torch and heated the bolt, grabbed my electric 20 vdc Dewalt impact driver and it easily spun off the bolts...

This is something that a few years ago I would have never missed... no lock washer on the bolt... should have seen this right off the bat and gone for the heat... LESSON LEARNED.. got to remember to insert the brain before the brawn..

[Waiter21]

I've replaced the shocks on my 2001 Mirada (F53) and also my 1999 Southwind (F53).. In both cases, I seen a significant improvement in ride and handling..

No jacks required, but it is easier with the front wheels removed. Put a safety stand under the axle..

I bought Monroe's for the Mirada, and KBY's for the Southwind. Both brands of shocks were about $50 each. In both cases, the old shocks were completely worn out and offered very little resistance to moving up or down.

The Monroe's were a much smoother ride than the KBY (very hard and firm) and I'll use the Monroe's again.

I used a impact driver, but a long breaker bar will work. No tricks to replacing, I did need to put some heat on the front lower nuts to get them to break lose.

Two notes when re-installing..

You can turn some of the bolts around to make installing (and future removing) a little easier.

ALSO, On the top front shock bolt, I added a couple spacer washers between the shock and the mount bracket to move the shock away from the mount. Without the spacers, the top of the shock was hitting the mount bracket.

On the KBYs, I had to cut a small notch on the top cover of the shock to keep it from hitting the frame mount,

INTERESTING - After I replaced the shocks, my occasional "THUNK" on slow hard turns went away.

Here are a couple short articles from my Mirada and Southwind.

Replace Shock Absorbers – 1999 Southwind 35S

Install new shocks on 2001 F53 chassis – 2001 Coachmen Mirada 300QB

..

[Truck55]

I bought billsteins. Did the front last night. Wasn't too bad. The back will be harder as my gulfstream sits low so just harder to crawl under.

Thought about using the levelers to raise it up a little?

[WinnieView]

Originally Posted by Truck55

I bought billsteins. Did the front last night. Wasn't too bad. The back will be harder as my gulfstream sits low so just harder to crawl under.

Thought about using the levelers to raise it up a little?

We have used the levelers many times to get the lift needed for access but also recommend wood blocks under the chassis for safety and support.

[twinboat]

Originally Posted by Truck55

I bought billsteins. Did the front last night. Wasn't too bad. The back will be harder as my gulfstream sits low so just harder to crawl under.

Thought about using the levelers to raise it up a little?

Standard practice for safety is to NOT get under something held up with oil or air.

Imagine pulling on the big wrench and the bolt breaks. Now the wrench slips off and bangs into the fitting on the jack. While your wondering what is spraying all over, the RV is squishing you. Not good.

Even if your fine but stuck under there, now you need another jack, probably from a fire department, to get you out. How embarrassing would that be ?

Drive it up on blocks of wood.

[SavageCatHV]

Did you need to use loc-tite? And did you need to torque it to a specific footpounds?

[DenverTransplant]

I changed the shocks to a set of Koni's on my ACE 30.1 last year and didn't have any significant problems. I also installed a rear track bar and did the rear CHF (front had been done a year before). All the mods were well worth the cost and work.

You just need the right size sockets and combination wrenches and breaker bar. I built myself a set of 4 ramps out of 2 x 10's (found the plans on IRV2 somewhere). I think the bottom section is 40" long, the second is 32", third 24" and the top 16". There is a 3" cleat on the top section to discourage rolling off in the front.

They worked great and I've used them several times when I have to get under the rig. In the front I actually had enough room to get into a crouch to access the top bolts.

[jelag]

BTW shocks have no ability to add support to the vehicle, there sole operation is to reduce the bounce of the vehicle when it hits a rut, pot hole, or other surface of the road that is irregular... and when turning to slow down and reduce body sway from centrifugal force..

If there is not a lock washer in the current installation than either a new lock washer needs to be installed or some kind of thread lock needs to be used... I have a preference for Loc-Tite brand, but there are many others that will easily hold...

On some locations where I expect a lot of rattling... I will sometimes us nothing more than some high quality waterproof wood glue help keep the nut from un-threading...

BTW all types of chemical thread locks DO NOT work well around plastic or some synthetics...

[Truck55]

Originally Posted by DenverTransplant

I changed the shocks to a set of Koni's on my ACE 30.1 last year and didn't have any significant problems. I also installed a rear track bar and did the rear CHF (front had been done a year before). All the mods were well worth the cost and work.

You just need the right size sockets and combination wrenches and breaker bar. I built myself a set of 4 ramps out of 2 x 10's (found the plans on IRV2 somewhere). I think the bottom section is 40" long, the second is 32", third 24" and the top 16". There is a 3" cleat on the top section to discourage rolling off in the front.

They worked great and I've used them several times when I have to get under the rig. In the front I actually had enough room to get into a crouch to access the top bolts.

That looks cool. What were your dimensions on the ramps

[Truck55]

Originally Posted by Truck55

That looks cool. What were your dimensions on the ramps

Stupid me I didn't read all your post. Lol