Suspension Upgrades

[HISSSSS]

First, thanks for all the great posts and info on the forum, I been lurking for the last three years since buying our first RV. With the search function, this RV newbie has found all my questions answered without posting over the last three years.

Our ride is a 2012 Winnebago Via, we have had it since 29k miles, now at 38k. It handles well on the highway with the exception of strong, gusty crosswinds and being passed by an 18 wheeler. My first tip for this forum: I resolved the “18 wheeler push” by letting off the accelerator as the truck tractor is about ten feet from the front of the RV and then resuming speed after the truck is barely ahead by six feet. Try it and see if it works for you, of course, YMMV. The crosswind issue became evident last week when we went through CO, KS, and MO during the recent storms/ tornadoes that have been developing in the afternoon. The other problem is front end diving at driveway/ speed bumps, etc.

To resolve the crosswind and diving handling issues I’m planning:
Solo SumoSprings on Front (SSF-106-40 @500#) and Rear (SSR-338-47 @900#), per Peter @ Super Springs, currently on order.
Hellwig 7254 Rear Anti-Sway bar
Replace the shocks since they are 7 years old and have 38k miles

Questions:
1) Is there a better choice for the cost than the Hellwig?
2) Looks like the choices for shocks are Bilstein, Koni, and Roadmaster. Many say the RM are expensive overkill and the Konis are better than Bilsteins on forums/Google, I didn’t see any recommendations for a Sprinter Chassis. Which Konis would be better, the heavy track (87-2657& 82-2588) or FSD models(8705-1331 & 8805-1056)?

[Strohack]

Have a 2003 HR Neptune purchased last year and on our first outing in West Texas we had strong crosswinds that made it very difficult to keep the Beast between the ditches. After a day of fighting that I began to adjust the tow in and after a couple of tries had the vehicle running true with seldom a disturbance. The toe-in was improperly set when I purchased the vehicle. Check it out.

[HISSSSS]

Originally Posted by Strohack

Have a 2003 HR Neptune purchased last year and on our first outing in West Texas we had strong crosswinds that made it very difficult to keep the Beast between the ditches. After a day of fighting that I began to adjust the tow in and after a couple of tries had the vehicle running true with seldom a disturbance. The toe-in was improperly set when I purchased the vehicle. Check it out.

I was also going to do that after getting Sumos and shocks installed, the old tires showed no signs of alignment issues so that is low on my list possible causes/ corrections, thanks for the input.

[Strohack]

Incorrect tow in will also cause the vehicle to pull towards the low side of the road. This is often noticeable on the older interstates and divided roads where the left land leans left or is level compared to the right lane. It can make it hard to keep from running off the road when you get near the edge. Tow out will cause the steering to be rather ambiguous and when you make a small correction the vehicle will not respond and then at some point it will cut sharply that direction. On my MH the camber and caster are fixed by the solid front axle, so that was not a factor. If you have independent front suspension all sorts of evil can be going on.
Good luck
Louis

[Jheiser]

I have a 2009 ERA Sprinter. I would get beat up every time by passing Semi-trucks on the highway, until today. I installed both front and rear SumoSprings on the van and the difference in the ride, handling and stability is as different as night and day. This upgrade is well worth the money.

The front SumoSprings were easy to install. It took me all of 10 minutes on each side to install the front ones. The rear ones were a different story. After fighting for almost 2 hours with just one side and not being able to get the proper leverage to get the edge pushed into the slot I took it over to a local shop who had both sides installed, road tested and ready to go in less than 45 minutes. He charged me $100 which was fine - he had the vehicle lift and I didn’t. Anyone with a Sprinter or large rig needing work in the Melbourne Florida area, Glenn’s Tire and Auto Service on US-1 just south of Melbourne downtown area is a great shop that know’s their trade.

Next up Koni rear shocks.

[HISSSSS]

Jheiser,

Thx for the install feedback, I had to go out and get a 10 mm deep well socket today to remove the front stops, hope to get them done tomorrow.

Looking at the rears, they do look to be a tight fit, I hope I have better luck than you did. Did find a video that uses WD40 to help the rubber slide on the steel housing:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J0bClLTDJEc

[gchapell]

Originally Posted by Jheiser

I have a 2009 ERA Sprinter. I would get beat up every time by passing Semi-trucks on the highway, until today. I installed both front and rear SumoSprings on the van and the difference in the ride, handling and stability is as different as night and day. This upgrade is well worth the money.

The front SumoSprings were easy to install. It took me all of 10 minutes on each side to install the front ones. The rear ones were a different story. After fighting for almost 2 hours with just one side and not being able to get the proper leverage to get the edge pushed into the slot I took it over to a local shop who had both sides installed, road tested and ready to go in less than 45 minutes. He charged me $100 which was fine - he had the vehicle lift and I didn’t. Anyone with a Sprinter or large rig needing work in the Melbourne Florida area, Glenn’s Tire and Auto Service on US-1 just south of Melbourne downtown area is a great shop that know’s their trade.

Next up Koni rear shocks.

Just installed a set of Fox 2.5 shocks in the rear of our 2016 Villagio(Renegade). We have just run 2000 mi from FL to CO and they have definitely gotten rid of most of the "wallow" effect. On the road they are pretty smooth except some of those expansion joint/cracks can still be rough. Do the Sumo's smooth out road bumps/expansion joint slam or do they just cut down on wallow? I guess I am asking if it smooths out the medium+ road issues.


Thanks,
George

[Jheiser]

Originally Posted by gchapell

Just installed a set of Fox 2.5 shocks in the rear of our 2016 Villagio(Renegade). We have just run 2000 mi from FL to CO and they have definitely gotten rid of most of the "wallow" effect. On the road they are pretty smooth except some of those expansion joint/cracks can still be rough. Do the Sumo's smooth out road bumps/expansion joint slam or do they just cut down on wallow? I guess I am asking if it smooths out the medium+ road issues.


Thanks,
George

To me, with the SumoSprings installed the ride feels more like riding in a car than like a van/truck. The SumoSprings have definitely taken out the hard bounce you get going in and out of driveways, going over speed bumps and the roughness in the ride when going down a rough road (like the right lane/truck lane on the interstate). Most importantly, at least for me, they have virtually removed the sway and helped with stability going down the road, especially when being passed by big rigs.

[HISSSSS]

Installed the front Sumosprings, took a short test drive and what a difference! Diving has been almost completely eliminated. Hope to take a short camping trip on Sunday with 100 miles on various roads to see how this one addition improves the handling.

Hope to get the rear Sumos on mid next week to see how much they help the rear porpoising.

[radar224]

Hi all,

Just a tip about the installation of the rear Sumos:

If you can get a hold of a deep throath vise grip, the kind welders use to hold two plates together, it will take a mere minutes to remove the existing stops.
These vise grips are able to grab the full width of the rubber stop, front to back.
After clamping down of the stop you are able to just remove it, it's that simple.

It will pivot right out with minimal force!

Hope this helps.

Marinus

[Mr_D]

Originally Posted by Strohack

Incorrect tow in will also cause the vehicle to pull towards the low side of the road. This is often noticeable on the older interstates and divided roads where the left land leans left or is level compared to the right lane. It can make it hard to keep from running off the road when you get near the edge. Tow out will cause the steering to be rather ambiguous and when you make a small correction the vehicle will not respond and then at some point it will cut sharply that direction. On my MH the camber and caster are fixed by the solid front axle, so that was not a factor. If you have independent front suspension all sorts of evil can be going on.
Good luck
Louis

Toe, not tow.

[Mr_D]

Originally Posted by HISSSSS

First, thanks for all the great posts and info on the forum, I been lurking for the last three years since buying our first RV. With the search function, this RV newbie has found all my questions answered without posting over the last three years.

Our ride is a 2012 Winnebago Via, we have had it since 29k miles, now at 38k. It handles well on the highway with the exception of strong, gusty crosswinds and being passed by an 18 wheeler. My first tip for this forum: I resolved the “18 wheeler push” by letting off the accelerator as the truck tractor is about ten feet from the front of the RV and then resuming speed after the truck is barely ahead by six feet. Try it and see if it works for you, of course, YMMV. The crosswind issue became evident last week when we went through CO, KS, and MO during the recent storms/ tornadoes that have been developing in the afternoon. The other problem is front end diving at driveway/ speed bumps, etc.

To resolve the crosswind and diving handling issues I’m planning:
Solo SumoSprings on Front (SSF-106-40 @500#) and Rear (SSR-338-47 @900#), per Peter @ Super Springs, currently on order.
Hellwig 7254 Rear Anti-Sway bar
Replace the shocks since they are 7 years old and have 38k miles

Questions:
1) Is there a better choice for the cost than the Hellwig?
2) Looks like the choices for shocks are Bilstein, Koni, and Roadmaster. Many say the RM are expensive overkill and the Konis are better than Bilsteins on forums/Google, I didn’t see any recommendations for a Sprinter Chassis. Which Konis would be better, the heavy track (87-2657& 82-2588) or FSD models(8705-1331 & 8805-1056)?

Roadmaster doesn't make or sell shocks. RoadKing does.