Road Grade/Slope - Know if on a grade - Display/Guage

[swduns]

2008 Tiffin Phaeton 40' Class A DP

There was a recent thread that discussed road grade and being able to know if your going uphill or downhill

There are times it seems difficult to me to know if I'm on a grade and then how steep the grade is. If the engine is running warmer or the engine seems to be under a greater load than I would expect ... it would be helpful to know to what extent I'm on a grade. Roadway signs sometimes tell you the grade in percent. Most gauges are in degrees. Degrees would be fine just to show you to what extent your on a grade/slope.

On a recent trip on 2 lane roads with many steep hills there were times on more subtle grades I wasn't sure if I was going up hill or down hill.

After the recent post, I began looking on line. The Inclinometers for off-road vehicles seemed to me that they would be not precise enough for subtle grades ... I interpreted they were more interested in not turning over.

So I focused in on bubble guages, there were some for hundreds of dollars, I focused on cheaper gauges and as wide as possible, with slopes less than 10 degrees.

See attached. I believe I will get the dual gauge (item 3) to mount on the wall beside the driver and the 6 degree longer gauge (item 2) to mount on the dash. The value for me of the dash 6 degree gauge is just to judge how unlevel sites are when selection sites.

This isn't a must have but just a nice to have ... and is just tinkering.

IMHO

[TandW]

Installed inexpensive peel to stick RV bubble levels on the driver door and dash of both coaches I have owned. Wouldn't be without them for very obvious reasons.

[Bigd9]

I've gotta ask, what do you do with this going up or going down information while you are driving? I mean if you can't visually tell, but the device indicates you are going slightly up or going slightly down, so what? You have a Cummins 360 hp diesel engine that should be able to take you anywhere without breaking a sweat. Now when I get on 8 to 16% grades, I take notice, but other grades, not so much.

I use a LevelPro+ device at a campsite that tells me how many inches I need to raise each wheel position in order to get level. Lots of sites we go to this information is helpful because the amount of leveling needed it more then what the jacks can do.

[hayward3411]

My GPS unit shows grade, speed and altitude.

[Mudfrog]

Originally Posted by Bigd9

I've gotta ask, what do you do with this going up or going down information while you are driving? I mean if you can't visually tell, but the device indicates you are going slightly up or going slightly down, so what? You have a Cummins 360 hp diesel engine that should be able to take you anywhere without breaking a sweat. Now when I get on 8 to 16% grades, I take notice, but other grades, not so much.

I use a LevelPro+ device at a campsite that tells me how many inches I need to raise each wheel position in order to get level. Lots of sites we go to this information is helpful because the amount of leveling needed it more then what the jacks can do.

Was wondering the same thing, what to do with the info a person would get? I suppose that like many things, mainly curiousness.

If I were interested, a not perfect but decent indication would be to look at the driving computer's "real time" mileage display. Mpg numbers would creep down going uphill and do the opposite driving down hill. Doesn't take much of either to register on the computer.

I do have a bubble level by the dash that I can watch but it wouldn't work well for this since it's constantly moving around with every turn of the wheel and bump in the road.

[Dutch Star Don]

My Silverleaf VMSpc program and the Bluefire program will both tell you if you're on a slight uphill grade or a slight downhill grade by giving you Rolling MPG numbers. I actually find it useful information. Many small grades can be deceiving. When I see my Rolling MPG increase, it tells me I'm going downhill. If it's long enough, I may bump the cruise up a little and back off some if I'm going uphill.

Below is the Siverleaf info shown on a small laptop that I use. The Rolling MPG is in the upper right corner. Obviously, I was coasting in this situation, getting 15 mpg.

[96 Wideglide]

I just take a look at the turbo boost gauge.

[Arch Hoagland]

On our first long trip many years ago I was on I90 headed west through the Coeur d'Alene Idaho area and had my foot to the floor. Couldn't get above 40 mph.

It looked level so I finally pulled over and used a level I had which said it WAS level. However I discovered there was a very strong headwind that was holding me back.

That was when I started learning about headwinds.

[Tombsy]

I use my Garmin, you can set it to show an elevation profile for the road ahead.

[vyndance]

Not really sure how you would not know. But there was a guy on a Facebook fulltime group today that wanted a g meter so he could slow down if he was entering a curve to fast.

[Bigd9]

Originally Posted by vyndance

Not really sure how you would not know. But there was a guy on a Facebook fulltime group today that wanted a g meter so he could slow down if he was entering a curve to fast.

I have one of those but instead of showing that I'm going to fast, mine grabs the OH Shoot Handle and loudly exclaims "slow down .. Slow Down...SLOW DOWN!" getting louder and louder and louder" with each word.

[Ray,IN]

It's really quite simple. Download a free phone app. inclineometer for iphone or android from google app store or apple.
Some of the best apps may be set to show as slight as a 1° grade. One should always calibrate the app on their cell phone on a known level surface first, for both axis.
Then determine your MH floor level when parked on a level surface, and adjust your cell phone app as necessary.

[Rexlion]

Originally Posted by Bigd9

I have one of those but instead of showing that I'm going to fast, mine grabs the OH Shoot Handle and loudly exclaims "slow down .. Slow Down...SLOW DOWN!" getting louder and louder and louder" with each word.

Yeah, but can that warning system also cook you a hot meal? If so, it's worthwhile.

[TechWriter]

Originally Posted by Tombsy

I use my Garmin, you can set it to show an elevation profile for the road ahead.

Like this . .. VERY handy . . .