dsisemore1
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Just purchased a 2012 Itasca Suncruiser. Of course we test drove on nice roads and some not so nice. We purchased in Texas but live in Louisiana. If Louisiana doesn't have the roughest interstate roads they are in the top two. The ride was very rough. Any suggestions on what we might do to help offset the roads we must travel. We have a Ford F53 26000 lb chasis.
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othertonka
Stockton, CA
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Joined: 11/15/2003
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Weigh each wheel position and find out how much weight you are carrying, or at least weigh each axle, then go to your tire manufactures web site and find the inflation table for your tire size. IT will tell you how much air you need to carry that weight. I am betting that you have too much air in the tires. Dealers are required to inflate up to the maximum PSI as stated on the side wall of the tire, which is the pressure to carry maximum load of that tire, when in reality your RV probably does not weigh that much. For example the stamp could say you need 110 PSI for maximum load and the chart maybe will say you only need 80 PSI for your actual weight. Give it a try, weigh first before deflating.
Here is a link to Michelins inflation table.
Michelin table
Othertonka
2004 Southwind 32VS 8.1 Workhorse chassis
2002 CRV Toad
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garym114
Bluff Dale, Texas
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othertonka wrote:Weigh each wheel position and find out how much weight you are carrying, or at least weigh each axle, then go to your tire manufactures web site and find the inflation table for your tire size. IT will tell you how much air you need to carry that weight. I am betting that you have too much air in the tires. Dealers are required to inflate up to the maximum PSI as stated on the side wall of the tire, which is the pressure to carry maximum load of that tire, when in reality your RV probably does not weigh that much. For example the stamp could say you need 110 PSI for maximum load and the chart maybe will say you only need 80 PSI for your actual weight. Give it a try, weigh first before deflating.
Here is a link to Michelins inflation table.
Michelin table
Very Good Answer - This is what you need to do.
Louisiana roads, no joy
2000 Sea Breeze F53 V10 - CR-V Toad
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rockhillmanor
On the Road
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Ditto on no more than 80 on the tires. I actually put less in the front tires IMHO better handling.
Was your gas tank near empty or full? It rides better with the added fuel weight.
We must be willing to get rid of the life we've planned,
so as to have the life that is waiting for us.
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pulsar
Lewisville, NC
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Moved from Forum Technical Support.
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Dale.Traveling
Newport News, VA
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I noodled the tire pressure question pretty deep for my coach. The conclusion I came up with is my tires (Kelly KSR 245/70 19.5) I have a greater load carrying capacity with the tires at maximum pressure then what the axles/chassis are designed to carry. I also had my coach weight checked with a normal running loading and found I was 3K lbs under chassis maximum (1K front and 2K rear) of 18K lbs. Taking all this into consideration the coach manufacture tire pressure sticker recommendation of 80 psi matches both the tire manufacture recommended pressure for the maximum load capability of the chassis manufacture.
An empty coach will ride very hard. The suspension needs the weight of the coach to push against and absorb the movement of the suspension. (see Newton's 3rd Law of Motion).
Also don't confuse the GCWR (combined coach and whatever you are towing) and GVWR (coach only). My 2006 F53 chassis has a combined limit of 26K GCRW but my 208" chassis is only rated at 18K GVRW. Don't take this to mean I have 8k of towing capacity. The hitch and frame extensions limit towing to 5K.
* This post was
edited 02/05/12 07:38am by Dale.Traveling *
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Retired VSP
Bedford, Virginia
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We bought a new Bay Star 2010 on an F53 Chasis....rough, rough, rough. Replaced the Bilsteins with a set of Konis - some improvement - then lowered air pressure to 80 psi - some more improvement - going to Newmar in April for year end warranty tweeks - hope to eliminate some of the rattles especially around the front TV and some other places......I know it'll never ride like an SUV but, really, I don't know if I could stand a ride to Alaska with the way it originally was...with high gas prices I won't need to worry about it anyway - but that's another thread.
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driveby
Vancouver BC Canada
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btw when you weigh it weigh it with full water. Ours rides much better with a full water tank (almost all the way at the rear of the coach) then when riding home empty.
2008 Itasca Sunova 35J Class A
1997 TJ Sahara, hard and soft tops and AC
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wolfe10
Texas
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rockhillmanor wrote:Ditto on no more than 80 on the tires. I actually put less in the front tires IMHO better handling.
Was your gas tank near empty or full? It rides better with the added fuel weight.
Without knowing the exact weights of HIS coach, not sure how we can safely make PSI recommendations.
Brett Wolfe
1993 Foretravel 36' U-240
Cat 3116, Allison 3060
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Goldencrazy
madison wi
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Well here we go again. First the Louisiana roads are pretty bad in some spots. Just came over 10 and 12 last week and nothing will ride good on them. Next, I agree that a little more weight will help the ride as it will compress the springs and shocks. My 30 ft Winnebago Vista is about your size and 80 psi is about right. I had 95 for awhile and it was terrible. Koni shocks helped the ride quite a bit on my 2010. The biggest improvement is installing the Kelderman air ride. It really makes a huge difference even on those bad roads. I did bounch and clang on those horrible sections but nothing like the jarring I would have had without Kelderman. Pricey, yes, but it is an option for those with gassers who want an air like ride. Lot's of threads on this subject.
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