Forum Discussion
fortytwo
Feb 27, 2015Explorer
Most of the handling problems of class C's result from "cheaping out" with too short a wheelbase for the overall length, and from the fact that weight and balance are at the bottom of the design criteria - if there at all.
Consumer RV Group concluded a decade and half ago that wheelbase had to be at least 55% of overall length to handle well. My experience has been that that recommendation was spot on. Water, waste, and fuel tanks are almost always behind the rear wheels. Add a toad with the concentration of weight - engine & tranny - over or near the front wheels and the leveraged weight working against the steering mechanism of an RV with too short a wheel base makes directional stability problematic.
Consumer RV Group concluded a decade and half ago that wheelbase had to be at least 55% of overall length to handle well. My experience has been that that recommendation was spot on. Water, waste, and fuel tanks are almost always behind the rear wheels. Add a toad with the concentration of weight - engine & tranny - over or near the front wheels and the leveraged weight working against the steering mechanism of an RV with too short a wheel base makes directional stability problematic.
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