Advice from new Winnebago owners?

Check out WIT (Winnebago Itasca Travelers)

If you know which way to loosen and tighten bolts then you can do the sway bar mod yourself. I did mine on the weekend while my son was visiting and the two of us did it in about an hour each working on our own side. If you have the correct tools under there it goes really fast. I spent more time getting and looking for tools than doing the adjustment. After we finished we went for a ride and I was amazed at the difference. The MH corners much better due to reduced sway. I haven't been out in the wind yet but suspect we'll see an improvement there too. Mine is a 30 foot 2003 F53 chassis and I did the front and back sway bars. The front went very quickly with only two bolts to undo. The back took a bit longer as there are two bolts per side and we had some rust to contend with. I would suggest as others have said to go to IRV2.com and search for CHF (cheap handling fix) and do some reading. You too will become convinced that you can and should do it. Best money I never spent! They even have some pictures of some different setups depending on what year chassis you have. Good luck and let us know how you make out.

Goldencrazy wrote:
I'll bet you come a lot closer to 80 psi when you have the weight and read the tire manufacturer recommendation. A rear trac bar will help the sway along with the cheap fix of moving the sway bars to the closer holes.

Yes, you were right. I just got back from a weekend trip & ran 85 PSI all around & it handled much better - felt much more stable even with some gusty crosswinds & semis passing. I'm not sure I really need to adjust the sway bars but if I decide to try it, is it something I can easily do myself (I'm not a mechanic but I am handy) or would it have to go back to the dealer?

Thanks,
Cass

I'll bet you come a lot closer to 80 psi when you have the weight and read the tire manufacturer recommendation. A rear trac bar will help the sway along with the cheap fix of moving the sway bars to the closer holes.

Cass Sumrall wrote:
Lot's of good advice here.

We have made three short trips now within FL & are leaving tomorrow for another. Things are going well & there have been only a few small problems with the coach which I have been able to fix myself rather than make the trip back to the dealer.

I know others with this coach have spent a lot of money on suspension upgrades but I would prefer not to do that if I can get comfortable with it as is. But I am unsure about how much pressure to run in the tires. I have widely varying opinions from 82 PSI on the sticker by the driver's seat to 110 PSI (max load pressure stated on the tires) which was recommended by the dealer for better handling. It arrived at the dealer's from Winnebago with 90 PSI all around. I am currently trying 110 PSI & do not find the ride harsh or rough to our taste even at that pressure but the biggest problem is with cross wind (which we have had a lot of on our trips so far) & being passed on the interstate by 18 wheelers. I will eventually try & get it weighed but from my own calculations I am sure I am 500 - 1000 lbs under max gross weight with our typical light load.

I would appreciate the experience of others with this model.

Thanks,
Cass

Your problem seems like a perfect candidate for the "cheap handling fix" aka CHF. If you google "ir2v.com cheap handling fix"

a very long 100+ page thread comes up about it.

Basically it's as simple as moving the anti-sway bar links to the lower holes. People are seeing a world of difference and it doesn't cost you a dime.

You can add air bags and all the other stuff, but recommend you do that fix first.

Enjoy your new Winnebago!!! I purchased a new 2012 Vista 32K in January. We are also impressed with the overall quality of the Winnebago. After the salesperson demonstrated how thngs worked, the service manager did a walk through with us. To our suprise he was the one that noted a few issues with the wall board covering around the windows and shower. The dealer called 3 weeks ago and informed me they recieved the new wall board from Winnebago and its been in the shop since then. We only needed one other issue addressed, I was getting an alarm from the leveling system while driving on bumpy or winding roads, the fluid level is fine but it was a little unnerving on our first trip through Los Angeles traffic when the "jacks down" light lit up...
I would suggest looking at every detail and having a second and even a third set of eyes doing the same. Enjoy your new toy!

Lot's of good advice here.

We have made three short trips now within FL & are leaving tomorrow for another. Things are going well & there have been only a few small problems with the coach which I have been able to fix myself rather than make the trip back to the dealer.

I know others with this coach have spent a lot of money on suspension upgrades but I would prefer not to do that if I can get comfortable with it as is. But I am unsure about how much pressure to run in the tires. I have widely varying opinions from 82 PSI on the sticker by the driver's seat to 110 PSI (max load pressure stated on the tires) which was recommended by the dealer for better handling. It arrived at the dealer's from Winnebago with 90 PSI all around. I am currently trying 110 PSI & do not find the ride harsh or rough to our taste even at that pressure but the biggest problem is with cross wind (which we have had a lot of on our trips so far) & being passed on the interstate by 18 wheelers. I will eventually try & get it weighed but from my own calculations I am sure I am 500 - 1000 lbs under max gross weight with our typical light load.

I would appreciate the experience of others with this model.

Thanks,
Cass

Enjoy and don't over think what you need. Spend some time with her before you start buying her all kinds of junk you'll never use.

Extra:

Sewer hose
Water hose (1 or 2 varying lengths)
Plumbers tape

Add a pressure regulator and that is all you need right off the bat. Take your time and relax and enjoy your rig. Spend some time with her on the dealer lot running through all the systems a few times. Keep a punch list.

Consider extras to include a pressure guage and restrictor, sewer, fresh water hose and 50 amp cables for those long reaches, weather monitor, large jack pads, sun screen and bungi cables for shade, GPS, tables and goodies from your favorate vendor.

kennethwooster wrote:
I'm parked by another unit, and watched them change out the 50amp male and female plug. Said he had been at a camp ground where the electricity would go off and on about 3 times per day. He had to protection, and both male and female were burned very bad. He was lucky the entire unit didn't go up in flames. Breakers at park and trailer never flipped. I showed him my serge guard. We;ll see if he gets one.

A burnt plug is usually from high resistance between the plug and the recepticle it's plugged into. If the plug or socket are corroded, have become oxidized, or if there's a poor connection it will raise the resistance and cause the terminals to heat up. One way to lower the resistance is to clean the plug regularly with Scotch brite, sand paper or emery paper. The prongs should be brite and shinny to ensure a good connection. It's a little more involved to clean the socket end of the cord since it has to be disassembled.

It's curious that both the plug and the socket on the cord were burnt. I wonder if there's still a problem where it hooks into the coach.