F53 chassis hanling in the wind
We have a, new to us, Winnebago Vista 26 on the F53 chassis. Have done the cheap handling fix, wheel alignment and tire pressure checks. On any kind of a windy day or truck passing the coach is a bear...
Forum Discussion
I have absolutely no experience with the Ford chassis, but I have solved the sidewind and passing 18-wheeler bow wave effects on my Workhorse W20 chassis. From what I have read about the problem and felt with my butt-dyno, the movement is made worse when the coach body and the chassis are not solidly connected to eliminate side-to-side movement. This is definitely a problem with leaf spring suspensions like on the W20.
When an 18-wheeler overtakes your RV, the bow-wave hits the left rear of the coach first, and that pushes the rear toward the shoulder. When the body rear moves right slightly before the rear axle does, it amplifies the push to the left that you feel in the front causing you to correct by steering to the right. As the 18-wheeler bow wave moves toward the front of the coach, it pushes the front of the coach to the right, and when the body moves right slightly before the front axle does, it amplifies the steering correction you have already done causing you to have to correct to the left. This whole thing, if you are not used to the feelings, can be quite scary.
What I have found is that the best solution for the whole problem on my W20 is to install a trac-bar on both the front and rear axles to force the body and chassis to react together when needed. FYI, the sway bars on Workhorse W-Series chassis don’t help side-to-side movement at all because they are mounted only between the leaf springs, and not to the chassis.
When an 18-wheeler overtakes your RV, the bow-wave hits the left rear of the coach first, and that pushes the rear toward the shoulder. When the body rear moves right slightly before the rear axle does, it amplifies the push to the left that you feel in the front causing you to correct by steering to the right. As the 18-wheeler bow wave moves toward the front of the coach, it pushes the front of the coach to the right, and when the body moves right slightly before the front axle does, it amplifies the steering correction you have already done causing you to have to correct to the left. This whole thing, if you are not used to the feelings, can be quite scary.
What I have found is that the best solution for the whole problem on my W20 is to install a trac-bar on both the front and rear axles to force the body and chassis to react together when needed. FYI, the sway bars on Workhorse W-Series chassis don’t help side-to-side movement at all because they are mounted only between the leaf springs, and not to the chassis.
