Impression of New Shocks and Sway Bars on E450
Just recently decided to take the plunge and install new aftermarket shocks and sway bars on our 2005 Winnebago Aspect 23D on a 2004 Ford E450 chassis. A lot has been reported on this subject already and I researched extensively before making the decision. I really did not think that the handling of this particular coach was bad before. We bought the Aspect new and have about 25K miles on the original chassis parts but, wondered if I could make it better. I thought others might benefit from my experience and so here's my take on the installation and then of course the driving result. We just recently got back from our first trip out after the installation and put about 1000 miles on the parts over various types of driving.
What I installed (tried to make the best choice for my application and use from what I read others doing):
Hellwig 7180 Rear Bar and 7008 Front Bar
Bilstein 174534 Steering Stabilizer, 176857 Rear Shocks and 187570 Front Shocks
Installation
Let me start by saying that by profession, I have been teaching automotive technology for nearly 4 decades and have worked as an auto tech and also in the Ag equipment business and so this is not my first rodeo. However, I decided to approach this as any "do-it-yourselfer" might try. I did not use anything special that most would not already have in their typical home garage. I even decided to leave the motorhome sitting on the ground for the entire installation of everything, simulating what anyone could do in their driveway. As a matter of fact, I did everything myself even though it would have been nice to have had a third hand and a bit younger set of muscles!
Sway bars. Removal of the original Ford bars front and rear, very straight forward. Nothing difficult here. Installation of the Hellwig bars, again not bad at all. The rear bar is heavy and bulky and so someone helping here would have been appreciated.
Shocks. If you have never installed heavy gas charged shocks before, get a little help here. Do your research, watch YouTube clips on tricks to getting the shock compressed while installing and so forth. Rear shocks, not bad. Fronts, again, not too bad here either. The top nut on the driver's side takes patience but, a ratcheting box wrench does a good job. I've been involved in much, much worse before.
Driving Impressions
Low speed maneuvering over uneven areas like cornering through dips at intersections made the coach move a lot before. Not as bad as our old gasser class A on the P-30 "bread truck" chassis, but far from SUV quality. We're from Kansas and so wind is something that we deal with regularly. Side wind gusts before, two hands on the wheel at all times when gusts went above approx. 20mph. Correction on the wheel would often times be nearly a constant 45 degrees in strong side winds-not a real comforting feeling but, when you need to make miles you take chances I guess.
After installation-Low speed maneuvering drastically improved. No more rocking and rolling during cornering. Prevented nearly 75% of the leaning. Ride quality, I actually think the HD Bilsteins took the harsh feeling out of bumps. Don't forget, we are on a 450 chassis with a fairly short coach. I've heard some suggest to not use the HD shocks but use the "Comfort" model instead. For us, the HD works very well. Side winds-I hit side gusts of 40mph as we came across Northern Missouri and Kansas on the trip. No more 45 degrees correction! Pleased with that improvement. Actually could "one-hand-it" on the wheel with those gusts and truck traffic. No way could we have done that before. Highway speed cornering-very predictable. Handled the Ozark mountain two lane roads with nice confidence.
Overall, good decision to install the parts. Does the motorhome handle like an "SUV" now, well not like most I have driven but, still worth the cost of this upgrade. I highly recommend doing this and would do it again on any E450 coach that did not have this done. Most confident do-it-yourselfers should be able to do this on their own.
Next up, my wife is tired of doing the Lego block leveling thing and asked, "isn't there something else?" That's all I needed-I have placed my order for Quadra Big Foot Leveling System.
I know many are already saying, "you don't need this on a short coach like that!" I will remember that the next time I pull up and level with the touch of a button while I watch you get your blocks out during the driving rainstorm! We may not need them, but I think we may really enjoy the convenience-we'll see if it's worth it. I'll report on this one after I do the installation and we head out next month on our trip out west.
What I installed (tried to make the best choice for my application and use from what I read others doing):
Hellwig 7180 Rear Bar and 7008 Front Bar
Bilstein 174534 Steering Stabilizer, 176857 Rear Shocks and 187570 Front Shocks
Installation
Let me start by saying that by profession, I have been teaching automotive technology for nearly 4 decades and have worked as an auto tech and also in the Ag equipment business and so this is not my first rodeo. However, I decided to approach this as any "do-it-yourselfer" might try. I did not use anything special that most would not already have in their typical home garage. I even decided to leave the motorhome sitting on the ground for the entire installation of everything, simulating what anyone could do in their driveway. As a matter of fact, I did everything myself even though it would have been nice to have had a third hand and a bit younger set of muscles!
Sway bars. Removal of the original Ford bars front and rear, very straight forward. Nothing difficult here. Installation of the Hellwig bars, again not bad at all. The rear bar is heavy and bulky and so someone helping here would have been appreciated.
Shocks. If you have never installed heavy gas charged shocks before, get a little help here. Do your research, watch YouTube clips on tricks to getting the shock compressed while installing and so forth. Rear shocks, not bad. Fronts, again, not too bad here either. The top nut on the driver's side takes patience but, a ratcheting box wrench does a good job. I've been involved in much, much worse before.
Driving Impressions
Low speed maneuvering over uneven areas like cornering through dips at intersections made the coach move a lot before. Not as bad as our old gasser class A on the P-30 "bread truck" chassis, but far from SUV quality. We're from Kansas and so wind is something that we deal with regularly. Side wind gusts before, two hands on the wheel at all times when gusts went above approx. 20mph. Correction on the wheel would often times be nearly a constant 45 degrees in strong side winds-not a real comforting feeling but, when you need to make miles you take chances I guess.
After installation-Low speed maneuvering drastically improved. No more rocking and rolling during cornering. Prevented nearly 75% of the leaning. Ride quality, I actually think the HD Bilsteins took the harsh feeling out of bumps. Don't forget, we are on a 450 chassis with a fairly short coach. I've heard some suggest to not use the HD shocks but use the "Comfort" model instead. For us, the HD works very well. Side winds-I hit side gusts of 40mph as we came across Northern Missouri and Kansas on the trip. No more 45 degrees correction! Pleased with that improvement. Actually could "one-hand-it" on the wheel with those gusts and truck traffic. No way could we have done that before. Highway speed cornering-very predictable. Handled the Ozark mountain two lane roads with nice confidence.
Overall, good decision to install the parts. Does the motorhome handle like an "SUV" now, well not like most I have driven but, still worth the cost of this upgrade. I highly recommend doing this and would do it again on any E450 coach that did not have this done. Most confident do-it-yourselfers should be able to do this on their own.
Next up, my wife is tired of doing the Lego block leveling thing and asked, "isn't there something else?" That's all I needed-I have placed my order for Quadra Big Foot Leveling System.
I know many are already saying, "you don't need this on a short coach like that!" I will remember that the next time I pull up and level with the touch of a button while I watch you get your blocks out during the driving rainstorm! We may not need them, but I think we may really enjoy the convenience-we'll see if it's worth it. I'll report on this one after I do the installation and we head out next month on our trip out west.
