In the market for used smaller RV
Comparing used RV's. Wife and I, want to keep smaller for drive-ability, storing at home, and economy. Probably 22-24 foot. Regular B's are just too small. Trying to compare B+ to smaller C's. I'...
Forum Discussion
Alta Volunteer,
You bring up a number of valid points. I do feel that many of your issues exist because you have a "special ordered" model 2350 on an over-kill E450 chassis. That rig is normally built on an E350 chassis. Your house could be getting beat to death from a very harsh ride. I don't have much to offer in the way of recommendations except to try some of your ideas out and maybe install Koni-FSD shock absorbers to help with the rough ride. I do not think air bags will offer a softer ride, but removing a leaf or two per side could do wonders. I always wondered about Sulastic Shackles to soften the ride. A few people here like carringb have them and like the results. They are expensive but non-evasive, an easy installation too. If I had the money to toss around, I would get them to further reduce the feel of the road in back with my own rig.
A few things you can do immediately to reduce the rough ride.
- always travel with a full tank of fresh water to add weight to help dampen the roughness.
- set your tire pressure as specified on the driver door sticker that Phoenix USA stuck there. On my rig, I think it states 60psi in the front and 65psi in the rear. I tried 75psi all around and the ride was much rougher.
About your lack of power, you are the first person I ever heard that their E450-V10 lacks power, especially considering your rig weighs not much over 9000 pounds. READ THIS technical bulletin on the 2010 Ford E-Series chassis and make sure you do not have the air intake obstruction.
About the battery tray, I don't know what PC-USA is doing today but I think they have since implemented something similar to what I came up with years ago to resolve the problem. CLICK HERE to see it. It would nice if I replaced my stiff ground cables with easy-bending cables like my power cables are.
I agree about the mattress. It compresses too easily for my comfort too. I'd get their memory foam one if ordering a new unit today. I'd order one now but my wife likes the current mattress very much so I tolerate it well. We had the same situation with our dinette cushions. I got replacement cushions from PC-USA, leather-covered memory foam cushions, and oh what a difference for me. I can sit more than twice as long at the dinette now before needing to get up to stretch.
Our 2007 Tripp-Lite 2000 watt inverter seems to do the same with our batteries. When at home I disconnect the batteries completely, both the house and the chassis. It does seem that when one battery is weaker than the other, the charger tends to over-charge the good one in trying to recover the weaker one. I think that is why it is advised to replace batteries in pairs. Some people switch to two 6V batteries in series which I understand may eliminate that condition.
I also noticed that when one battery has gone bad and can't get fully charged, the acid boils out of both batteries because the charger keeps trying.
If you need any specific hardware or other parts for your PC, call the factory in Elkhart, IN. They will get you what you need fast, and at a lower price than most anywhere else.
BTW, the factory typically sells their rigs "at least" 20% off MSRP. Nobody would pay $120k for a 2350. More like $90,000, maybe a bit more pending demand at the time. The best negotiated pricing is had during their slowest time of year which is in October/November.
Good luck in smoothing out the ride on that over-stiff E450 suspension. I think if you can smooth out the ride, some of your other issues will settle down.
You bring up a number of valid points. I do feel that many of your issues exist because you have a "special ordered" model 2350 on an over-kill E450 chassis. That rig is normally built on an E350 chassis. Your house could be getting beat to death from a very harsh ride. I don't have much to offer in the way of recommendations except to try some of your ideas out and maybe install Koni-FSD shock absorbers to help with the rough ride. I do not think air bags will offer a softer ride, but removing a leaf or two per side could do wonders. I always wondered about Sulastic Shackles to soften the ride. A few people here like carringb have them and like the results. They are expensive but non-evasive, an easy installation too. If I had the money to toss around, I would get them to further reduce the feel of the road in back with my own rig.
A few things you can do immediately to reduce the rough ride.
- always travel with a full tank of fresh water to add weight to help dampen the roughness.
- set your tire pressure as specified on the driver door sticker that Phoenix USA stuck there. On my rig, I think it states 60psi in the front and 65psi in the rear. I tried 75psi all around and the ride was much rougher.
About your lack of power, you are the first person I ever heard that their E450-V10 lacks power, especially considering your rig weighs not much over 9000 pounds. READ THIS technical bulletin on the 2010 Ford E-Series chassis and make sure you do not have the air intake obstruction.
About the battery tray, I don't know what PC-USA is doing today but I think they have since implemented something similar to what I came up with years ago to resolve the problem. CLICK HERE to see it. It would nice if I replaced my stiff ground cables with easy-bending cables like my power cables are.
I agree about the mattress. It compresses too easily for my comfort too. I'd get their memory foam one if ordering a new unit today. I'd order one now but my wife likes the current mattress very much so I tolerate it well. We had the same situation with our dinette cushions. I got replacement cushions from PC-USA, leather-covered memory foam cushions, and oh what a difference for me. I can sit more than twice as long at the dinette now before needing to get up to stretch.
Our 2007 Tripp-Lite 2000 watt inverter seems to do the same with our batteries. When at home I disconnect the batteries completely, both the house and the chassis. It does seem that when one battery is weaker than the other, the charger tends to over-charge the good one in trying to recover the weaker one. I think that is why it is advised to replace batteries in pairs. Some people switch to two 6V batteries in series which I understand may eliminate that condition.
I also noticed that when one battery has gone bad and can't get fully charged, the acid boils out of both batteries because the charger keeps trying.
If you need any specific hardware or other parts for your PC, call the factory in Elkhart, IN. They will get you what you need fast, and at a lower price than most anywhere else.
BTW, the factory typically sells their rigs "at least" 20% off MSRP. Nobody would pay $120k for a 2350. More like $90,000, maybe a bit more pending demand at the time. The best negotiated pricing is had during their slowest time of year which is in October/November.
Good luck in smoothing out the ride on that over-stiff E450 suspension. I think if you can smooth out the ride, some of your other issues will settle down.
