Major suspension/steering upgrade
We have just made a decision somewhat based on faith. We have a 15 year old 30 ft. C on the Ford E-450 chassis that we still like and plan to keep. But recently, the steering has become stressful and ...
Forum Discussion
The E450 does have a steering damper. Sometimes, when they get old, some of the fluid inside leaks out and they can start to behave in a bit of a strange way, where it's elastic with small steering inputs/changes but damps on larger ones (I think the air bubble acts as a spring, but once it moves enough to get past that it damps as normal). This can definitely make for odd handling...and is quite simple and inexpensive to replace if you use a factory equivalent vs. a self-centering steering stabilizer. Unlike some other steering and suspension wear points, this may not be immediately obvious with a quick inspection. (Weak springs, worn shock absorbers, lost play in the steering linkages, etc. seem to me to be a little more readily identifiable.)
If the steering response has changed recently, clearly something (or several things) has broken or worn, and fixing whatever that is would restore the original handling. If you're getting more sensitive to conditions that have always existed for whatever reason, or finding driving generally more tiresome due to not growing younger or more traffic or whatever, then restoring to the original condition of course might not be all you want.
If the steering response has changed recently, clearly something (or several things) has broken or worn, and fixing whatever that is would restore the original handling. If you're getting more sensitive to conditions that have always existed for whatever reason, or finding driving generally more tiresome due to not growing younger or more traffic or whatever, then restoring to the original condition of course might not be all you want.
