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MURPHY55347's avatar
MURPHY55347
Explorer
May 11, 2018

Steering stabilizer

I used to have a class A gas motorhome and switched to class C. Now going back to class A. Steering on the class C has a much tighter on center feel and you don't find yourself sawing the wheel back and forth to go in a straight line like on the class A. Will a steering stabilizer help? Does the stabilizer make it more difficult to maneuver at slow speeds like backing into a campsite? I see there are several different types. Shock absorber, spring, and electronic. Right now I would lean toward a Safe T Plus mainly based on cost and functionality. What advice can you offer?

17 Replies

  • F-53s will not track very well unless the toe-in is set correctly. Loose front end parts also contribute to wander. If the grease boy doesn't understand that kingpins need grease, those will wear quickly. When the toe-in is set properly, tires will wear on the outer edge a little (generally enough to necessitate replacing the front tires before the rear). The price of admission for big truck tracking straight. Front end techs that aren't familiar with long chassis with straight axle adjustment will try taking off some of the toe-in to help with the tire wear. Boom. Wandering motorhome.
  • We have the Saf T Plus on our Class A Ford V10 chassis. We also did the cheap handling fix on both front and rear.
  • A unit that wanders may need more positive caster.

    POPULAR MECHANICS MAY 1973:
    START QUOTE:
    If too little caster exists, the car will wander and weave,
    thus necessitating constant corrections in steering.
    END QUOTE:

    There are at least two ways to increase the effective
    runtime caster (see Self Aligning Torque):

    1. Decrease the tire inflation pressure to the required
    minimum for load (to increase Pneumatic Trail), and or

    2. Increase the caster angle during an alignment
    (to increase caster trail).
  • I would suggest first thing to do is get a good alignment. The new chassis is aligned without a body. Once body is installed and then your ready for the road supplies changes the rig's configuration.
    Make sure rig is weighed to insure tire pressures are correct.
    Once these items are done see how it handles for you.
  • I used Steer Safe on 2 different Class A, one was a Ford and one was the P32 Chev (my first new Class A) What a difference in handling. No, it did not make any difference in backing up.
  • What chassis? This will make some difference on corrective action for steering.