Which Bilstein shock is best for my RV?
I have a '94 28ft Minnie Winnie. I think it's more like 30ft bumper to bumper. I see Bilstein offers two shocks - the HD and the Comfort. They say the comfort is recommended for RV's under 30ft and...
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Our old 1983 Toyota chassis motor home of yesteryear had driver-adjustable air bags. With regards to harshness of ride, the less air the softer the ride. The more air, the stiffer the ride. 15 psi was the recommended minimum as not to damage the air bags. I would run with 15 psi when conditions were ideal for driving, but cross-winds and mountain driving, I would put in 60 psi to improve handling at the sacrifice of a softer ride.
Regarding shock absorbers, I owned a 2003 Corvette with adjustable shocks. They were the current-day technology adjustable magnetic ride shocks which had a two position setting, Touring and Performance. Touring was a soft setting with a comfortable ride and normal handling. Performance was a stiff hard (heavy duty) setting which made the car handle better yet as long as the road surface was real smooth. The "Performance" setting offered a rough ride on the roads I commuted on so I never used it except to "toy" with.
I wonder if the Koni-FSD shocks would be like my Corvette, but with an automated two position setting offering a smoother ride under good motionless-suspension conditions, but then kicks into instantaneous heavy duty mode when the rig's supension starts to move.....hence I wonder if there is reduced vibration of which I previously mentioned in a prior reply on this subject matter here.
Here was the two position shock adjuster in my 2003 Corvette, just to the left of the parking brake lever.
Regarding shock absorbers, I owned a 2003 Corvette with adjustable shocks. They were the current-day technology adjustable magnetic ride shocks which had a two position setting, Touring and Performance. Touring was a soft setting with a comfortable ride and normal handling. Performance was a stiff hard (heavy duty) setting which made the car handle better yet as long as the road surface was real smooth. The "Performance" setting offered a rough ride on the roads I commuted on so I never used it except to "toy" with.
I wonder if the Koni-FSD shocks would be like my Corvette, but with an automated two position setting offering a smoother ride under good motionless-suspension conditions, but then kicks into instantaneous heavy duty mode when the rig's supension starts to move.....hence I wonder if there is reduced vibration of which I previously mentioned in a prior reply on this subject matter here.
ron.dittmer wrote:Here was the air bag controller above the driver's left knee in my old 1983 Toyota motor home.
I had read up on FSDs years ago and recall inside they have a mechanical limiting check valve that allows hydraulic fluid to pass thru to make the shocks soft under normal conditions, but kick into heavy duty mode on demand. The end result is that you get a soft ride except when road conditions change which require heavy duty shocks.
I have the other Koni RV shocks, the red colored adjustable model. They are set highest, so I would imagine they are comparable to the HD Bilsteins. As an experiment with my wife driving, I laid on my back on the floor over the rear axle. There really is a lot of road vibration felt there laying on the floor. It would be great if the FSDs can reduce that. It sounds like that is what they are designed to do. A soft and heavy duty shock, all in one.
Here was the two position shock adjuster in my 2003 Corvette, just to the left of the parking brake lever.
