Workhorse to Re-enter Class A Chassis Market

Here is a youtube video 6 months ago showing a 8.8 motor, with only 270 HP and 565 LBS of torque using propane..

Note the HP and Torque is not much better than the 3 valve V-10 with the banks power pack system and 5 star tuning..

https://youtu.be/D31df3ZC4ac


FORD V-10 Stock
Type 10-cylinder, 90**° V, Single Overhead Cam, 30-valve
Displacement 6.8L (415 CID)
Horsepower (SAE net) 362 @ 4750 rpm
Torque 457 lb.-ft. @ 3250 rpm

The 8.8 has been out since late 2011 so it is not new just new to the RV industry.

Not everyone had brake issues and just because you didn't, doesn't mean there wasn't a problem with others....thus the recall!!! I owned a 2004 Fleetwood Terra on the Workhorse chassis. It took two men and a boy, standing on the brakes to get it to stop. I went through the brakes (bled, adjusted, checked for issues) and they still didn't perform well.

Other than noise, my 8.1L engine was a diesel eater in the hills. I think a well built 8.8L mated to an Allison will me a monster. It will give the manufacturers the ability to build big gassers and Ford will be playing catch up for a long time.

ArchHoagland wrote:
Welcome Back!!


Interesting news.

Maybe this is why Ford is bringing the 6 speed tow haul to the F-53 in 2016.

topflite51 wrote:

rgatijnet1 wrote:
What a load of BS. I drove mine for over 5 years with 50,000+ miles and never had any concerns about my brakes. They never felt spongy.

Therein lies the answer, those who put on the miles rarely had problems, those who didn't had problems. Hopefully, AMP and PSI can produce enough chassis' and engines to be price and reliability competitive. Ford needs incentives to get off their respective rear ends and improve their products. Having competition should do just that.

That plus the people that serviced their brakes and flushed the brake fluid on a regular basis also had no problems. In any case, a lot less people had trouble than those that had no issues at all with their brakes.

rgatijnet1 wrote:
What a load of BS. I drove mine for over 5 years with 50,000+ miles and never had any concerns about my brakes. They never felt spongy.

Therein lies the answer, those who put on the miles rarely had problems, those who didn't had problems. Hopefully, AMP and PSI can produce enough chassis' and engines to be price and reliability competitive. Ford needs incentives to get off their respective rear ends and improve their products. Having competition should do just that.

KilroyGuy wrote:
Takata made the shrapnel-loaded air bags, but the car manufacturers are responsible for the recall. Anyone who drove an early Workhorse chassis knew that the brakes felt spongy and weird and stopping distances were increased. Several years passed before Workhorse initiated the recall.

What a load of BS. I drove mine for over 5 years with 50,000+ miles and never had any concerns about my brakes. They never felt spongy. Then I got brand new brake calipers all of the way around for free and the new brakes work fine also. The coach stopped fine every time, before the recall, even when traveling through the Western mountains, which is where we take most of our trips.
Some people feel that a recall means that EVERY single vehicle has the problem, which is just ignorance on their part. Not every Ford burned up because of the cruise control problem even tho it affected the F53 chassis and thousands of other vehicles. The same goes with the WH brake recall. There were more happy users than there were users affected by the brake problem. The same goes for every recall on every vehicle that has ever been built.

Takata made the shrapnel-loaded air bags, but the car manufacturers are responsible for the recall. Anyone who drove an early Workhorse chassis knew that the brakes felt spongy and weird and stopping distances were increased. Several years passed before Workhorse initiated the recall.

KilroyGuy wrote:
I'm not sure why there is so much excitement about this. Workhorse has never been a "strength" in the RV business. First the hidden brake problems that affected almost everything they built and probably caused accidents. Then they backed out of the business when things got bad, leaving parts availability an issue. I'm not necessarily a Ford guy, but at least we have been able to count on them for over 30 years.

Workhorse didn't hide there brake problem or did they cause it! Bosch a sub contractor was responsible for the brake problem. And Bosch stepped up and took care of the problem. Bosch put new brakes on my coach free of charge before the recall was done due to I was going to take a trip to AZ. and I was worried about my old brakes! That's customer service and it needs to be talked about! I've been RVing since 1976 and have both owned Workhorse and Ford Chassis and I prefer Workhorse over Ford hands down. And my obsolete big block Chevy in my Workhorse out performed the Ford Triton V-10 that I owned prior to the Workhorse! At least my spark plugs haven't popped out of the block on my Chevy. And, Workhorse didn't back out of business! Chevy no longer needed there services because they didn't have a engine that could pass EPA requirements that could be used in a motorhome! So Workhorse went on and built Chassis for UPS package vans.

427435 wrote:
Rear engine gassers are more expensive to build than front engine gassers due to the cost of low volume drivetrains and cooling systems for a rear engine.

For a lot less cost, some good sound proofing (like in cars and pickups) takes away the main advantage of a rear engine gasser.

This explanation is simple and IMO correct.
Front-engine motorhomes were/are traditionally built on mass-produced affordable chassis platforms. And, that's the reason most of them "ride like a truck". I did a lot of research on this subject, back when I owned a Vectra which was built on a Ford truck chassis. After I learned that in order to improve the ride significantly(to my satisfaction) the corrective measures would be cost prohibited,......THAT'S when I decided to order a Dutch Star on a diesel-pusher Spartan chassis.
Consequently, I have become convinced that the best chassis choice for motorhomes is a rear engine, purpose built platform.