2021 Chassis Class A Motorhomes

[garyemunson]

Does anyone here have a new gas motorhome on the new 2020/2021 F53 chassis with the new V8 and heavier duty suspension? If so, how about a review for us?

[ClydeNBonnie]

One footnote. This Service Bulletin was issued in or around Nov 2020:

“SSM 49315 - 2020 F-53 Motorhome Chassis - Bent Or Damaged Rear Axle Tone Ring(s) With DTCs C0037 And/Or C0038 - 16,000-22,000 Lbs. GVW Vehicles
Some 2020 F-53 Motorhome Chassis 16,000-22,000 lbs. gross vehicle weight (GVW) vehicles may exhibit an anti-lock brake system (ABS) light on with diagnostic trouble code (DTC) C0037 and/or C0038. This may be due to a bent or damaged rear axle tone ring. Inspect the tone ring teeth on the affected rear wheel and replace the tone ring if damage is present. It is recommended to inspect the service tone ring before installation to make sure no damage has occurred in shipment. The tone ring is susceptible to damage during the ring to rotor installation as well as installing the hub and rotor assembly onto the axle housing. Use a suitable jack to aid in the installation of the assembly to prevent any contact with the tone ring during reassembly.”

[ClydeNBonnie]

We bought a new 2021 Newmar Bay Star w/ the Ford F53 chassis. Immediately ABS and traction control lights came on. Spent a month in Ford service department. Front left wheel speed sensor replaced. Did not fix problem. ECBM replaced. Did not fix problem. Wire harness overlay replaced. Did not fix problem. Left front tone ring assembly replaced. Fixed problem for 200 miles. Spent 12 days in another Ford Service Department. Wire harness overlay replaced again. So far, ABS and TCS lights have stayed off. Just spent 16 days in Ford service department for rear axle safety recall. At the suggestion of someone in another forum, we filled out a complaint form on the NHTSA website. I guess if enough people do, the NHTSA might investigate and a recall might result.

[willald]

georgelesley wrote:
Already reports and pics on another rv forum of rear sway bar bracket bolts falling out on the “new” chassis, just like the previous F-53 ones did. You would think that after making vehicles for over 100 yrs Ford would figure out that spark plug wires and exhaust manifolds do not play together well and suspension parts sometimes vibrate and just might need locktite. Some things never change

Well, at least Ford still offers a gas Class A Motorhome chassis, and is trying to make it better with the new chassis they came out with. That is more than we can say for any other auto manufacturer right now.

Yep, first year a new chassis comes out, there will be the 'teething' problems like this no matter who the manufacturer is. I expect that, which is part of why I held off and didn't buy one the first year.

[RedRollingRoadb]

[willald]

We have put a deposit on, and are about to purchase a 2021 Newmar Bay Star with the new Ford chassis, engine. We will bring it home in a few weeks.

I spent an entire day looking over the new coach, crawling under it and looking around, test driving it, etc. Drove it for a good hour or so, total. I am nothing but impressed with the new chassis and engine.

Having owned a Georgetown 36' Class A (see signature) for 9 years built on a 2012 F53 V10 chassis...I'm here to tell you the new chassis handles noticeably better. Considerably less body roll in turns, and it overall just doesn't feel as much like a big, honkering RV as the old chassis did. It feels, rides more like a big car. Engine is noticeably quieter, too. When it does get loud, like when you get on the loud pedal hard, its a good kind of loud - A throaty, growling big block V8 kind of loud. I like it. 🙂

The V10 is a great, bullet-proof, rock solid motor that gave us years of great, reliable service. We worked it real hard, and it never had a single issue out of it all the years we owned it. However, it turns a lot of RPMs which make it kinda loud, and it ain't the cool kind of loud like this new V8.

I have read about the plug wire issues, know all about that. It seems from what I can tell, though, that this was/is a supplier issue that Ford had early on and has pretty well resolved now. I plan to have a very close look at the plug wires on ours when we get it, and if it doesn't look like the newer wire design, I'll go ahead and order a set of the newer wires (already found several places you can order them) and put them on.

[georgelesley]

Already reports and pics on another rv forum of rear sway bar bracket bolts falling out on the “new” chassis, just like the previous F-53 ones did. You would think that after making vehicles for over 100 yrs Ford would figure out that spark plug wires and exhaust manifolds do not play together well and suspension parts sometimes vibrate and just might need locktite. Some things never change

[justinhscott]

We have a 2021 Coachmen Mirada. We upgraded from a 2018 Thor ACE.

It’s no sports car but handles noticeably better - especially when a big rig blows by on the highway.

It’s generally quieter and much better at higher RPM.

MPG seems about the same, although I don’t really track it closely.

We’ve very happy with it.

[dodge_guy]

Dale.Traveling wrote:

dodge guy wrote:
It will be nice to see if they will integrate all the electronics they said they would. Auto high beams, lane departure warning, blind spot monitoring, and so on.,,,

The problem you run into is the sensors need to be mount on the body then interface with the chassis systems. So,,, who provides, who installs and who warranties the systems? Considering the confusion regarding the lines of demarcation for simple things like the wipers, head and tail lights adding cameras, distant sensors, radar and such the level of frustration for the basic owner would get really ugly when the service centers, chassis and coach, tell them "Not my swim lane" the first time there's a problem.

I agree with you there. And knowing how the RV manuf assemble and install things, the sensors will probably be installed backwards, or behind metal shields and not work correctly!

[Dale_Traveling]

dodge guy wrote:
It will be nice to see if they will integrate all the electronics they said they would. Auto high beams, lane departure warning, blind spot monitoring, and so on.,,,

The problem you run into is the sensors need to be mount on the body then interface with the chassis systems. So,,, who provides, who installs and who warranties the systems? Considering the confusion regarding the lines of demarcation for simple things like the wipers, head and tail lights adding cameras, distant sensors, radar and such the level of frustration for the basic owner would get really ugly when the service centers, chassis and coach, tell them "Not my swim lane" the first time there's a problem.

[Cloudbuster44]

We purchased a 2021 Fleetwood Bounder 33C last July. Yes plug wires were a big issue as 2 days into our 6 week trip we had 3 wires fail & right front Bump Stop fall off. We waited 58 days before getting unit back. Heavier sway bars & bump stops along with a software handling Ford added made a big difference. However it still rides like a lumber wagon. We just finished a 5300 mile trip out west reaching altitudes of 10,690’. We installed 5 Star Tuning & love that, never below 45 mph or 4th gear. We drive at 70 & on flats were seeing 8.6 mpg (not towing). In mountains 7.4. Very pleased with V-8 performance. One issue all F/53 2020/2021 seem to be dealing with is ABS/Traction Control lights coming on with bumps or a speed approaching 75-76. Ours as a number have had we had a damaged Tone Ring & WheelSpeed Sensor. All seem to be on right rear. Now after 14,500 miles we are still dealing with that & it appears now to be a software problem. So far 100 days at Ford & counting!

[Bdublu]

After reading many other sources/posts elsewhere, I've learned the 2021 chassis has been improved with suspension upgrades/updates. I had done extensive suspension work on my old class C and when I traded it in, it drove like a car. Other than some slide rattles to be worked on, the new chassis drives like a dream....

[way2roll]

Bdublu wrote:
I've seen a lot of comments/discussion on 'old' RV boards about handling problems in relation to the Ford F53 chassis and recommendations of suspension mods & add-ons. I've driven nearly 2k miles from Oregon to Southern CA & back home to Northern CA in our new 2021 Vista 29V (V-8) and think it drives just as well as my 20 year old Fleetwood Class C. Is this still an issue??

Are you saying a brand new Class A on the new chassis drives comparably to a 20 year old Class C?

[MetalGator]

I have read on another forum of a few people who have the new F53 V8 chassis. Apparently there are issues with the spark plug wires overheating and causing misfires. There is an easy fix but supplies are hard to come by right now as the new parts are on back order.

[Bdublu]

I've seen a lot of comments/discussion on 'old' RV boards about handling problems in relation to the Ford F53 chassis and recommendations of suspension mods & add-ons. I've driven nearly 2k miles from Oregon to Southern CA & back home to Northern CA in our new 2021 Vista 29V (V-8) and think it drives just as well as my 20 year old Fleetwood Class C. Is this still an issue??