Class A motor home steering stabilizer

[rgd123]

Just purchased a 2015 Thor ACE 30' motor home.
Ford V10 chassis
Having some issues on the open roads with Semi Trucks and Rouge Winds.
Need some help/information as to what the most effective steering stabilizer
is Available and some first hand experiences.
Thanks

[holstein13]

Effy wrote:
Let's not forget the CHF. Cheap handling fix is free and takes about 15 mins. Do a search on here. Essentially it moves the position of the stock sway bars to a different set of holes. Dramatically reduces sway and body roll. I did mine and hardly get any truck push or wander any more. Did it in 15 mins in my driveway and cost nothing.

X2 on this. Just do it. It's free. My next suggestion would be the rear track bar.

[427435]

I'm sure it's been mentioned already, but be sure the alignment is correct including the caster at 4.5 degrees or better. Alignment shops don't like changing the caster angle (it's work). They'll tell you it's fine and send you on your way. Insist!!!

Steering stabilizers are band-aides. Correct the real problem first.

[Finally_Time]

The ride and handling were acceptable from the factory, but fatiguing on long drives and when going over Washington's perpetual construction zones. In my quest for a smoother ride and easier handling I had the coach weighed (loaded for travel with the toad), checked and adjusted the tire pressures (turned out to be the same 82 lbs. as on the Winnebago placard) had the alignment checked (was in spec), did the CHF (which made the already harsh ride harsher), threw away the factory Bilstiens and installed Monroe RV Magnum shocks, installed an Ultra Track rear track bar, and Safe-T-Plus steering stabilizer. Now the bumps are smoother, and it handles well. I'm happy; it was definitely worth the cost.

[NAUTIQUE]

Easiest first: Make sure you know your axle weights & set PSI's correctly & then do the CHF.
Then I use: UltraTrac Rear Trac Bar, SteerSafe, Bilstiens.

Every little tweak I've made has helped.
All combined, my old rig is riding pretty nice right now (at least on the far & few between nice roads!) I think I've got it about as good as it'll get & I'm a pretty happy camper!
Although they say air bags are another step (or trading it for a DP! 🙂 ).
In the end it's still pretty much a delivery truck chassis!

Just looked back & saw your's is a 2015 - I think you can still do CHF? but definitely add rear Trac bar.

[phnguyk]

Rear track bar. Not sway bar. Add one, huge improvement.

[ncrowley]

We just installed the Blu Ox Tru Center and I purchased it for the same reason as Mike - to help in case of a tire blow out. It took us a long time to find figure out how to connect the wiring. The installation of the device itself was pretty straightforward but things always take a lot longer than the video shows. We have not taken it on a trip yet so I do not know if I will feel any difference.

[et2]

All the other fixes mentioned. My steering choice is the Blue Ox Tru center. It adapts to your needs.

[mike_brez]

Mine tracks straight and 18 wheelers have little to no affect. I have a Blue Ox Tru Center sitting in a box waiting for me to install. I purchased it for peace of mind in case of a tire blow out and like it is adjustable on the fly.

[bluebarry1964b]

I like the Safe-T-Plus steering stabilizer myself. Even had an RV mechanic comment on how well the RV steered when he took it for a test drive after fixing the brakes.

[Rwake901]

Effy wrote:

Rwake901 wrote:

rgd123 wrote:
Just purchased a 2015 Thor ACE 30' motor home.
Ford V10 chassis
Having some issues on the open roads with Semi Trucks and Rouge Winds.
Need some help/information as to what the most effective steering stabilizer
is Available and some first hand experiences.
Thanks

I just traded off a 2014 Thor ACE 30.1 and I had the same problems. Very hard to keep in one lane. I did the CHF, rear track bar, front end alignment and weighed and set the tire pressure accordingly. Each thing I did helped some but it was still a handful to drive. Even at a slow speed like 30mph it liked to wander. I even called Ford and asked them what I can I do. They told me and I quote ( sounds like you've tried everything, we don't know). We liked the motorhome but it just wore me out to drive it. So we decided to trade and get something a little bigger and that drives great. The only thing I didn't try was a steering stabilizer. Our ACE seamed to want to follow the ruts in the road so maybe a steering stabilizer will help. But like others have said I would try whats free first before you start dumping money in aftermarket items... Good Luck

Curious what tires you had on it. My First ACE had Contis and it drove like a pig. My new 29.2 has GY G670's and it handles great. I did the CHF and weighed and set psi and it drives really nice. My first 29.1 was harsh and loud and wandered even after doing all that. Maybe it's the tires?

They were Goodyear tires.

[cbr46]

I tried the CHF and found the sway bar hits the leaf spring with wheels near their upper travel. The CHF might work for typical highway but I get into some pretty uneven cow pastures. Not a fix for me. I DIDN'T try the longer Helwig sway bar connecting links - those might work. For $100 they'd better work!

I had a buddy with the same problem on an older shorter coach and he fixed his sway with air bags on the front only.

Im sure some tires pull in the ruts harder than others. Also, some ruts are bigger than others!

Best,
- bob

[Effy]

Rwake901 wrote:

rgd123 wrote:
Just purchased a 2015 Thor ACE 30' motor home.
Ford V10 chassis
Having some issues on the open roads with Semi Trucks and Rouge Winds.
Need some help/information as to what the most effective steering stabilizer
is Available and some first hand experiences.
Thanks

I just traded off a 2014 Thor ACE 30.1 and I had the same problems. Very hard to keep in one lane. I did the CHF, rear track bar, front end alignment and weighed and set the tire pressure accordingly. Each thing I did helped some but it was still a handful to drive. Even at a slow speed like 30mph it liked to wander. I even called Ford and asked them what I can I do. They told me and I quote ( sounds like you've tried everything, we don't know). We liked the motorhome but it just wore me out to drive it. So we decided to trade and get something a little bigger and that drives great. The only thing I didn't try was a steering stabilizer. Our ACE seamed to want to follow the ruts in the road so maybe a steering stabilizer will help. But like others have said I would try whats free first before you start dumping money in aftermarket items... Good Luck

Curious what tires you had on it. My First ACE had Contis and it drove like a pig. My new 29.2 has GY G670's and it handles great. I did the CHF and weighed and set psi and it drives really nice. My first 29.1 was harsh and loud and wandered even after doing all that. Maybe it's the tires?

[Rwake901]

rgd123 wrote:
Just purchased a 2015 Thor ACE 30' motor home.
Ford V10 chassis
Having some issues on the open roads with Semi Trucks and Rouge Winds.
Need some help/information as to what the most effective steering stabilizer
is Available and some first hand experiences.
Thanks

I just traded off a 2014 Thor ACE 30.1 and I had the same problems. Very hard to keep in one lane. I did the CHF, rear track bar, front end alignment and weighed and set the tire pressure accordingly. Each thing I did helped some but it was still a handful to drive. Even at a slow speed like 30mph it liked to wander. I even called Ford and asked them what I can I do. They told me and I quote ( sounds like you've tried everything, we don't know). We liked the motorhome but it just wore me out to drive it. So we decided to trade and get something a little bigger and that drives great. The only thing I didn't try was a steering stabilizer. Our ACE seamed to want to follow the ruts in the road so maybe a steering stabilizer will help. But like others have said I would try whats free first before you start dumping money in aftermarket items... Good Luck

[Effy]

Let's not forget the CHF. Cheap handling fix is free and takes about 15 mins. Do a search on here. Essentially it moves the position of the stock sway bars to a different set of holes. Dramatically reduces sway and body roll. I did mine and hardly get any truck push or wander any more. Did it in 15 mins in my driveway and cost nothing.

Also, as others have said, load your coach like you are travelling (water, food, people etc) and weigh your coach if not all 4 corners then at least by the axles, and set your tires PSI accordingly. The sticker on the MH for recommended pressure on mine was off pretty far. Weighed it and set to the tire manufacturer's chart and rides much better.

Do those 2 things, for free and you may find you won't need to spend any money on aftermarket stabilizers or anything else.