Class C weight issue

[wacdmc]

I had my Thor Chateau 31E weighed yesterday. I had a full 55 gallons of fuel and the 40 gallon fresh tank full. I also had my normal array of camp items (grill, chairs etc.) on board. The front axle weight was fine. However, the rear came in at 10,040. Considering the Michelin, E load tires can handle 2,470 pounds max, I'm overweight by 160 pounds.

How can a brand new Class C be equipped with tires that can't even handle a normal load? I haven't even put clothes or food on board for our upcoming two week trip and I'm already overweight.

Am I over-reacting?

Any suggestions?

[Mich_F]

In older rigs the weight specs for the vehicle were usually tucked away somewhere in a cabinet or wherever. My 2014 model (built in early 2013) has a large yellow label on each door, which lists the OCCC among other things. I was under the impression that most if not all newer RVs have that info somewhere more accessible than the older units. I imagine many people buying the newer units don't realize when they're buying, how important those numbers are, or what the numbers actually mean.
I had a 2001 Class C and the specs for that MH were in a closet in the back wall of the unit (OCCC was a little over 1,000#), whereas my newer unit, a foot longer, with the same floor plan has an OCCC of 3,275#.

[PghBob]

Unfortunately, it appears the sales rep was not clear on your wants/needs with respect to how you were planning to use the rig. I have found at numerous RV shows that reps (in general) do not know the OCCC of the rigs they are showing or do not care about it, i.e., "push the metal out the door mentality". In general, Class C rigs are limited by the weight they can safely carry, not space.

As noted by others, three options add the most weight to a Ford E450 chassis, Overall length of the RV (longer=heavier), slideouts, and automatic levelers.

Given your situation, understand that you did the right thing by weighing your rig, even though you are unhappy with your findings. At least now you can decide how to best minimize your weight for your trips. Others have provided excellent suggestions to start, like minimizing weight of fluids on board. Also, do you *need* to carry a grill with you? Can you cook over a camp fire? Avoid can goods. Carefully select clothing. If you are taking short trips, do you need to carry a spare tire and rim?

Good Luck

[j-d]

dlbapm wrote:
I have a 30 ft Class C on the E-450. When loaded for the road my front axle load is at least 400 lbs less than the Ford recommended value. The coach handles poorly; front end gets pushed to the right by every passing truck. Have already made many suspension mods but cannot correct the problem except by adding weight. Cannot shift existing load to do it. Many longer Class C coaches have this type of problem. They are usually "rear end heavy" due to an excessive rear overhang (distance behind the rear axle.)

What are your actual, loaded, front and rear scale weights? And what's your coach's wheelbase?

Have you tried having the front end aligned, with high Caster, at least 5-degrees, near zero camber, and only a pinch toe in?

[dlbapm]

Believe your rig is built on a Ford E-450 chassis which has a rear axle rated of 9600 lbs. As someone pointed out your rear axle is overloaded by 440 lbs. The 4 Michelin tires @ 2470 lbs each are more than the 9600 lbs of the rear axle.

What is the load on the front axle? Ford tells "body builders"
that for the E-450 chassis the front axle should carry at least 1/3 of the total vehicle weight. Many coach builders ignore this requirement. I have a 30 ft Class C on the E-450. When loaded for the road my front axle load is at least 400 lbs less than the Ford recommended value. The coach handles poorly; front end gets pushed to the right by every passing truck. Have already made many suspension mods but cannot correct the problem except by adding weight. Cannot shift existing load to do it. Many longer Class C coaches have this type of problem. They are usually "rear end heavy" due to an excessive rear overhang (distance behind the rear axle.)

[winnietrey]

Don't claim to be an expert, but you are something like 1% over weight. And you will be burning off fuel at about 38 lbs per hour. So don't think I would worry about it to much. Keep proper inflation in the tires .

I would be much more concerned with the 4 corner weights. 160 lbs disturbed evenly would be one thing. 500 lbs over on one side, of the rear would be another. I would assume, and maybe I am wrong but the tires and rig have enough fudge factor to handle a small overload just fine.

[Mich_F]

Well that 1,689# OCCC isn't a heck of a lot, considering your full water tank takes over 300# of that capacity.
Not that it matters or helps you, but my 32 1/2' class C on an E450 has an OCCC of 3,275#. With my wife and I on board with a 3/4 tank of fuel and water tank about 1/3 full the MH weighed 11,940#.
It looks like your MH weighs about 2,000# more than mine. I'm sure it is and looks nice, but as you've found, you pay the penalty in the extra weight of all the extras.
You can stay under that OCCC figure, but it can be difficult. Taking my MH as an example, the weight of mine after deducting the full fuel in the OCCC figure is 10,895# for the vehicle when it left the factory. If we had full water,fuel along with everything else on board, we would have been 12,270# or 1,375# more than the base vehicle weight. We also have a fair amount of extra "stuff" we carry around, because I've been too lazy to get rid of it.

[Mich_F]

Sfla2 wrote:
All C after 06 i think are at 14500 ccc mine is 1400.50 the funny thing is
ford allowed 400 more frt only 50 rear,how to u add 4oo on frt where do u put it over ur head?. long x since we hee haw

His GVWR is 14,500#. His OCCC amount subtracted from the GVWR will give the weight of the MH (including the weight of a full tank of gas)when it left the factory. That's how you tell if he has put too much stuff in the MH or they just built too much "stuff" into that MH. 😉

[Sfla2]

Mich F wrote:
What does the sticker in your cab say your OCCC is supposed to be?
Your 4 tires in the rear are rated higher than the axle.

All C after 06 i think are at 14500 ccc mine is 1400.50 the funny thing is
ford allowed 400 more frt only 50 rear,how to u add 4oo on frt where do u put it over ur head?. long x since we hee haw

[wacdmc]

Mich F wrote:
What does the sticker in your cab say your OCCC is supposed to be?
Your 4 tires in the rear are rated higher than the axle.

I believe it's 1,689

[Mich_F]

What does the sticker in your cab say your OCCC is supposed to be?
Your 4 tires in the rear are rated higher than the axle.

[Sfla2]

SoCalDesertRider wrote:
Definitely don't keep on overloading the tires.

You may have to up one tire size, which will increase the load rating of the tires. For example, going from 215/85-16E's to 235/85-16E's increases the cumulative (all 4 together) rear tire load capacity by about 1000 lbs.

if he does this will he still have clearence between duals, need so much so don't rub & stay cool have to breath stock is 225 75 16

[wacdmc]

Mich F wrote:
What was your total weight - how much weight on the front axle ?
You're also over your rear axle weight rating by 440# as it sits now.

Total weight was 14,620. GVWR is 14,500. Front axle was 4,580 so at least that is under.

It's pretty ridiculous to spend over $80K on a camper that comes equipped with under-rated tires. I'm draining most of the water so I come in just at 14,500 but I'm likely going to still be a bit over-weight.

This stuff just ticks me off and takes the fun out of RVing...

[SoCalDesertRid1]

Definitely don't keep on overloading the tires.

You may have to up one tire size, which will increase the load rating of the tires. For example, going from 215/85-16E's to 235/85-16E's increases the cumulative (all 4 together) rear tire load capacity by about 1000 lbs.

[Mich_F]

What was your total weight - how much weight on the front axle ?
You're also over your rear axle weight rating by 440# as it sits now.