Need new front springs Ford F53

[kmb1966]

I brought my motorhome to the Ford F53 Commercial truck center in Texarkana because it was making a clunking sound when swaying side to side. They spent some time with the RV and then suggested new springs. They showed me how my springs are supposed to look in comparison to what they currently look like. They said I needed to replace the front springs. They are basically FLAT, (not arched). Their suggestion was staying with Ford factory designed springs.
Any suggestions or feedback would be appreciated.

[Pirate1]

10forty2 wrote:

Pirate wrote:
Have replaced my front u bolts twice now, both times with aftermarket because I have spacer blocks under the springs on the front axle. There was no issue having them made for the F-53. I used two different shops years apart and I believe they got them from two different sources. First set replaced because I was worried the first shop may have over torqued them after the alignment guy told me to get alignment done he just tightened up the ubolts on one side. Needless to say I had the alignment redone at a different place.

For future reference, please share what shops you used to get the bolts. Gotta be cheaper than what I paid my local Ford dealer. After I had measured the original OEM u-bolts, SD Truck Springs told me they didn't have the dies to bend new ones to that measurement, and a local industrial supply store couldn't find them anywhere. Getting the proper length wasn't an issue, but getting the proper width was. On my rig, the u-bolts go around/on top of the spring and through the front solid axle, not around the axle with a tension plate for the nuts to tighten against. The buts tighten against the axle itself so they had to be an exact fit to match the holes. I just assumed that all F53s were the same.

As for the end bolts, I could find the right grade and overall length, but the shoulder was too short and left threads inside the eye of the spring. Not a good idea to have threads in a position of structural support.

I am not sure where the shops I used obtained the ubolts. The last place told me they got them from a place in Knoxville. These were both large truck repair places where I had the work done.

[10forty2]

Pirate wrote:
Have replaced my front u bolts twice now, both times with aftermarket because I have spacer blocks under the springs on the front axle. There was no issue having them made for the F-53. I used two different shops years apart and I believe they got them from two different sources. First set replaced because I was worried the first shop may have over torqued them after the alignment guy told me to get alignment done he just tightened up the ubolts on one side. Needless to say I had the alignment redone at a different place.

For future reference, please share what shops you used to get the bolts. Gotta be cheaper than what I paid my local Ford dealer. After I had measured the original OEM u-bolts, SD Truck Springs told me they didn't have the dies to bend new ones to that measurement, and a local industrial supply store couldn't find them anywhere. Getting the proper length wasn't an issue, but getting the proper width was. On my rig, the u-bolts go around/on top of the spring and through the front solid axle, not around the axle with a tension plate for the nuts to tighten against. The buts tighten against the axle itself so they had to be an exact fit to match the holes. I just assumed that all F53s were the same.

As for the end bolts, I could find the right grade and overall length, but the shoulder was too short and left threads inside the eye of the spring. Not a good idea to have threads in a position of structural support.

[Pirate1]

Have replaced my front u bolts twice now, both times with aftermarket because I have spacer blocks under the springs on the front axle. There was no issue having them made for the F-53. I used two different shops years apart and I believe they got them from two different sources. First set replaced because I was worried the first shop may have over torqued them after the alignment guy told me to get alignment done he just tightened up the ubolts on one side. Needless to say I had the alignment redone at a different place.

[theoldwizard1]

ThomBoles wrote:
I'm not sure I can help with the axle spring question but after just installing and driving on Sumo springs (assist springs) I would suggest that you look into that at the same time if you have the funds.

I would also recommend that you check into an "assist" spring. Much easier to install.

10forty2 wrote:
...the sway bar bushings can absolutely cause that noise! When installing new bushings, there is lubrication that is applied between the bar and the bushing. If that lube is dried up, it will creak like crazy when the bar is flexed! Depending on how old your rig is, I might also consider replacing the OEM bushings with the newer poly bushings front and rear. That's not a hard or expensive job to do in the driveway! You can find the poly bushings on Ebay, front and rear for around $75.

Excellent suggestion ! If you are getting a lot of sway, it might be time for new shocks.

[Hikerdogs]

The first thing I would do is weigh all 4 corners. If your coach is ability equipped you may be over the weight the springs and axles are designed to carry. If you are overweight new springs will only be a temporary fix. Over time they will sag just like the current ones.

As a side note we had a 2001 Winnebago Adventurer on the20,500 lb. F53 chassis for over 12 years. In that time we put over 100,000 miles on it. The weight was always around 19,000 lbs, and we pulled either a Jeep 4 down or Buick on a dolly. The springs were never overloaded and never gave problems.

[10forty2]

kmb1966 wrote:

fourmat wrote:
Are they sure that's causing the noise? Not saying your springs are not sagging but what is causing the noise Sounds more like a sway bar to me

they said the sway bar and bushings were ok. the noise is from the springs somehow. upon rocking the motorhome back and forth, you can hear the origin of the noise being in the springs popping.

Oh, and the sway bar bushings can absolutely cause that noise! When installing new bushings, there is lubrication that is applied between the bar and the bushing. If that lube is dried up, it will creak like crazy when the bar is flexed! Depending on how old your rig is, I might also consider replacing the OEM bushings with the newer poly bushings front and rear. That's not a hard or expensive job to do in the driveway! You can find the poly bushings on Ebay, front and rear for around $75.

[10forty2]

I replaced my front springs last year. Mine were in a negative arch. Bought the springs from SD Truck Springs online. Should be around $450 each....and there is a difference between left and right springs, so make sure you order the correct ones for your rig. The kicker is....I had to pay almost $600 for the new u-bolts and shackle hardware from Ford OEM. SD Truck Springs did NOT have the proper sized bolts/hardware. Apparently, there are no direct replacements in the aftermarket and you don't want to skimp on hardware not knowing what grade hardness they might be. I assumed Grade 8 would be the correct answer, but after investigating, I discovered that not all bolts are made the same, even though they are stamped with a particular grade. AND....you may not want a fully hardened bolt that might break instead of give under pressure. Plus, the u-bolts on the F53 are an odd size and even if you try to have the u-bolts custom bent, they don't have the proper dies to make the bend. Better off to just suck it up and buy the OEM hardware.

I had almost decided to try the job myself in the driveway, and after looking at it closer, I made a smarter decision to pay a shop to do it. I didn't have all the proper jack stands and heavy duty air tools or torches to get old, rusted bolts off.

As a side note to that....you can kick the can (replacing the springs) down the road a bit by installing Firestone air-bag helper springs. I did that and got another season out of it. They do help, but in the end the best improvement in my ride/handling was when I replaced the front springs. Of course, now I have both new springs AND air bags on the front. Next project is to install air bags on the rear. Of course, I'll probably end up having to replace the rear springs as well......

[kmb1966]

fourmat wrote:
Are they sure that's causing the noise? Not saying your springs are not sagging but what is causing the noise Sounds more like a sway bar to me

they said the sway bar and bushings were ok. the noise is from the springs somehow. upon rocking the motorhome back and forth, you can hear the origin of the noise being in the springs popping.

[wildmanbaker]

In that era of Ford MHs, had very little arch to began with, even when empty. After a 2 or more years, the springs are sagging quite bad, to the extent the distance between the spring and the bump stops. This might be the noise you are hearing. As mentioned earlier, some sort of spring help is needed. Either Sumo, Timbren, or air bags will make a big difference in lean, handling, and ride quality. If you can find a spring manufacture that has replacement springs for the Ford chassis, This is the way I would go.
Good luck

[fourmat]

Are they sure that's causing the noise? Not saying your springs are not sagging but what is causing the noise Sounds more like a sway bar to me

[ThomBoles]

I'm not sure I can help with the axle spring question but after just installing and driving on Sumo springs (assist springs) I would suggest that you look into that at the same time if you have the funds. I'm not sure that they can be installed instead of having to replace the chassis springs or not. It seems weird to me that the chassis springs would "flatten" out though.