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Suspension question?

vanGogh
Explorer
Explorer
We have a new Coachmen Concord (25 ft) on a Chevy 4500 chassis. I have noticed that the rear of the coach sits noticeably higher off the ground that the front of the coach. We had HWH levelers installed and are finding that in most all campgrounds, the levelers have to lift the front tires about 5 inches off the ground in order for the coach to be level. HWH has told us that it is okay for the front jacks to support the weight in that way, but I am wondering if this is normal or if I have a problem? Does anyone else have a small class C that is 5 or 6 inches higher in the rear?
Elle
4 REPLIES 4

Snowman9000
Explorer
Explorer
I am subscribing to the thread so I can catch your post in case you do want to figure out the degrees of tilt.
Currently RV-less but not done yet.

vanGogh
Explorer
Explorer
Thank you j-d and snowman9000! What you both said made a lot of sense and is helpful. I will measure the front and back as soon as I am on a level surface and before I try to use the levelors. Once I can do that ( I am currently at an unlevel campsite for the rest of the week) I will probably ask for help with the calculations. I think that I will probably have to manually level the coach so that the rear levelors do not lift the coach at all and then maybe I can get away with just lifting the front off the ground an inch or two on a fairly level campsite.

Snowman9000
Explorer
Explorer
We have a 2014 25' Sunseeker 2300 on the Chevy 4500 chassis. The rear does sit higher than the front. We don't have levelers, but use the "lego blocks" instead. We almost always camp at state parks and such. Most of the time the campsite is sloped up or down, and I find a spot on the site that lets us sit level, even if I have to back in. But anyway, if I have to use leveling blocks under the front tires on a perfectly level slab, I only need 2-3" under the front tires.

So I wonder, does your unit need so much lift at the front end because it is lifting the rear end quite a bit during the leveling process? Otherwise, I can't imagine how yours could need the front tires lifted 5" off the ground.

Also, I have used a digital level and discovered that on level ground the slope in our rig from back to front is only about 1 degree. That amount is harmless to the fridge, and insignificant to daily living. My wife and I like having our heads elevated while sleeping, and the rear-high orientation does that. So in real life I rarely raise the front end. Only if we are parked on a site that also slopes down at the front of our rig. I would be very interested to hear what slope there is inside your rig when it is parked but not leveled, on level ground. You could calculate it with a longer level, like 24" or 48", and measure how high off the surface you have to lift the low end of the level to make it read level. Ask here if you need help with the calculations. If you are interested in doing it. ๐Ÿ™‚
Currently RV-less but not done yet.

j-d
Explorer II
Explorer II
This is interesting. The very biggest Class C's built on cutaway van chassis are on Ford E450. Some of us have smaller C's on E450 but most of those that ARE on Ford use E350 with a ton or so less rear axle capacity than E450. But if it's a small C on Chevy it'll be a 4500. That extra capacity's going to show up somewhere - ride stiffness and/or height. My guess is that the rear springs will settle a little and the difference will decrease.
What's your wheelbase? If it's around 159" the placement of the front HWH jacks will be far enough toward the rear axle that a lot of the lift you want in front is also shared with the rear. Measure front and rear reference heights before you level. If the front is lifted, I think you'll find the rear is lifted a couple inches too. This is a characteristic of C's with jacks, magnified in the shorter ones.
If God's Your Co-Pilot Move Over, jd
2003 Jayco Escapade 31A on 2002 Ford E450 V10 4R100 218" WB