jackgilliat
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Re: Are Air Suspension Motor Homes Dangerous
past-Midirector wrote:- What you say is interesting! I know some companies use 8 air bags instead of 4. So would a independent air system to each corner bag be better than the current tripod system? I have not tried that one but with an on off switch I locked 8 air bags on a 40 ft Beaver so they could not pump and dump. Also did the same on a 4 air bag Country Coach. Both motor homes became more stable. Using 4 height control valves (one in each corner) I fear would create all sorts of problems which I'd like to refer to some of the more knowledgeable people in the forum to see what they think.271Views0likes0CommentsRe: Motorhome sway
WNY Pat wrote;- Here are two equally good references for adjusting your air ride suspension: http://www.rvtechlibrary.com/chassis/height.htm And if you have 8 air bag, here you go: http://www.beamalarm.com/Documents/ride-height-adjustment.html I checked the rvtechlibrary and thanks for the advice. I noticed that the front single height control valve was very much to the left front side. Being that the front air bags are united, would that not dangerously increase the center of gravity in a sweeping right cloverleaf turn.475Views0likes0CommentsAre Air Suspension Motor Homes Dangerous
I started a repair business in 1965, retired and sold in 2002. I have not repaired a motor home air suspension system since but at that time considered them to be unsafe. I hope that motor home companies will respond with detailed information about any air suspension improvements. Please let us have a polite constructive discussion that might help us be safer. Has anyone ever seen a 40 ft motor home with large tires on the front and smaller tires on the back. I did and asked the owner why. He said the factory recalled it because the front tires were defective. They were replaced at no charge. I asked if the replaced tires were exactly the same as the tires still on the rear. He said yes. His motor home has two front height control valves and one rear height control valve (tripod system). I found a newer motor home the same as his and climbed under. As I expected the height control valves were two on the rear and one on the front (tripod system). On a hot sunny day, a motor home traveling east on an asphalt highway with a 10mph wind from the south entered a right turn cloverleaf. It was towing a small vehicle with it's own braking system. The motor home was equipped with tripod air suspension, two height control valves in the front and one in the rear. At the end of the cloverleaf the traffic light turned red and while stopping, the left front tire blew. I believe it blew because of the left front height control valve causing it to carry more weight than it was designed to do, particularly in the turn and braking at the same time. Also, if the towed vehicle had an empty vacuum booster or for some other common reason was not functioning, it could have further pushed up the rear of the motor home.8.6KViews0likes25CommentsRe: Motorhome sway
Texas wrote:= Have you had ride height set to factory spec? Do you have one or two ride height valve in front? Same question, rear axle? Thanks for the help Texas. Ride height was set to factory. One ride height valve in the front, two ride height valves in the rear. I installed a switch on the dash that when flipped on locked the air in all the air bags. I road tested the coach again and at 15MPH flipped it on. I did the same sweeping right turn with the immediate left turn at 20MPH. This time the coach was much more stable with very little sway in the right and left turn. I also noticed the it steered better on the highway and in town.475Views0likes0CommentsRe: Motorhome sway
Mike and Trish Wrote More information would be helpful: What coach? What chassis? Have you checked the SWAY BAR MAIN AND END LINK BUSHINGS? Tire pressure correct for your actual axle weights? If air suspension, have you checked RIDE HEIGHT? The more information we have the better we can address your question. I installed air gauges to the four air bags in a Country Coach. LF 40psi / RF 40psi / LR 100psi / RR 60 psi. The coach was new, sway bars, tire pressures, height control valves, all systems and parts in perfect condition. Took it for a test run, in a long sweeping right turn at 10 mph under the posted, the LF and RF slowly equalized. The LR climbed to 120 psi and the RR went down to 40psi.475Views0likes0CommentsRe: Motorhome sway
Most buses and motor homes have side to side rear height control valves and one front center height control valve ( tripod air suspension). The left rear air bag pumps to a maximum of 135 pounds in a sweeping right turn while air transfers through a one millimeter opening from the left front air bag to the right front air bag. An immediate left turn allows the motor home to shift its weight onto an empty right rear air bag. The dangerous situation is further increased by acceleration and the fact that the right front air bag greatly increases the height of the center of gravity. These facts have been confirmed by a study of :- Highway and Urban Air Suspension Accidents 1. Exiting long sweeping curves. 2. Negotiating the second curve of close alternate turn. 3. Negotiating a curve either during or immediately port torque application.284Views0likes0Comments
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