Steering Improvement

[77newell]

I recall a couple messages related to steering being busy particularly when there are cross-winds or passing trucks. Since I overhauled my steering gear and had the rest of the steering components confirmed as good I've still had a more of this busy steering behavior than I would like, it's not bad but could be better.

Researching possibilities led me to the Wanderlodge Owners Group website and I found some threads indicating that the bushings in the Ridewell front suspension torque arms and track bar could be loose due to age and usage with the result of degraded steering performance.

I was talking yesterday to a mechanic who specializes in motorhomes. He asked what tire pressure I was using and when I told him 85 psi based upon the weight being carried by the tire his eyes got real big. He then stated that this low pressure alone would contribute significantly to a wandering coach even if the bushings were fine. His perspective is that radial tires have little sidewall stiffness and go all squishy when side loads occur.

He asked me to try the tires at max allowable pressure and see what happens. I did, pumped the tires to 105 psi and a number of things changed. The first change was the ride got a bit more jarring though less than I expected. Second, steering wheel corrections required a lighter touch. Third, the steering had a noticeable increase in tendency to return to center. Fourth, cross-winds and passing trucks required less steering corrections.

Next week I hope to have further tweaking done and will report what I find.

Lesson: use tire pressures dictated by load unless that produces steering problems. And those pressures apply to both front and rear axles.