Ground clearance

[billy1davis]

We have a 26ft Coachman which is a perfect fit for us as it is short enough that it is pretty much like just driving a big pickup. However the ground clearance is only about 8 inches. I could increase that by 3 or so inches by putting in a macerate pump and change the pipes to fit the new design which would be nice but is gaining 3 inches or so really worth it?

[klutchdust]

The legs are connected to my friend Russ. A experienced and talented desert traveler. The dip in the road, a small wash, was deceiving. We checked it out first however under the weight of my rig we sank. There was a hole hidden under the gravel. Unhooked the trailer and using the hydraulic levelers and some firewood we had we were safely back on track.
Needless to say i backed up and camped there. My son in laws truck with camper went over the same area with no problem. We looked at his tracks and it looked ok.

[garyhaupt]

Clearance is everything.

Gary Haupt

[bobndot]

Jack Spratt wrote:
Increasing the airbag psi can make a big difference in clearance

Yes, most of the time. 🙂 They worked that way on my pickup with a camper. Worked to perfection.

Been down this road last year with my new 'C'. I had to have it all removed. Not so perfect 😞

Yes, as long as the motorhome needs a lift.
If the rear is sagging the AB will bring it back up to a normal ride height which could be 3" or so , offering needed clearance.

In my case, I have a 4000# payload on my 24' C which was sitting level all loaded my 1500 lbs of stuff. I thought the AB's would offer me a few inches of 'extra clearance' for the dirt roads and aprons. They only gave me an extra 3/4" in height above riding level.

In my case, after trying the AB's, the shop said 'NO AB's' , to install spacers on the axles and springs to give needed lift and correct the alignment. Adding an extra leaf would offer lift but only make it ride harder, certainly something I don't need.

**Also, if you are running a rear track bar, it might limit your airbag choice. Some bags are a very tight fit if they fit at all.
I used a WirelessOne by Airlift, onboard compressor AB system which I would not recommend. I would definitely go with a wired system using a switch.
For the nearly $1800 system I felt it was not worth it, so I had it removed. I $400 compressor worked but was a tiny SS tube the size of a 'C' battery. It filled the bags quickly, I was surprised but shocked at its size.

It was difficult to find an rv shop or a truck shop to do the install. I finally found one who agreed to do it for me. I checked shops within 500 miles in the northeast, not too many were willing to do the install on a class C. They didn't even want to discuss it, "nope we don't install airbags on motorhomes" click ! .
RV's being vacation toys are not a priority like commercial trucks are, its business. I understand the economics of it and appreciate the shops being up-front although blunt. Just when I was feeling good about myself finally being an RV owner.
In the future I'm going to disguise my rv as a food truck, maybe I can get it repaired a little easier. 🙂

[Jack_Spratt]

Increasing the airbag psi can make a big difference in clearance

[bobndot]

Dusty R wrote:

bobndot wrote:
DrewE, x2

The place I scrape is the little welded tabs on my receiver. I think they added them as scrapers....I wonder why they did that ? :h 🙂
If I trimmed them down an inch I would bet I would never scrape. BTW, I only scrape on steep driveway aprons and I have learned to take them on an angle.

I wood rather scrap those than somewhere that could be damaged, the tabs can be replaced.

I agree but they are killing my sidewalk and apron. I can cut them down and re-weld them, will still have the protection to not scrape my hitch.

[Dusty_R]

bobndot wrote:
DrewE, x2

The place I scrape is the little welded tabs on my receiver. I think they added them as scrapers....I wonder why they did that ? :h 🙂
If I trimmed them down an inch I would bet I would never scrape. BTW, I only scrape on steep driveway aprons and I have learned to take them on an angle.

I wood rather scrap those than somewhere that could be damaged, the tabs can be replaced.

[bobndot]

DrewE, x2

The place I scrape is the little welded tabs on my receiver. I think they added them as scrapers....I wonder why they did that ? :h 🙂
If I trimmed them down an inch I would bet I would never scrape. BTW, I only scrape on steep driveway aprons and I have learned to take them on an angle.

[Harvard]

Changing the nose attitude will change the caster. More nose down (raising the rear) will subtract from the front end +caster. FWIW

[DrewE]

The clearance under the rear axle is probably about eight inches unless you have drastically larger diameter tires than stock. You wouldn't be gaining much if anything in the way of clearance by removing/changing the plumbing. Frankly, though, eight inches is a goodly amount of clearance for a vehicle that's not traveling off road. A great many cars have only about five or six inches of ground clearance, including every car I've ever owned, and have no trouble going over any reasonable road.

What you might be able to do, depending on where the pipe is, would be to increase the departure angle, which is what tends to cause problems with entering driveways and the like. If the pipes are hanging lower than a string stretched from the bottom of the rear tire to the back bumper (and are in back of the rear axle), then reconfiguring them would for sure be handy. My suspicion is that they are not below that point, and so you wouldn't gain a whole lot in practical terms for clearance and where you can reasonably drive. That's not to say that there aren't any places where it would be beneficial, just that they'd be pretty rare.

[Lwiddis]

Do you drive or want to drive dirt roads?