Air Suspension, would it help? (1 Viewer)

[cydersyd]

I have a 2002 Mercedes 316CDI 7.5 metre Rimor Motorhome.

The tyre pressures according to the cab plate is 41psi front and 65psi rear.

The van is quite rocky rolly especially on roundabouts. Would air suspension overcome the problem or would it help only slightly at great expense?

Would it be better to enhance the spring system if possible and if so why? and what would that cost.

Sadly everything is governed by the cost of it.

Your help would be appreciated.

 

[TheBig1]

air assisted suspension will definitely help, but if the springs are really soft will be working very hard. assuming its just normal body roll on corners and roundabouts or when being passed by big vehicles, then it will transform the ride massively.

it doesnt need to be massively expensive on the scale of things, as kits can be bought for about £400 and fitting is quick and straightforward

getting the rear leaf springs redone is likely to cost £300 plus labour so not much in it. both alternatives will firm up the suspension, but with airbags it will be adjustable to suit loading. plus with airbags you can overinflate briefly to help getting onto ferries with less risk of grounding

a good place for the kit is marcle leisure Broken Link Removed

 

[dave newell]

Sprinters are notoriously softly sprung and do tend to give a fairly soft and wallowy ride, partly due to the front being a transverse leaf spring. Air assisted rear suspension will help a bit but obviously won't overcome the soft front end.

D.

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[JeanLuc]

As Dave has said, Sprinters tend to roll, however that doesn't mean they are about to 'let go'. I remember hanging on tight in Germany a few years back when I had to call into a Merc commercial dealer to have something checked. The guy took it out to test, with us inside, and I felt a bit uneasy at the speed he cornered it - the Hymer had never been round tight bends so fast.

I just take it easy and aim to keep the cupboard contents from becoming scrambled!

 

[shinysideup]

air assist

Rhinoinstalls have just fitted the Dunlop air assist to our autosleepers ravenna. ( 1998 ) vintage. Suspension was really woozy , but it has firmed up no end. Still leans some but is totally predictable with no surprises.

Steve

 

[Bellini]

Assuming your Rimor is on its original suspension, there's a good chance the springs and dampers are getting tired and possibly past their best.

Additionally, if standard Sprinter springs, they'll be working hard with the additional constant weight. Vans tend to travel light, then heavy, frequently. A motorhome generally travels heavy all the time, so the wear is accelerated.

My suggestion is to get the springs replaced and preferably with uprated units. I had an additional leaf put into Udo's new rear springs when I had them done last month. Huge difference.

If, on having that done, you're still unhappy then fit air assistance. But I think it's important to get the basics right first before trying to fix by adding to worn components.

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[Tootles]

Had two new Dunlop air bags and pipework fitted to our Hymer back in February, by Dave Newell. Best £500 I have ever spent. 100% improvement on ride quality and roundabout cornering. :thumb::thumb::thumb:

 

[makems]

We had a Rapido on a Merc chassis.
The sprinter chassis is softly sprung to start with but it is also quite narrow. when you put a Motorhome body on it the sides stick well out past the wheels so quite a it of weight is outboard and this makes the rocking and rolling even worse.
Air suspension completely cured the problem for us.
It also made the van more stable in cross winds and when passing or being passed by juggernauts on the motorway

 

[f6c]

Air suspension will defiantly help.

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[cydersyd]

Many thanks to all, good advice with sensible suggestions that's what makes this site so good.
I will explore the springs strength first then move on to the suspension.

Regards to all,

Cydersyd.

 

[OddSocks]

I have a Mercedes 1990 208D chassis with an Autotrail Apache. I don't know what it was like before but a previous owner has added air suspension. It was set to 40psi. I put it up to 50 for a run up to Devon as I know how windy some of those roads are. It did make a very big difference, just altering the pressure. So I would say if you can afford it go for it, mine seems to work very well.

 

[Daveg]

We really rate air suspension

One of our airsprings broke the other week. In the period between realising it had gone and getting a new one from Marcle Leisure (really helpful people), the ride was noticeably worse. Restored to full health it is a much easier van to drive.

I wouldn't be without it now. Wish we'd had it on our first van, especially on Spanish motorways.

Dave

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[Minxy]

It will definitely help! We had a Rimor Sailer 645TC on a Ford RWD at over 7m long and had the same 'wallowing' problem as you have, and also buffeting on the motorways from passing lorries etc. We had Air-ride air assistance suspension fitted and it completely transformed it, it went around roundabouts as if it was on rails afterwards and made the whole driving experience much better. :thumb: