Pilote P740GJ - Anyone have one or similar? (2 Viewers)

[Blue Knight]

Dave, my apologies for a slow response; here's a pic of the 40mm pipe which is attached to the waste water coupler. I will get a close-up after my coffee.

 

[Blue Knight]

Two more Dave:

 

[Dave K]

@Blue Knight thanks Andrew, very helpful

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[Blue Knight]

@Blue Knight thanks Andrew, very helpful

I've kept the hose flexible so I can swing it out into the drain. It's nothing special Dave but for £8 you can't go wrong eh.

I may add stronger supports in the future but the reinforced nylon ties will do the trick for now.

That said, I'm not sure how the MY18 vans are configured and what changes have been made to the underside.

All the best,

Andrew

 

[Blue Knight]

Chaps, now that we've decided to keep the van (we can't find anything better or more suitable for our needs), I have opted to fit the VB Semi-Air suspension to the rear.

It should come next week so I'll fit it and write some feedback on ride improvements. BTW it was only £355 delivered.

Thanks to John @Neckender for the eBay link

 

[Dave K]

Chaps, now that we've decided to keep the van (we can't find anything better or more suitable for our needs), I have opted to fit the VB Semi-Air suspension to the rear.

It should come next week so I'll fit it and write some feedback on ride improvements. BTW it was only £355 delivered.

Thanks to John @Neckender for the eBay link

I’ll be interested in the results and to hear what they were like to fit Andrew, it’s something I’ve thought about myself, seems a decent price as well

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[Neckender]

@Blue Knight Andrew if you need any info with the fit let me know, as the instructions are pictorial only.
I struggled connecting the air bag air hoses after I fitted the airbags and if I was doing the job again I would measure the length of the air hoses plus a bit and coil them with the bags before fitting.

John.

 

[Blue Knight]

I’ll be interested in the results and to hear what they were like to fit Andrew, it’s something I’ve thought about myself, seems a decent price as well

Dave, my kit is for the standard Fiat Camper Chassis but if you've opted for the 4.4T Heavy unit then you'll have to buy a different kit which, I think, is much more expensive.

 

[Blue Knight]

@Blue Knight Andrew if you need any info with the fit let me know, as the instructions are pictorial only.
I struggled connecting the air bag air hoses after I fitted the airbags and if I was doing the job again I would measure the length of the air hoses plus a bit and coil them with the bags before fitting.

John.

Cheers John, great advice

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[Dave K]

Dave, my kit is for the standard Fiat Camper Chassis but if you've opted for the 4.4T Heavy unit then you'll have to buy a different kit which, I think, is much more expensive.

Mine is standard as well Andrew

 

[Blue Knight]

Mine is standard as well Andrew

Ooooops, Dave, I mixed you up with David and his P740 order.

FYI, I've removed the flexi waste water pipe today and have replaced it with a set of 40mm push-fit hard pipes - much much better.

 

[Blue Knight]

Dave, John,

It arrived AM today so how quick was that eh; I only placed the order PM on Tuesday.

I've been under the van this afternoon and it looks like a very easy fit. I intend to raise the chassis by about 35mm so that the unit just slides into place.

As you can see from the pic I will need to unclip the handbrake cable on both sides but the metal VB-Air base mount has an aperture to accommdate the clip once it is replaced.

The quality is nop-notch so well done VB Air and well done John for giving me the link.

All the best,

Andrew

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[Dave K]

@Blue Knight Andrew if you need any info with the fit let me know, as the instructions are pictorial only.
I struggled connecting the air bag air hoses after I fitted the airbags and if I was doing the job again I would measure the length of the air hoses plus a bit and coil them with the bags before fitting.

John.

Hi John
Could you please send me the link for the VB air suspension kit.
Thanks
Dave

 

[Blue Knight]

Hi John
Could you please send me the link for the VB air suspension kit.
Thanks
Dave

I can't do a link on this phone but It's in the flowing thread:

Tech/Mech General,
Thread entitled 'Fitted Semi Air Suspension',
Post-16 applies.

It looks as if the price has been reduced to £279 but check that it's the right item from the eBay shop.

 

[Neckender]

@Dave K here's the link.

John.

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[Dave K]

@Dave K here's the link.

John.

Thanks John

 

[Blue Knight]

The semi-air is now fitted but it didn't take me 2hrs, more like 6 due to the cab area. I've put the controller in the front right cab which meant me stripping out the eight plastic panels in the seat and footwell area.

I have set it at 3-bar for now and what an instant positive change it has made.

John @Neckender I used a small clamp on a 2-inch piece of pipe to act as a vacuum when the bellows were fully compressed. It worked well mate.

 

[Neckender]

I’ve set mine at 2.5 bar and reduced my tyre pressures from 79psi to 60 psi front, and 79 psi to 65 psi rear and it’s also transformed our driving experience.

John.

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[Blue Knight]

I’ve set mine at 2.5 bar and reduced my tyre pressures from 79psi to 60 psi front, and 79 psi to 65 psi rear and it’s also transformed our driving experience.

John.

John, that's very useful info - what weight are you running on your van.

I think 3-bar is a wee bit high for me.

 

[Dave K]

The semi-air is now fitted but it didn't take me 2hrs, more like 6 due to the cab area. I've put the controller in the front right cab which meant me stripping out the eight plastic panels in the seat and footwell area.

I have set it at 3-bar for now and what an instant positive change it has made.

John @Neckender I used a small clamp on a 2-inch piece of pipe to act as a vacuum when the bellows were fully compressed. It worked well mate.

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How easy was it to fit the suspension parts Andrew, just wondered how easy it was to get the old out and the new in.
Dave

 

[Blue Knight]

How easy was it to fit the suspension parts Andrew, just wondered how easy it was to get the old out and the new in.
Dave

I won't lie to you Dave, it was quite fiddly at times. The procedure itself is OK but the fact that you are scrunched up on the floor is a bit of a pain. The Pilote has great ground clearance but it's still not lavish for this type of job. The same goes for the plumbing of the twin lines as they need some thought and again you need to be scrunched with your gear immediately at hand.

Once you pull the bumper stop off and then dislodge the bumper stop housing with a mini sledge hammer and chisel then you're away. You then need to move the handbrake cable and then add the bellows before finishing off with the securing bolts. Here are a few pics I took:

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[Dave K]

I won't lie to you Dave, it was quite fiddly at times. The procedure itself is OK but the fact that you are scrunched up on the floor is a bit of a pain. The Pilote has great ground clearance but it's still not lavish for this type of job. The same goes for the plumbing of the twin lines as they need some thought and again you need to be scrunched with your gear immediately at hand.

Once you pull the bumper stop off and then dislodge the bumper stop housing with a mini sledge hammer and chisel then you're away. You then need to move the handbrake cable and then add the bellows before finishing off with the securing bolts. Here are a few pics I took:

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Thanks Andrew, very helpful, what did you use to jack the van up and did you jack both sides at a time?, just wondered if I’d need to buy any extra kit

 

[Blue Knight]

Thanks Andrew, very helpful, what did you use to jack the van up and did you jack both sides at a time?, just wondered if I’d need to buy any extra kit

The van was chocked on all four corners Dave but I didn't jack it as such. I used the following 2T bottle back with wood inserts and placed it between the rear axle and the reinforced chassis arm which is located right next to the bumper stop. I used it 3 times to help raise that part of the van by 20mm only, I.e. so that I could gain a small bit of clearance when I started screwing the bellow into the old bumper-stop housing.

The jack is 16cm high when compressed so it fitted nicely into the 23cm apperture between the rear axle and the chassis. (Don't use the cross member, just the reinforced bit where the cross member and the main chassis legs meet).

 

[Neckender]

John, that's very useful info - what weight are you running on your van.

I think 3-bar is a wee bit high for me.

@Blue Knight I took the van for a run today but not fully loaded for a trip so it was under 3500kg.
I’ll know better next week when I take it for a run to Toledo’s rally near Holbeach but still under 3500 kg.
I won’t be running at my max weight 4100 kg until Sept when we load for our 7 week trip to Benidorm.

My last 2 vans Auto Roller and then Auto Sleeper both 3500kg coach built I ran the air suspension at 1.5 kg and I found it fine.

John.

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[Blue Knight]

@Blue Knight I took the van for a run today but not fully loaded for a trip so it was under 3500kg.
I’ll know better next week when I take it for a run to Toledo’s rally near Holbeach but still under 3500 kg.
I won’t be running at my max weight 4100 kg until Sept when we load for our 7 week trip to Benidorm.

My last 2 vans Auto Roller and then Auto Sleeper both 3500kg coach built I ran the air suspension at 1.5 kg and I found it fine.

John.

Many thanks sir

I'll take it for a spin soon John and do a few tests. I'm quite looking forward to seeing the change in performance on the various roads etc.

All the best,

Andrew

 

[Blue Knight]

Chaps, FYI: I've not had time to road test the van yet but at 3-bar pressure the chassis is raised by 21mm at the rear axle point.

That's a good deal of pressure being alleviated from the rear springs so that may become my storage pressure for when the Pilote sits on the drive.

 

[krclink]

Hi Guys, as an update to my previous reply, I just last week went to weighbridge to get an update on my weights. In addition to what I had already in the garage, I have added a spare wheel and carrier. My weights aere as follows......front--1580kgs, rear--2060kgs, and total was 3640kgs. Thhiss was with driver and passenger, 75% fuel and 100% water. OOPS, too much!!!
Have been in touch with svtech, and need to add air assist to rear axle and change the tyres from 215/70 15 to 225/70 15. This will uprate rear axle to 2240kgs, with a gross vehicle weight of 3850kgs. Svtech also advised that instead of running the rear tyres at 80psi, run them at 65psi. According to Michelin, this will decrease stopping distances by 3 metres. The front axle weight has to be around 1600kgs, any lighter will affect the road handling. They suggested that instead of having a complete spare wheel, just take spare tyres. Out of interest, the cost for this is to be 250 plus vat for the paperwork. I got new tyres (michelin agilis camping) for 100 plus vat each, and the air assist was 360 plus vat from Svtech. I could have got a cheaper option of ebay, but the one from Svtech has a 2 year warranty, and if something goes wrong, it will be easier to deal with Svtech than some seller on ebay, hopefully.

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[Blue Knight]

Hi Guys, as an update to my previous reply, I just last week went to weighbridge to get an update on my weights. In addition to what I had already in the garage, I have added a spare wheel and carrier. My weights aere as follows......front--1580kgs, rear--2060kgs, and total was 3640kgs. Thhiss was with driver and passenger, 75% fuel and 100% water. OOPS, too much!!!
Have been in touch with svtech, and need to add air assist to rear axle and change the tyres from 215/70 15 to 225/70 15. This will uprate rear axle to 2240kgs, with a gross vehicle weight of 3850kgs. Svtech also advised that instead of running the rear tyres at 80psi, run them at 65psi. According to Michelin, this will decrease stopping distances by 3 metres. The front axle weight has to be around 1600kgs, any lighter will affect the road handling. They suggested that instead of having a complete spare wheel, just take spare tyres. Out of interest, the cost for this is to be 250 plus vat for the paperwork. I got new tyres (michelin agilis camping) for 100 plus vat each, and the air assist was 360 plus vat from Svtech. I could have got a cheaper option of ebay, but the one from Svtech has a 2 year warranty, and if something goes wrong, it will be easier to deal with Svtech than some seller on ebay, hopefully.

That's a great write-up but just remind us all what van you have again

All the best,

Andrew

 

[krclink]

Hi Andrew, it is a P740
Cheers

 

[Blue Knight]

Hi Andrew, it is a P740
Cheers

Thanks my good Pilote mate

We don't have a spare tyre yet and I have no plans for an awning but with full fuel and fresh water, 2nd hab battery, full gear albeit light, the two of us (140kg), then in Sensation guise we are coming in at 3,520kg with 1,900kg on the rear axle.

It seems that all of your weight is somehow being directed to the rear.

Some interesting figures there.

Cheers

Andrew

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