Van level

[paul18]

On our 2nd site now and I have noticed when on level ground the front end is lower than the rear meaning I have to use the yellow wedges to get it horizontal. Is this normal with some vans? Ours is Ace modena. Sorry for another thread, getting used to our new baby!

 

[scotjimland]

I've noticed it on several vans.. I imagine if it were fully laden it may level out .. ?

 

[Clarky]

Certainly happens on our AutoTrail and I'm sure our previous Swift was the same.
Most of the time I don't worry about it being a tad down on the front and we are now quite used to it.
If it was down at the rear however it would be a problem sleeping.

Richard.

 

[maz]

My van is slightly nose down which is how I like it. The shower drains better.

 

[Jeannette van den Oever]

Here's a stupid question - why don't MHs come with corner steadies as standard, like caravans? I suppose they're too heavy?
Worrying my name'll be mud on first outing, if the campsites aren't totally level. Planning on getting air suspension but need the smoke to clear a little on the credit card.

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[WillH]

Sounds like your van is on a Ducato chassis, most are these days, and the nose down attitude is normal. A slight slope on the pitch will level the van, otherwise, use levelling blocks. I believe the nose down attitude gives these vans good stability at speed.

 

[Bobby22]

Here's a stupid question - why don't MHs come with corner steadies as standard, like caravans? I suppose they're too heavy?
Worrying my name'll be mud on first outing, if the campsites aren't totally level. Planning on getting air suspension but need the smoke to clear a little on the credit card.

Corner steadies won't level a motor home..........neither will air suspension so keep the cc in your pocket and save yourself some money.

 

[paul18]

Sounds like your van is on a Ducato chassis, most are these days, and the nose down attitude is normal. A slight slope on the pitch will level the van, otherwise, use levelling blocks. I believe the nose down attitude gives these vans good stability at speed.

Yes, Fiat Ducato chassis

 

[scotjimland]

Here's a stupid question - why don't MHs come with corner steadies as standard, like caravans? I suppose they're too heavy?

correct..
you can have them fitted to 'steady' the van.... some vans do move about a lot when your walking about.. but will not level it..

if you want to level the van without leveling ramps you can fit hydraulic jacks .. one at each corner.. many RVs have them,...arrive on site, press button.. down they go and .. presto.. you are level..

downside.. expensive, and use of payload

 

[Deleted member 29692]

Ours is the same. It seems to be a bit of an optical illusion as it always looks far worse outside than it actually is on the inside.

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[Deleted member 29692]

Here's a stupid question - why don't MHs come with corner steadies as standard, like caravans? I suppose they're too heavy?
Worrying my name'll be mud on first outing, if the campsites aren't totally level. Planning on getting air suspension but need the smoke to clear a little on the credit card.

We have rear steadies on ours. As @ScotJimland says they aren't for levelling it, just to keep it from moving around too much.

IMO they are a complete waste of time and I never use them

 

[Jeannette van den Oever]

That's probably why we didn't get them as an option NickNic.
Getting my gadgets mixed up! Jeroen knows it's hydraulics - as if he'd trust me to choose the toys.

 

[Puddleduck]

Ours is slightly nose down as well. We use the leveling blocks if we have to, doesn't bother us much now as it seems to be "normal" on Ducato based vehicles.

 

[Lenny HB]

Even with Goldschmitt springs on the front our van is still slightly nose down.

 

[Techno]

Some of us have uprated our front springs to overcome most of the irregularity. These days new vans are often offered the stronger spring option at time of ordering. Many X250 maxi chassis have inadequate springs.

http://www.motorhomefun.co.uk/forum/threads/vb-front-coil-springs-upgrade.77785/

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[DBK]

That's probably why we didn't get them as an option NickNic.
Getting my gadgets mixed up! Jeroen knows it's hydraulics - as if he'd trust me to choose the toys.

No, you were right. There is air suspension and there is air-assisted suspension. Full air suspension is expensive - £1.5K+ but they can be used to level the vehicle, just like you can with corner steadies on a caravan. Air-assisted suspension costs a few hundred pounds and is reported to give a smoother ride than the standard setup as they replace some solid rubber "bump-stops" with air bags. You can self-level with air-assisted if you have an on-board compressor, but the cheaper installations are just inflated using a garage tyre pump. My understanding is that the amount of travel you can get from air-assisted suspension is limited compared to full air suspension but I would not claim to be an ex-spurt.

It has been discussed here before and some folk have published handy guides on how they fitted air-assisted suspension. (Edit: See above!) What you can or cannot do on each MH depends very much on the base vehicle.

Air suspension: http://www.vbairsuspension.co.uk/en/page/applications/motorhome.html

Air-assisted suspension: http://www.rhinoinstalls.co.uk/airride.htm

Other suppliers are available - those are just what Google came up with. Ask on here for recommendations if you want to investigate further.

 

[Deleted member 29692]

Using the table as a guide ours always seems pretty level inside even when the nose looks low.

I use the wineglass test: If it doesn't slide off the table the van is level enough

 

[DBK]

On our 2nd site now and I have noticed when on level ground the front end is lower than the rear meaning I have to use the yellow wedges to get it horizontal. Is this normal with some vans? Ours is Ace modena. Sorry for another thread, getting used to our new baby!

I don't think it is a fault. The front I believe is the correct ride hight and it is the rear which is too high! If you look at a modern car they often have air dams underneath the front bumper. This is to reduce drag and therefore improve mpg. The idea is to avoid a great gap underneath the front of the vehicle. Of course it could be argued on a MH you probably wouldn't notice the difference but if the front of your vehicle isn't hitting things then I would leave it alone. I actually like the slight difference because on a gently sloping site I can pitch in front or rear first as appropriate so the vehicle levels without the need for ramps.

 

[DavidG58]

I don't think it is a fault.

I actually like the slight difference because on a gently sloping site I can pitch in front or rear first as appropriate so the vehicle levels without the need for ramps.

Bit of a shame though when you get a billiard table flat pitch and still need ramps

 

[DBK]

In ours the difference looks worse from the outside than it is in reality. On a flat pitch it would be level enough for us. Wine stay on the table, sink drains away. We do have the benefit in ours we can sleep either way round, so to speak.

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[Techno]

Wifey won't have her head at the front of the pitch anymore when in bed! So it's reverse in every time now. So I prefer a slight slope to the back

 

[Snowbird]

It is normal for some vans to sit off level. Personally I always use ramps to level up as being even slightly off level is a pet hate. If off level, doors dont close properly and worse still the fridge does not work correctly. How many times have I heard people say "My fridge does not keep things as cool as it used to" only to look at the van and its sitting as though its had a double blowout. Over time being off level destroys the fridge. I know, have had to replace enough in second hand vans.

 

[bertiebasset]

We have air assist suspension and find the ride ok, also have rear steadies but with the overhang on our MH it is needed as the wobble is significant when not used. She does seem to sit level though.

 

[Trikeman]

Corner steadies won't level a motor home..........neither will air suspension so keep the cc in your pocket and save yourself some money.

Our air suspension will level our MoHo, no problems on most sites. Ok, 20% hill may be a little difficult.

Regards,

Trikeman.

 

[Langtoftlad]

Well, I can now contribute from my vast experience of renting one for a week... !

The Mooveo P6 definitely looked tail high from the outside yet according to the phone's bubble level app - the table, the cooker top etc were almost perfectly level!

So whether it's an optical illusion, or the interior is built with an exactly offset slope the other way (can you imagine the standard of craftmanship required to do that!) I cannot say...

But in my "excitement" of playing with a van for the first time, level didn't enter my head. Reverse parking, straight, without hitting bollards was my first priority .

But when I went to bed... ... I can't say I noticed any leanings one way or another - I have to assume I was lucky with having several absolutely level pitches .

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[Trikeman]

Well, I can now contribute from my vast experience of renting one for a week... !

The Mooveo P6 definitely looked tail high from the outside yet according to the phone's bubble level app - the table, the cooker top etc were almost perfectly level!

So whether it's an optical illusion, or the interior is built with an exactly offset slope the other way (can you imagine the standard of craftmanship required to do that!) I cannot say...

But in my "excitement" of playing with a van for the first time, level didn't enter my head. Reverse parking, straight, without hitting bollards was my first priority .

But when I went to bed... ... I can't say I noticed any leanings one way or another - I have to assume I was lucky with having several absolutely level pitches .

If you wake up on the floor dribbling from the right, you have -
a) not levelled correctly.
b) had a bloody good night out.

Both are fun, but can leave one feeling a little queezy though.

Trikeman.

 

[funflair]

Corner steadies won't level a motor home..........neither will air suspension so keep the cc in your pocket and save yourself some money.

Four channel 4C air suspension will level the van on a reasonable slope, but yes it will hammer the CC.

 

[Vlad The Impaler]

Never bother with levelling up!
When off site wilding in a field or on the beach just park as level as I can.Normally just read the ground and when in position look over my shoulder down the van to gauge how level we are ,it's not that hard.
When on site we find most pitches are reasonably level if there's a slight slope we will reverse on or drive on to suit ,as long as my head is slightly higher than my feet I sleep ok.
I've spent a good few hours pissing myself watching people revving the nuts off their van guided by co pilot up and down on blocks front to back and side to side on a pitch that's basically level!



Vlad

 

[Gizmouk]

Yep, ours sits nose down. I just get the wife to sit in the back

 

[daveandsan]

Yep, ours sits nose down. I just get the wife to sit in the back

That's one brave man