Ground Clearance problem

deesnest · 12-20-2015, 08:07 PM

Hi, I just purchased a 2011 Winnebago Aspect 30C. My first trip out I turned into a driveway and was horrified to hear the back end scraping on the ground. There was no obvious dip in the road and I don't see any reason why my MH should have done this other than the fact it's too low to the ground. I bent the spare tire rack. I also discovered that the mud flap (Ultraguard) which was mounted with an angle bracket is attached on one side to the generator exhaust pipe using a pipe clamp! This can't be the proper way to install this mud flap. I also noticed that there is maybe an 1" clearance from the bottom of the mud flap to the ground. Is this normal? I have air shocks, but haven't learned how to use them properly. I know that right now they only have 20lbs of pressure in each side. Would adding air to the bags help my ground clearance? I barely have anything in my MH so weight can't be an issue either. Your thoughts and ideas would be greatly appreciated. Thank you, Dee

powercat_ras · 12-20-2015, 09:45 PM

It appears that the 30C was not designed to handle much of a sudden change in road surface like the driveway you encountered, in particular if there is a spare tire rack back there. On my 2008 Cambria 29H with a similar overhang behind the rear wheels Winnebago put the spare tire on the rear wall so I did not have the problem you are having.

You can increase the height of the coach body and frame at and behind the rear axle by adding more air to the air springs. 10 PSI in the rear air springs is the minimum recommended by Firestone, so you are not getting much if any lift at 20 PSI. You can put at least up to 80 PSI in them, perhaps a little more - check your air spring manual in your Winnebago manuals bag for the exact details for your particular installation of Firestone Air Springs. If the use of your 30C involves doing this driveway or similar situations a lot, you can consider getting a Firestone or AirRide Air Spring Control system with 12 volt air spring compressor and control panel so you can dial up the air in the springs when you need to from the dash and release air from there too.

Ray,IN · 12-20-2015, 09:52 PM

:welcome:
Gas-powered MH's have a long tail behind the rear tires. This amplifies any dip you might drive through. It's called the departure angle, which you may figure by measuring height of rear bumper, length from bumper to where tires meet the pavement, and easy geometry.(also found online)
The mud/stone flap should be a minimum of 4" from level pavement to avoid it kicking up stones and damaging your towed vehicle. It's best to attach it to the frame with lengths of 3/16" chain, otherwise it's gonna tear off the genset tailpipe from ordinary traveling.
Air shocks pressure, look up your brand on the internet and download the owners manual and application. OTOH, someone here may have your brand MH and air shocks.

HerbZilla · 12-21-2015, 06:56 AM

Check the manual on your air bags because 20 psi sounds too low. I used to run about 80 psi on mine. That will make a huge difference in your ride height.

deesnest · 12-21-2015, 07:47 PM

Thank you for the information. I will do the research and make the changes now that I have some direction. Thanks!

deesnest · 12-21-2015, 07:50 PM

Thank you for the information. I will read my manuals and look into the dashboard option. I appreciate the time you took to help me out. Thanks.

NeilV · 12-21-2015, 10:47 PM

Manual says to set the pressure between 20 and 80 PSI so that the motorhome is level and to prevent bottoming out. If its bottoming out or the coach is higher in the front than in the back then they are set far too low. Load the coach as you would travel with it including the water tanks and passengers setting the bags to lift the rear end a touch higher than the front. Even if lightly loaded if most of the weight is in the back then it will most likely be riding too low in the back. A 30 foot Class C usually is pretty heavily loaded with just the basics with a few passengers and may not have as much cargo capacity as you might expect.

It would be a good idea to weigh the coach loaded the way you will be traveling to see how close you are to max capacity and to ensure that even if you are under weight overall that you do not have too much over the rear axle. It is possible to be underweight and still overweight on the rear axle.

The rear flap should not be hanging from the generator exhaust and needs to be corrected. The dealer should not have let it drive off the lot that way.

paswigi · 12-22-2015, 07:24 PM

I had steel wheels on my rear bumper trailer hitch area to lift the ciach so it would not drag, I had a 12 ft overhang, helped tremendously.

deesnest · 12-25-2015, 06:13 PM

My Firestone Air Ride Manual said to inflate to 80 psi. I'm new to all this knowledge. Is it a good idea to leave the air in the shocks while it is stored to relieve tension from the springs? I plan to take the MH to a scale to get the weight measurements you mentioned. I just purchased the MH and haven't put much in yet and I will be careful not to over do it. I really appreciate information. I'm going to take that mud flap off the generator exhaust as soon as I can get to it. Thanks, Neil V