Noisy, bounching tip-back dash instrument panel in Sightseer

[ejlcom]

We are currently traveling eastward (from the Pacific Northwest) to Florida in our '06 Sightseer (29 foot). We love this motorhome! After going through larger Class A's while towing a Jeep, a Mobile Suites fifth wheel, and a couple of Class C's, we have "arrived" at our best one yet...this Winne 29-foot Sightseer with the Ford F53 chassis. BUT we have one gripe about it: the tip-back dash instrument panel bounces around (esp. on concrete roads), rattles, and literally drives us crazy.

We've tried pushing foam rubber into the places (between the plexi-glass instrument panel cover) and between the tip-back panel and the lower, flat dash. The manufacturer-placed Velcro strips seem to hold it down OK, although a Camping World technician suggested we might try adding some more industrial-strength Velcro to this panel (not much area on the tip-back portion of the instrument panel to place a wide strip of Velcro, however). Nothing helps and the noise seems to be all-inclusive throughout that "stupid design" for the tip-back panel.

Does ANYONE have a suggestion/fix for this problem? I'm sure that other owners of this model have experienced the same irritation with this instrument panel's noisy, bouncing racket during a trip on our nation's highways! Obviously some kind of spring system would eliminate the bouncing racket from this rigid structure. So much for Ford's/Winnebago's cheap setup on the instrument panel...

Thanks for any and all suggestions...

[DAN L]

Originally Posted by ejlcom

We are currently traveling eastward (from the Pacific Northwest) to Florida in our '06 Sightseer (29 foot). We love this motorhome! After going through larger Class A's while towing a Jeep, a Mobile Suites fifth wheel, and a couple of Class C's, we have "arrived" at our best one yet...this Winne 29-foot Sightseer with the Ford F53 chassis. BUT we have one gripe about it: the tip-back dash instrument panel bounces around (esp. on concrete roads), rattles, and literally drives us crazy.

We've tried pushing foam rubber into the places (between the plexi-glass instrument panel cover) and between the tip-back panel and the lower, flat dash. The manufacturer-placed Velcro strips seem to hold it down OK, although a Camping World technician suggested we might try adding some more industrial-strength Velcro to this panel (not much area on the tip-back portion of the instrument panel to place a wide strip of Velcro, however). Nothing helps and the noise seems to be all-inclusive throughout that "stupid design" for the tip-back panel.

Does ANYONE have a suggestion/fix for this problem? I'm sure that other owners of this model have experienced the same irritation with this instrument panel's noisy, bouncing racket during a trip on our nation's highways! Obviously some kind of spring system would eliminate the bouncing racket from this rigid structure. So much for Ford's/Winnebago's cheap setup on the instrument panel...

Thanks for any and all suggestions...

have you tried a set of koni fsd shocks?
they made a big difference on my rig. my dash rattled and my over head tv shook and rattled so bad that i was concerned that it was going to fall down.

[ejlcom]

Thanks, Dan L...

We had new shocks (Bilstein, however) installed, as well as a heavy-duty rear sway bar, prior to leaving on this trip. These improvements have made a huge difference in the handling and ride of the motorhome. The tip-up instrument panel, however, has not been noticeably affected by the new installations. It has always been a problem but with a 7500+ mile trip currently being undertaken, we certainly notice the noise and bouncing of this dash addition on our F53 chassis. The spousal unit thinks some kind of spring or piston system would have been, and should have been, installed on the manufacturer's level but aftermarket looks virtually impossible. We are thinking of jamming the 6-inch foam strip we cut from our new mattress (from a true queen to a short queen to fit the motorhome's bed frame) under the blasted tip-up area during our road trip portions...

Thanks for your response, Dan L...

[ROMAD]

We had an 06 Voyage with the same dash set up and the same noise problem. I got some stick on rubber pads at Lowes of Home Depot and that solved 90% of the problem. When you tilt the dash panel back you will see a square tube steel frame on the dash side and the instrument panel side; attach the rubber pads along both frames so they will contact each other. It will pad the panel and eliminate most of the squeeks.

[DAN L]

Originally Posted by ejlcom

Thanks, Dan L...

We had new shocks (Bilstein, however) installed, as well as a heavy-duty rear sway bar, prior to leaving on this trip. These improvements have made a huge difference in the handling and ride of the motorhome. The tip-up instrument panel, however, has not been noticeably affected by the new installations. It has always been a problem but with a 7500+ mile trip currently being undertaken, we certainly notice the noise and bouncing of this dash addition on our F53 chassis. The spousal unit thinks some kind of spring or piston system would have been, and should have been, installed on the manufacturer's level but aftermarket looks virtually impossible. We are thinking of jamming the 6-inch foam strip we cut from our new mattress (from a true queen to a short queen to fit the motorhome's bed frame) under the blasted tip-up area during our road trip portions...

Thanks for your response, Dan L...

you are welcome...
bilstein shocks are known for their harsher ride. sometimes there is a satisfaction guarantee on them where you purchased them. maybe change to koni's just in front?
koni fsd shocks have a frequency modulation system so that the ride is smoother while still maintaining control similar to bils. i got mine from shox. com.
my original shocks were monroes which had 8k miles on them when i purchased the moho.
have you checked your front wheel/tires for correct inflation for the weight they are carrying and balance?
http://www.konirv.com/

[thepratts]

I am not sure what you have for a console. On our 07 Voyage the center console rattled and bouced all over the place. Could not even put our GPS on top of it. Took some panels off and found that the screws holding the console frame to the floor were loose. They were loose since we purchased the rig new. Tightened them and the rattles and bouncing went way.

Since then we have installed Koni FSDs and that has helped even more. Our rig came with Bilsteins installed and they were very harsh.

[Hikerdogs]

We had a similar problem with the flip up dash on our 01 Adventurer. We found a product called Trim Loc Edge guard at Camping World. We opened the dash and slipped a piece over each end of the plastic from the piano hinge on the back to the instrument panel. It had stopped 99% of the bounce and has completely eliminated any rattles or squeaks

I don't know if it's still available at Camping World. We bought it in a 25' roll which was more than enough to do the job. Here's a link to the company that makes it:
Edge Trim - Flexible PVC Trim - Edge Protection

Be sure to measure the thickness of the part you want to put it on. It comes in several widths and colors.

[David Kanoy]

Eljcom,

We had the same problem with our 2000 Adventure's Dash.

I installed "door edge guard" purchased from Advance Auto per the attached picture.

This stopped 90% of my dash squeaks.

Hope this helps,

Good Luck