[Tfrazier]

heck all,

I noticed a slight leaning to the right at the rear of the coach before our trip this past weekend. I did some quick checking to see if I could find any air leaks but didn't. With the coach fully aired up, I took some quick measurements of the height between the edge of the fender and the ground. The right side was sitting about 1.5 lower than the left. I still had plenty of clearance between the tire and the fender. 

I stopped several times during my trip (3 hours) to check on things, but everything seemed okay. At the campground, the site was sloped down from front to rear so I had to lower it all the way in the front and raise it almost all the way in the rear. Got everything all leveled out no problem. During the 4 nights we were at the campground, my compressor only came on a few times and not for very long. No more so than normal.

Based on this, I don't think I have any major air leaks (I hope).  I am getting ready to install the Airforce One brake system in a week or so and will be spending plenty of time under the coach (fully cribbed of course). I plan to do a more thorough inspection of all my air lines and get into all the tight spots with my leak detector. 

Is it possible that I am having issues with the Ride Height Control Valve? If so, what should I be looking for? I have a new one in my spare parts kit but I have never installed one.

Thanks,

[Fulltiming]

Sounds like the travel height valve needs adjusting. Hard place to get to. Located inboard of the drive axle tires. On a level surface, measure from the ground to the bottom of the 1" square tubing in front of the rear drive axle wheel well. It should be about 11"-11-1/2". If one side is too high or too low, that is the side that needs to be adjusted. There is a rod from the valve to the axle. There is a hose clamp that tightens around the P around the rod. Loosen the hose clamp and move it up or down to adjust the ride height. Use the search function for "ride height" and you will find lot's of information. All of the side to side adjustment is in the rear. The front uses a single valve located behind the front axle in the center of the coach.

[Chester Stone]

Tony, if you search my name, Chester Stone, for a posting on 04-05-2023 with air-force-one as the subject, you will find five photo postings related to installing the unit. On my coach, I did not have to get under the coach except to connect to air lines under the back bumper area, and if yours is similar, you will not have to go under the coach.

[Richard]

Hi Tony,

A couple of questions to clarify your statements if you don’t mind. When you said you stopped several times during the trip and everything was OK, do you mean during those stops that the coach was even OR if the 1.5 inch side to side variation was still there?

Second question. You said while camped, the compressor did not come on any more than normal. Are you leaving the HWH system in autolevel mode? Did the coach shift during the time you were leveled?

On the Air Force one install, just use the line you already have from the M&G to feed the AF1.

[Tfrazier]

Hello Gurus,
Thanks for the feedback. 
@Chester: I will take a look at your post. Sounds promising.
@Michael: I'll get the measurements and do some further "ride height" searching.
@Richard: 
1. During the stops, the coach was still about 1-1.5" lower. but still plenty of clearance between the wheel and the fender.
2. I have a Newell cobbled-together leveling system, which is apparently what they did before the started using the full on HWH systems. It uses some HWH components, but it does not have Auto Leveling. I do leave the level control switch in the on position when I shut the engine down. I don't know if this makes a difference but it's what I have always done. The coach did not appear to shift while we were at the camp site.
 - Fast forward to today with the coach parked in the driveway and sitting unplugged for the last 2 days, it is definitely listing more to the right than it was before. So maybe it is an air leak and not the RHCV, or maybe it is both. Guess Should i check the 6-pack solenoids as well.


Thanks, 


Thanks,

[Richard]

thanks for the clarification.

I agree with Michael. It is most likely a misajusted ride height valve. They can slip.

[Tfrazier]

Me again,

Started messing around with the Ride Height Control. I read a lot of the posts about this topic before I got started and it seemed pretty straight forward. First thing I did was take the air down and then let it build up to travel height. Then measured the height of the 1" square tube in front of the rear drive axel. 

This where I am stuck. The left side (high side) measures 12 3/4" and the right side (low side) measures 13". Does this make sense? Both are quite a bit higher than the 11-11 1/2" that Michael pointed out. 

 I also measured distance from the center edge of the fender to the ground. Left side (high side) was 43.5 and the right side (low side) was 42 3/4.

Would it make sense to take the same measurements over the next several days to see if the right side drops further?

Thanks

[Fulltiming]

Is the coach on a paved level surface and are the tires properly inflated? A quarter of an inch should not be significant, especially since it is the opposite direction than your perceived low right side. I have seen other coaches that were set up for additional ground clearance that were in the range you are talking about.

When you took the measurements, did the coach appear to be leaning to the right?

[Tfrazier]

I am parked on a paved surface. Side to side is spot on level. Front to back is slightly off level. The bubble on my level from fron to back is within the cener line but is teetering on the edge with the fron being a smidge higher than the rear. Is as good as I can get without putting it in level mode and adjusting. I guess I can find a parking lot that might take care of the front to back if I need to.

The coach did appear to be leaning to the right when I took the measurements.


Thanks,