Tippy Camper???

JonMac · 17-12-2013 4:05pm #1

My wife gets very nervous when there is a hint of the camper tilting. She was in a bad rollover crash as a teenager. When we go around a roundabout she will grab at things to brace herself if she isn't driving.
Is there anything I can do to reduce the sway? It is a 3.2 m high, 6 m long coachbuilt on a Ducato 230. Although coming up 15 years old it has only done 65K km.
Thanks.

17-12-2013 7:05pm

Harder shocks. Extra leaf springs. Firmer tyres.

pastense · 17-12-2013 7:56pm

Go real slow

niloc1951 · 17-12-2013 8:48pm

Have you a lot of stuff in the over-cab bed, have you heavy stuff in the overhead lockers. If move so it down to floor lockers, high up weight will increase the height of the centre of gravity and aggravate any tendency for the vehicle to sway on bends.

Stiffer anti-roll bars would help but they only transfer the energy to the chassis, which may or may not be up to the job of dealing with the extra stress.

Otherwise go slower

CJhaughey · 17-12-2013 11:11pm

Do you need an overhead/luton?
If you don't need that space you could opt for a low-profile which would tend not to be as rolly.

pastense · 19-12-2013 12:37am

Changing to a low profile to stop a 'tippy' feeling on roundabouts would be using a very big hammer to drive a very small nail, easing on the throttle would solve the problem. Had a bouncy one once but when I changed, it wasn't for that reason.
An investment would be better spent on suspension as already advised above.

macpete · 19-12-2013 1:07pm

I can highly recommend Air Ride suspension on the rear. I have it fitted on our camper which is a 6.5mt long low profile camper and the difference is unreal.
You can control the stiffness of the suspension by the air pressure in the system. I bought my system and fitted myself [about 2 hours labour if DIY ]
I got the full kit including compressor and clocks for 550 euro about 5 years ago.
One of the best extras I got for the camper along with the solar panel.

20-12-2013 1:49am

Firming the suspension over the drive axle pays for itself in fuel reduction. Portlaoise Springs Ltd. fit helper leafs for leaf springs or swap whole sets.

JonMac · 19-02-2014 7:07pm

So while driving our 1999 Ducato X230 around Spain this winter, we realised the rear suspension really needed to be upgraded. First we found a friendly Dethleths dealer in Lorca who arranged to have a local garage replace the shock absorbers.

We then contacted Drive-Rite who informed us that the Spanish agent is Alex Huesa, website www.micasaconruedas.com. I contacted Alex by email with the help of Google Translate. He obtained the semi-air suspension kit and arranged for his local garage to install it. Excellent service on his part. He is just north of Barcelona and we were going that way to visit a friend.

The improvement is literally amazing. The old spring assisters had started to break down which you couldn't see in situ.

Maybe this can help someone in the future.

moodrater · 21-02-2014 1:19pm

Would love air myself but couldn't justify the cost. Many people including some DOE testers are under the impression that the spring assisters are bump stops and pass them when they're fecked, missing or worst of all you'll see vans where one assister is missing or significantly more worn than the other. On a bump the high assister causes the body to roll suddenly and sharply to the other side. You can get new assisters - usually listed as bump stops for about 40 pounds on ebay. The lighter chassis uses a shorter stop so fit the correct one.

m8 · 21-02-2014 8:37pm

Fill the watertanks when you get to your destination, also only bring what you need on the van.

Tippy Camper???

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