06 Journey 34H - Chassis Battery and Steering Wander

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RGrimm

RGrimm

Well-known member
Joined
Jun 30, 2010
Posts
121
Location
Yulee, FL
Last week we purchased a 'new to us' 2006 Journey 34h (love it - perfect for the two of us) this is our first Class A, we came from the 5th Wheel side and have a few questions.

Question one: When plugged in (50a) does the system charge the Chassis Batteries or just the House Batteries - my coach has a Dimension 2000 watt inverter?

Question Two: Handling ...... steering wander. We drove the Journey home last Thursday (most of trip up RT 75 in Florida) from the Tampa to the Jacksonville, FL area. The trip was about 230 miles and we were flat towing my 2013 Ford Edge. It seemed I was constantly moving the steering wheel back and fore to keep the coach running down the center of the lane. By the time I got home I felt exhausted and this was not a fearing I was use to when I was towing my 36' 5th wheel with my LB F250.  I understand this is a short WB Diesel Pusher at 208 inches (WB), but can't believe this 'wandering' is normal, is it? The coach has 2 year old Toyo Tires and I did not check the air pressure (assumed the dealer did .... perhaps a bad assumption). Have any of you with similar coaches experienced this handling issue, if so, what have you done to help eliminate or at least improve the handling/steering?

Thanks,
-Russ
 
First check the tire pressures and adjust them to the correct values for the load.  If you don't have actual weights, use the GAWR to set the pressures according to the inflation table for the tires.  Over inflation can cause handling problems like you experienced, and it's common for a dealer, or even a tire shop, to inflate to the maximum pressure on the sidewall and not the proper pressure.
 
Ned said:
First check the tire pressures and adjust them to the correct values for the load.  If you don't have actual weights, use the GAWR to set the pressures according to the inflation table for the tires.  Over inflation can cause handling problems like you experienced, and it's common for a dealer, or even a tire shop, to inflate to the maximum pressure on the sidewall and not the proper pressure.
Click to expand...

Ned, I decided to go out and check the tire pressure and all the tires (fronts and rear) were 85 lbs. The MAX Air is 110 lbs, and the Winnebago recommendation settings are (FT 110 and Rears 95) so if anything I am low rather than high on the pressures. So could under-inflation (allowing more sidewall flex) cause this wandering?

The Journey was pretty much empty on the trip home from the dealer so close to its UVW of 21,913 lbs. I haven't weighed it yet since it is not loaded for travel.

Also Toyo (see text from a Technical Bulletin) does not support weight based tire pressures -

"Toyo?s policy is to maintain the pressure specified on the vehicle?s tire
information placard (certification label) as established by the vehicle
manufacturer or final stage manufacturer.  "

-Russ
 
Hi Russ, welcome to the forum. I used to have the exact rig that you now have, mine was just a Meridian, the sister unit from Itasca.
Firtst, John is right, Winnebago started putting Trik-L-Start chargers on the diesel pushers in 06'.  If you open your front hood and look at the firewall it is probably mounted right there.

Second, your tires are probably WAY over pressure.  Mine was the same way when I first brought it home.  The truth is the chassis on your rig is so heavily built, that you can carry way more cargo than you will ever need.  I four corner weighed mine and the safe pressures in the tires were 90 in the front and 100 in the rear. And that left a wide margin for safety. I weighed it with full fuel, full fresh water, and full propane and was full timer loaded. 

If you still get a bit of pulling after adjusting your tire pressure, a "Center Steer" unit will take care of that.  That's the unit that looks like a over sized shock absorber.
 
Russ:
  I have the same setup you have.  I have never had a wandering issue like you describe.  Hopefully, if you get the tire pressure squared away, your issue will go away.  I love my Journey and I love my Edge.  Please let me know if you have any questions and I will do the same.  Hopefully, through this fabulous forum, we can be a great resource for each other, even though we are 3,000 mile apart.  Happy Travels!

Best,

Steve
 
RGrimm said:
Ned, I decided to go out and check the tire pressure and all the tires (fronts and rear) were 85 lbs. The MAX Air is 110 lbs, and the Winnebago recommendation settings are (FT 110 and Rears 95) so if anything I am low rather than high on the pressures. So could under-inflation (allowing more sidewall flex) cause this wandering?...
Click to expand...
I'm surprised Toyo doesn't recommend weight-based inflation pressures, however the Maxxis tires on our Jeep hauler trailer did say to run them at max pressure.  What I would try is airing the tires to the Winnebago recommended pressures and drive it and see how it handles before considering any after-market suspension or steering stuff.  Low tire pressure could cause handling problems.  If you still have handling issues, then the next step is to take the unit to a Freightliner dealer (preferably an Oasis dealer) and have them go over the chassis.

Sometimes I will drive the Rubicon a mile or three on the highway after airing down (we always run trails with tire pressures in the 8-12 pound range) to get to the trail head and the handling and performance difference between a properly inflated tire and one that's not is very significant
 
Russ, the pressures on the placard are only valid if the tires are the original equipment tires.  If the motorhome came with, say, Goodyear tires and they were replaced with Toyos, or if the OEM tires were Toyos but replaced with a different size, then the placard pressures are no longer valid.  Also, the placard assumes the vehicle is at GVWR and if you're as light as you say, then the tires very well may be over inflated.
 
Ned: Why wouldn't the placard be valid? If the tires are the same size and load range then the weight capacity should be the same or darn close.
 
Close, perhaps, but not necessarily the same.  It's best to use the tire manufacturer's inflation tables to get the correct pressures.
 
From what I can tell the original tires on the 2006 Journeys and Meridians was a Michelin 255/80R22.5 and the TOYO M154 Tires on my Journey is the TOYO replacement for the Michelins. Both the OEM Michelins and the TOYOs have a 110 LB Max air pressure

TOYO - 265/75R22.5** G Rated  (Current Tire)

Here is the weight vs pressure chart from TOYO

Single        Dual              LBs
3875          3525              70
4070          3705              75
4300          3860              80
4440          4040              85
4620          4205              90
4805          4410              95
4975          4525            100
5150          4685            105
5205(G)      4685(G)        110

**Equivalent to Michelin 255/80R22.5 (OEM Tires for the 2006 Journey/Meridian)

Once I get the coach loaded in its normal travel state for us,  I'll get it weighed and adjust the tire pressures.

As I drove it home with an average of 85 lbs in all 6 tires, it was aired up to handle a GVWR of about 25040 lbs. I suspect the unit was closer to it's 'as built' UVW weight of 22,000 lbs. So while 85 lbs of air seems low compared to the Tires MAX pressure (at least to me) it would appear it was certainly enough for the unit's current estimated weight.

Thanks everyone.

-Russ
 
Given that your tires are probably not overinflated at 85 psi, my guess is that the wandering is a driver issue. It's actually a common problem for newcomers to Class A and is caused by the different driver view of the road plus understandable nervousness about keeping the rig between the lines. The cab-forward driver position drastically changes your road perception, yet your "muscle memory" is still trying to steer based on years and years of car & pick-up driving experience.  Basically you are focusing too close and over-correcting, so you need to focus your eyes further down the road, 50-100 yards ahead and stop looking down at the stripes and in the mirrors for lane position. Your lane tracking will straighten out and the white knuckles will disappear.

As an aid to your concern about lane position, get on a quite road and get centered in your lane. Then look left at the center lstripe and draw an imaginary line from you to it. Note where that line crosses the dashboard - that's your reference point. In the future, if a quick glance over that reference point shows the stripe more or less in line with the reference point, you know you are OK. You don't need to study the road or look in the mirrors - you KNOW you are OK. Get your focus back out front, way ahead.

Try it - I'll bet it solves your problem.
 
Russ

You have got a lot of good advice, so I wont restate any except to add this.

I had a wander issue with my Journy 34H also when I 1st purchased it.  I took it to a reputable rv repair place to have some work done and mentioned this to him.
He suggested a 4 corner weight and let him check my alignment.  Which I did.  After the 4 corner weight check, he adjusted my tires to the proper pressure per the Michelin charts.  then put it on the rack.  He found I had toe out.  He did a laser alignement.  The drive home was like I was in a different coach entirely from the one I drove in on.  It now drives perfect.  By the way, I was loaded up for an upcoming trip with fuel water and supplies so the weight check and alignment was perfect timing.
Since this is brand new to you a few extra bucks spent now will pay off  in a lot of long term enjoyment.
 
Add content to above post.

Prior to aligning, he also went under the motorhome and checked to make sure the ride height was spot on.

So many variables to getting a quality job.
 
I agree with most of the suggestions.  I added a Safe-T-Steer (looks like a large shock) to the steering rod on the front wheels and this did help a lot in maintaining straight course.
 
"Steering Wandering" makes me think of steering box bad, pitman arm joint or bushings, or tie rod joints.

Best way to check this is have someone look under the rig and as you move the steering wheel back and forth...have them see if the tires move.  If there is a 'delay' in your steering and the tires moving...start looking for the joint with play in it. 
 
Russ, You are getting good inputs. The first step is getting it loaded in the manner you would travel, then get it weighed. That information will form the basis for a lot of the suggestions you are getting.

Let me add two things. First, Freightliner recommends having at least 80% of the rated axle weight on the front axel. That, proper tire pressures, proper alignment, proper ride height, and a driving sight picture well out in front will bring that wandering in line. I also found adding a steering dampener such as Safe T Plus helped by giving a better feel for the road.

Second, sign up for the next available Camp Freightliner in Gaffney, SC. This two day class will bring you up to speed on everything you need to know to properly operate and maintain you RV. While there, have them perform their basic chassis service to give you a baseline from which to start a meaningful service program. Have them check all of the time-change items to be sure the PO was keeping up.

We take our rig to them every year for service. It is performed by the manufacture, is competitively priced, gives us a shakedown trip at the start of the season, and they are terrific folks.
 
Thank you everyone for your insight and suggestions. I have a number of things to look at and I know I need to adjust my driving style as sitting on top of the steering wheels is a lot different from what I am use to. And I'll check the weight, tire pressures and look for any 'play' in the steering assembly. Unfortunately I leave in a few days for a 30 day road trip from Florida to Los Angles and then back east to Charlotte (Lowes Speedway) as part of the Mustangs Across America 50th anniversary drive. Needless to say this is a car (Mustang) trip and not a Motor Home trip, so I will have to wait until late April to start to work on the Journey. We are looking forward to our first trip in the Journey later this summer.

Again everyone - thank you.

-Russ
 
Just an observation, the tires you have are NOT identical to the original tires! They are 10 mm taller and 75% vs 80% in profile. Both of these make the tire wider. I'd check that the duals are not touching at the bottom. Unlikely to be the problem, but stranger things have happened.

Ernie
 
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