Just received 4 koni 8805-1010 shocks ups. will be installing on front of my 1999 36ft u295. what is best starting point for shock adjustment when first installing shocks? Gam
Joseph,
Koni 8805-1010 FSD gold colored shocks do not have an adjustment as do the orange Koni shocks. The FSD stands for frequency sensitive damping, I think, and they adjust automatically on the fly.
The folks at Henderson's Line-Up told me they recommend setting the orange adjustable shocks to full stiff, front and especially back.
When installing only 4 FSDs instead of 8, one gets the most bang for the buck by installing them on the front. You may not feel the need to add the 4 rears after enjoying the improvement in the ride the front ones will yield.
Hope this helps you.
Rudy is correct, just install them. They are self adjusting.
Brett
Go to go. thanks Gam
Why do so many folks seem to think it is okay to just replace the front shocks? Granted the ride up front will be improved, and almost no one rides in the back. I know it's a big expense, but worn rear shocks could be contributing to other damage and poor handling. It's always been somewhat puzzling to me that the front and rear air springs/bags and the shocks are the same size. The rear axle supports more weight and has 4 wheels and tires. When I replaced shocks 2 of the rear ones were the ones with visible problems like leaks. And now I can see cord on one of the rear air bags. I have 4 new bags for the rear, just haven't installed them. Even the brakes are the same front and rear, except for the larger air chambers on the rear to deliver more force to the brake which is braking 2 wheels instead of one. Expect the rear brake pads to wear out much faster than the front pads.
With a background in construction, maintenance, and preventative maintenance of mechanical systems and equipment I have always worked from a Must Do, Good to Do, and Nice to Do list for any piece of machinery. The shocks on the motorhome are not bad. No leaks nothing bent no loose nuts.But I do think just like me they are starting to show there age. The wind or a passing truck may move the front around a little more , or there may be a bit more bounce in a bump. So this spring the fronts [ as said bang for the buck] made my good to do list and the rear made the nice to do. Gam
The difference was noticeable when I replaced all mine. The Tag especially did not thump any longer. I never heard it as I was driving but the passenger sleeping in the bed from time to time did.
Just replaced mine with the FSD, front and rear. Made a huge difference in ride after 115,000 miles.
John S., On my MCI conversion, I also had a thumping or maybe a better word would be dribble on the tag axle, not aware until a buddy was trying to sleep, he was how it was discovered. The problem was lack of air pressure on the air bags, Sort of a long story, I reduced the pressure to keep from spinning so easy with the 12V-71 Turbo'd setup, however it took 35 psi min. to not bounce or dribble the tag axle.
Guess better shocks might have helped too, but my go to bus info was Abbott Bus of Roanoke, he laughed when I asked why the bouncing/dribble. Said it was normal when air pressure too low on axle air bags. MCI has an adjustable pressure regulator for tag bags, so I installed a gauge on that line so could monitor it.
I would guess FOT has the air pressure spec's, info for the tag axle bags. mght be worth a quick check with gauge.
Cheers
Dave M
It went away with the new shocks and we adjusted the Air Pressure in the bags to make sure we had the weight distributed properly.
John,
Do you mean you adjusted RIDE HEIGHT to spec? Something else?
I'm considering switching to the KONI FSD but the price seems to have jumped considerably. FOT is asking $172 (before MC discount) Summit is now showing them for $194 apiece! Can you please advise where you purchased your FSDs recently?
Last month, I bought mine here:
Foretravel Motorhome > Koni Shock Absorbers - Pro Am 1-800-847-5712 (http://www.proamauto.com/page15ech3.htm)
Bob
2000 U270 CAI 40ft
We replaced Bilstein with Koni FSD in January, 2011, at FOT. The price you state is similar to what we paid to FOT. They installed the shocks at what I considered a reasonable rate. In January, 2011, they had offered the MC discount and an additional 10% discount on labor. We refer to our trip to NAC as our participation in the $1000/day club. ;D
Thanks for the link! I notice that the webpage referenced lists Foretravel U280, U300, and U320... I assume that the same shocks fit all of our 8 Airbag coaches which include the 270. 295, 280, 300, 320's etc., Am I correct in that? Or at least that this part number fits a U270 as well as the 320, 280, and 300 shown on their page?
Don
Don:
Our U270 was not mentioned on that web site (nor on KONIs). But sources on the Forum said the 8805-1010s would fit.
They were installed locally here in Mission, TX for $250! FOT and MOT wanted much more. :o
Bob
2000 U270
That is helpful, thanks Bob!
Don
Received 4each 8805-1010 konis from kerma tdi last week for $529.20 + $38.00 shipping.Gam
Gam, thanks for the post on Kerma TDI. Seem like good people. Just ordered Koni s for my 91 U225 from them. They are currently running a 20% off sale on Koni's. That is 20% off the Koni price.
Jerry
Would you mind listing the name and address and contact info for the shop in Mission, TX?
Thank you.
"Would you mind listing the name and address and contact info for the shop in Mission, TX?"
Angel's Car Care LLC
701 N Schuerbach Rd
Mission, TX 78572
956-583-7467
959-227-8844
This is a small 2-3 man operation that takes on a wide variety of car and diesel truck work. Several members of our RV development with class 8 trucks go there (as well as another member of this forum).
Bob
2000 U270