Living in the Roadtrek - The Ride

I have talked about driving the Roadtrek and I have talked about parking the Roadtrek. Now, I will talk about the feel of the ride in the Roadtrek. I am only talking about the Roadtrek 190 Popular because that is what I have. The Sprinter chassis Roadtreks I am certain have a much different ride. The 210 models have an extended chassis and they will have a different feel to the ride. The Roadtrek 170 is on a shorter chassis and that ride may be different as well.

What we have discovered over the almost year that we have been traveling in the Roadtrek is that the ride is dependent on two things - the surface of the road and the amount of air in the tires. All cars, vans, and trucks should be dependent upon those two factors as well, but the Roadtrek seems to be particularly sensitive to both.

There is a sticker on the inside edge of the door of the Roadtrek and inside the cover of the manual that tells you the amount of air pressure that should be in the tires, placed there by Roadtrek and not Chevy. The sticker says that the front tires should be 50 psi and the back tires must be 80 psi. When we got the Chevy, and you may have read my article about this, we felt that the van was pulling to one side as we drove. We were certain that we needed an alignment and started on a roller coaster ride to get that done - in the end it was not done because one wise alignment shop told me to check the air in the tires. If the air is not even in the front tires, the van will pull to one side. I checked and the air in one tire was well below 50 in the front. I added air to both - both were low and suddenly the ride evened out. I had been in communication with Roadtrek about the need for the alignment and when I told them what I did and that all was well, I was given more specifics about what the air in the tires needs to be. The 50 psi in the front is what would normally be used for a plain Chevy 3500 van. Roadtrek kept this number but I was told that the ride of the Roadtrek will change significantly if that number is increased from 50 in increments of 5 psi to a maximum of 65 psi. I was told that over 65 psi in the front, the ride will start to degrade. I increased the front tires to 55 psi and I did see a difference. Just before our last trip this past December I increased the front tires again to 60 psi, and I felt a remarkable difference. I know that other Roadtrek owners go to 65 psi and beyond. I plan to stay at 60 psi at least for the first several trips this coming Spring and see if the ride remains good. While we are talking about tires, the back tires MUST BE 80 psi - from what I am told - NO MORE AND NO LESS. So I have tried my best to keep them exactly 80 psi. The reason I am told is because of the extra weight on the rear end of the Roadtrek from the conversion.

The ride of the Roadtrek changes dramatically with the road surface. We happen to live in an area where the road pavement is poor. There are pot holes, cracks in the road, and bumps of tar strips where attempts were made to repair other cracks. With the front tires at 50 or 55 psi, sitting in the Roadtrek as it was driven on these roads, you could feel every crack, hole, and bump, no matter how small. I have ridden on these same roads in a passenger van and various cars and SUVs and I never felt the road surface as I have in the Roadtrek. When the road is good, the ride is smooth and comfortable. When the road is like I describe, not only are you feeling the bumps but everything inside the Roadtrek that might move is set into vibration and motion. It can be a constant bump, bang, bump clunk, bump BANG. It has gotten a little unnerving just listening. When on local roads, I say to Meryl that the Roadtrek was never designed for New York roads. It can climb mountains, drive in the dessert, but if you get to NY be prepared for the noise and the bumps.

We have driven on the New Jersey Turnpike, the Garden State Parkway in New Jersey, the Pennsylvania Turnpike, and I-95. Each in the Roadtrek for the most part was smooth and a very enjoyable ride. Once in New York, however, where the road pavement must be some of the worst in the country, the ride has not been good at all. I must say that this was improved slightly when I picked the psi in the front tires to 60. Bad roads cannot be avoided, but be aware that you will notice them a lot more in the 190.

The Roadtrek does something else on some roads, that I am told is common with a lot of RVs. It is called "porpoising". We experienced it before we learned that there is a name for it. It comes from a road surface being uneven and varying in height as it goes along. The result is that the Roadtrek (and, apparently, other RVs) feel like a bucking bronco or as the name implies, like a porpoise jumping in and out of the water as it moves along, up and down, up and down. We first felt this on the Pennsylvania Turnpike where the road was under construction. It was wild and took me, at the wheel, by surprise. It is particularly a problem if you are driving at highway speed and the only way to stop it from happening as dramatically is to slow the speed down. It does not fully go away, but it is a much more tolerable ride.

There are devices that can be added to the Roadtrek and changes to the suspension system that are said to improve the things that I have been telling you about. Some change the shock absorbers to a ones that are designed for these problems. Some change the springs to a much heavier spring. Some modify how the coil springs and the leaf springs interact. There are even things to be added into the suspension of RVs that claim they will eliminate porpoising and some of the rough ride. So far, we will go along with what the Roadtrek has as stock and think about modifications off in the future.

None of this has kept us from enjoying our travel in the Roadtrek. Once out of New York, the ride is smooth as glass. We always know when we cross back into New York - which has more to say about New York, than it does about the Roadtrek. And since we are in the Roadtrek to get away from New York, we don't mind putting up with the "escape" route at all!