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  1. #1
    Seasoned Camper
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    Suspension and axles

    We have a 2017 303RLS and I want to fix things at home instead of on the side of the road. I'm going to replace the bushing with never fail bushings. I'm thinking of putting new springs at the same time(i would up grade to 3000lbs) Do you guy think the springs should be change out? Also i will be doing the seals and bearings at the same time. we had a 43 foot triple axle be for this trailer and i was always fixing suspension problems. It was never over loaded either. I've always though it was the stress when making turns.

  2. #2
    King Pin
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    I'm sure you can't go wrong with upgrades to the 303 suspension. The driver's side is heavy due to the kitchen and appliances. I'm hoping Rob (Cate & Rob) will weigh in. He put stronger springs on the driver's side to offset the weight bias.

    Jim

  3. #3
    Site Sponsor Cate&Rob's Avatar
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    Hi scott d,

    Welcome to the lean-to-the-left 303 club .

    There is a small group of 303RLS owners from this forum who have been working a project to measure the weight and spring compression side-to-side difference on our trailers with the intent of figuring out how to solve this.
    The net result of our work (which seems rather obvious looking back on this) is that the heavier left side needs stronger springs. I currently have 3000 lb springs on the left and 2600 lb springs on the right. The trailer ride is much more balanced, but still riding a little low on the left. My next step is to go to 5 leaf 3000 lb springs on the left (vs the current 4 leaf). One other member of our group has already done this and this seems to be the best solution for level side-to-side towing.

    Send me a PM with your email address and I will add you to our group. I will send you info on how we are measuring spring compression and if you could measure your OE springs and any new ones that you might try, this would be more data for our 303 project.

    BTW, WRT the never-fail bushings. I bought a complete set of these, only to find that they fit the spring eyes but will not fit the equalizer pivots. LCI parts won't fit LCI components . . . go figure! My original nylon bushings in the outer spring eyes (which run dry . . . no OE wet bolts) were chewed to bits in 11,000 miles. Will have to see if the never-fail ones actually do better.

    Rob
    Cate & Rob
    2015 Reflection 303RLS

  4. #4
    Seasoned Camper
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    Our trailer seam to stay level side to side when loaded. I remember the telton homes fifth wheels use heaver springs on one side for that same reason. I have been thinking about heaver springs for the left side. We didn't get the trailer until the end of August so we have only use it 4 times before winter. We have a three week trip coming up in April. The trailer will be loaded about is heavy as it would ever be. I will for sure do the bushings and the seals before that trip. At that time I will get the weight of trailer. I don't have a scale by our house.

  5. #5
    Rolling Along
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    Rob did you have spacer blocks installed on the springs to raise your rig?

  6. #6
    Long Hauler Paul & Deb's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Clsfly View Post
    Rob did you have spacer blocks installed on the springs to raise your rig?
    I don't want to speak for Rob but I don't think he did. I did on my 337 though. I used 1 1/2" on the street side and 1" on the curb side. I originally was looking to gain some space between the tires and the trailer bottom as I was getting some rubbing so I decided to add the extra 1/2" on the street side to help with the leaning issue as well. They've been on since I did my disc brakes spring last year and lot's of miles and all is good!
    Paul "Poppy" and Deb Cervone
    2022 Imagine XLS 22MLE
    2021 Imagine XLS 17MKE - SOLD ; 2015 Grand Design Reflection 337RLS - SOLD
    2016 GMC Denali 3500HD SRW Duramax/Allison CC 4x4; Tire Minder TPMS

  7. #7
    Rolling Along
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    Thanks Poppy, I thought I remembered someone doing that. I'm getting ready to do new springs and need to gain some height also. Trying to get my rig a little more level going down the road and compensate for the extra 850 lbs on the street side. My 303 was built before they added the subframe to raise it up.

    Chuck

  8. #8
    Site Sponsor Cate&Rob's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Clsfly View Post
    Rob did you have spacer blocks installed on the springs to raise your rig?
    Hi Chuck,

    I did not go with spacer blocks, although I still think this is a viable alternative. I ended up having the 2" square tube added between the frame and the spring hangers. This got my 303 high enough that I can tow it level with 5 1/2" clearance between the overhang and the truck box rails.

    The side to side tilt is a whole different issue. See my summary in post #3. This has become an interesting "basic engineering" exercise. Why wouldn't the heavier side have stronger springs ?? . . . duh . . . We have figured out how to get a 303 to ride level on its suspension. There is a little more work to do because the heavy side tires are compressed slightly more than the light side tires. This also makes obvious sense (in hindsight). We are now kicking around the idea of trimming this even closer with spring shackle length. I am going to send you an email with more info than you ever wanted to know on 303 suspension ideas.

    Rob
    Cate & Rob
    2015 Reflection 303RLS

  9. #9
    Rolling Along
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    IMHO....I just find it kinda head shaking at the "engineering gymnastics" that RV owners have to do, to something they paid for with their hard earned cash. Yeah, yeah, yeah....I get it. It's the nature of the industry. Really? REALLY?? As a first time RV owner I guess I had expectations that RV's were built with the same design goals/intentions/quality as are other things. Guess I'm naïve. FWIW....it pains me to see folks having to do things to their RV that should've been addressed by the manufacturer at the design and testing phase. I'm willing to bet none of us here - or any other RV owner - would not buy a car/truck that they had to change out brakes or suspension pieces (unless it was for performance reasons) or whatever. Even the cheapest vehicle can be driven without any modification. And our RV's are the same price (or more) than the cars we buy. Is the RV industry that vision impaired that they don't see what owners are having to do? And in this case, add heavier springs to compensate for unequal loads? If I designed something like that back when I was working, I'd have my boss jumping in my you-know-what. I can't believe they don't care. So where's the process gap? I dunno.....do manufacturers do life cycle testing of a model by towing it X number of miles and subjecting the model to real world conditions before going into production? The car industry does. Don't get me wrong - I love our choice and what experiences it has brought to us so far. I'm just disappointed in RV manufacturers because I feel that with a little more effort or maybe deciding their vision is for a turn-key product that needs no modification - except for the farkles (motorcycle term for the all necessary add-ons like chrome plated bottle jacks and summat). Because there's gonna come a day that some enterprising dudes/dudettes are gonna shift the RV paradigm (that's 20 cents), gain market share, and then everyone will be playing catch-up.

    Tom

    * The above comments were solely the mental gibberish of the Original Poster. It represents his view - however warped - and no other person either alive or dead. Void where prohibited by law. All rights reserved.

  10. #10
    Rolling Along
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    I totally agree. I think the only real world testing is done by the owners and occasionally an industry magazine will do reports. GD seems to be the only manufacturer that does listen to the consumer about things that need changing. Although the suspension and greasy brake issue has gone on for years with nothing but lip service, the suspension/greasy brakes are a common problem across the RV industry created by the LCI monopoly. AND we just keep on buying these RV's at a record rate!

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