What chassis is a Georgetown?

[Alan JS]

I need some info or advice about steering stabilizers for a Georgetown xl 378. Before taking possession of the unit on order I asked the dealer to give me an estimate to install the Safe T plus stabilizers on the 378 the day before we drive it home. I mentioned that Camping world had the shocks # 41 140 (the red ones) for F 53 chassis for $450-500.
He comes back and tells me that the Georgetown IS NOT mounted on a F53 but on a F650 chassis because it has 22" wheels and will require the more expensive blue stabilizers.
Can anyone please tell me what chassis the current Georgetown is built on? When did they stop using the F53? Is it true that because it has 22000lb rated axles and 22" tires they have a F650 Ford chassis?
I think he is just trying to raise the price of the steering shocks and making up nonsense about the chassis. Had to tell from the Ford site but the F650 is associated with the larger wheels.
Help me before he burns me any more than he has already with my trade in. Thanks.

[VinceU]

Originally Posted by Alan JS

I need some info or advice about steering stabilizers for a Georgetown xl 378. Before taking possession of the unit on order I asked the dealer to give me an estimate to install the Safe T plus stabilizers on the 378 the day before we drive it home. I mentioned that Camping world had the shocks # 41 140 (the red ones) for F 53 chassis for $450-500.
He comes back and tells me that the Georgetown IS NOT mounted on a F53 but on a F650 chassis because it has 22" wheels and will require the more expensive blue stabilizers.
Can anyone please tell me what chassis the current Georgetown is built on? When did they stop using the F53? Is it true that because it has 22000lb rated axles and 22" tires they have a F650 Ford chassis?
I think he is just trying to raise the price of the steering shocks and making up nonsense about the chassis. Had to tell from the Ford site but the F650 is associated with the larger wheels.
Help me before he burns me any more than he has already with my trade in. Thanks.

Very interesting, mine (GT 378) was delivered as a F-53 chassis however in the paper work with the vendors instructions I found a sticker for a F-550 chassis cab greatly lengthened for a M/H. Puzzled I called Ford F-53 division for info. The customer service rep. Took my Ford vin no. and told that was a F-53 vin and a few years back the 550 line also built MH's, but they were also sold as f-53. I gess the first clue is if it doesen't look like a dump truck, it's probably a F-53. Its rating is 22,000 and combination 26,000 on subject chassis.. These weights cannot be assigned on the 19.5" rims, thus the 22.5". All this info avail on Ford truck websites.

[VinceU]

Originally Posted by Alan JS

I need some info or advice about steering stabilizers for a Georgetown xl 378. Before taking possession of the unit on order I asked the dealer to give me an estimate to install the Safe T plus stabilizers on the 378 the day before we drive it home. I mentioned that Camping world had the shocks # 41 140 (the red ones) for F 53 chassis for $450-500.
He comes back and tells me that the Georgetown IS NOT mounted on a F53 but on a F650 chassis because it has 22" wheels and will require the more expensive blue stabilizers.
Can anyone please tell me what chassis the current Georgetown is built on? When did they stop using the F53? Is it true that because it has 22000lb rated axles and 22" tires they have a F650 Ford chassis?
I think he is just trying to raise the price of the steering shocks and making up nonsense about the chassis. Had to tell from the Ford site but the F650 is associated with the larger wheels.
Help me before he burns me any more than he has already with my trade in. Thanks.

I'd take it to another dealer gor your stabs, even Camping World!

[2Susan]

Honestly why do you think you need these?

I would absolutely get the alignment done - but not at the rv dealer (save those new tires!) but why not drive it for a while and see what you think? I've got 35,000 miles on our Georgetown through mountains and quite windy conditions and getting steering stabilizers is not on my list at all. It drives like our Toyota minivan - just bigger.

[Alan JS]

You know you are all correct and appreciated. Our first trip is on a relatively flat road across the Florida Everglades to the Gulf coast to Riverside RV resort for fishing and swimming. The flat road should allow me to know fairly soon if their is an alignment problem.
If I can't trust the dealer to tell me the model chassis then he shouldn't be given an additional jobs except for warranty work on the coach.

I might have Ford dealer do alignment if appropriate but let me see where a Camping World is located. They have decent prices on the Safe T plus stab and likely have installed a ton.
The Ford website had all models of F53 going through 22000lb and 22 " wheels so I wonder where he got his idea of a F6-- model.

[fbconsults]

Don't wait on the alignment!! I drove mine almost 11,000 miles and didn't realize it needed one. No excessive tire wear, but I noticed it was hard to stay on track. An alignment verified it was toed out 11/16", causing it to "road walk" as my dad used to call it. Reset it to 3/16" toed in, what a difference. I don't feel as it needs anything else, much easier to drive.

I did move the front sway bar links to the other hole, I think it helped the rock and roll. Plan on moving the back ones soon.

Happy Trails, Forrest

[jd-ford-hd]

Originally Posted by 2Susan

Honestly why do you think you need these?

I would absolutely get the alignment done - but not at the rv dealer (save those new tires!) but why not drive it for a while and see what you think? I've got 35,000 miles on our Georgetown through mountains and quite windy conditions and getting steering stabilizers is not on my list at all. It drives like our Toyota minivan - just bigger.

X2..!

[2Susan]

I wouldn't have the rv dealer do anything with the running gear / drivetrain. That's Ford stuff. Take it to a Ford truck dealer or a truck place. The rv dealer is for the rv stuff - what is inside the box.

I agree with fbconsults - you will not be able to tell if the alignment is off - and frankly if the unit is wandering and hard to handle on the road you describe there is LOTS more wrong. It should be a piece of cake. Really. Get the alignment done as your first step. Forget about stabilizers. It works well the way it was made. On a trip this past year the rig was rocking and rolling a bit more than usual. Road surface can do this and yes it was a 2 lane older road with lots of patches. Come to find out the wind was 45mph gusting regularly to 70mph. And yes at 70mph the antenna makes a thumping sound against the roof.

[F and E Damp]

My GT handles like I'd expect an 11-ton 32-ft box truck to handle, since that's really what it is. We bought it when it was 8 years old, from the original owners. It still had the '01 chassis build date tires on it.

When we replaced the tires, I had an alignment done. Frankly, I'd rather spend my recreation money on gas and campgrounds, rather than on suspension and steering mods. It will never ride like a Rolls Royce no matter what.

[Alan JS]

I gathered I should concentrate on being sure the tires are adequately inflated and that the front end is properly aligned . Only then should I go chasing fancy stabilizers and springs.
The last person I should be asking for advice is the dealer as "of course you need expensive steering stabs" would be his predicted reply.

Not having much driving experience on maneuvering a big box in the wind is scarey enough and I wanted some help.
The Ford web site seemed to indicate that the F53 chassis has multiple configurations based on wheelbase and axle weight.

[intercept]

I have a 3 month old GT 378. with 40 plus years towing and driving rigs, extra stabilization helps sometimes. With the 378 GT Ford has done a decent job on its F53 with the 22" wheels. They have also added a heavy davis tru track bar to the front suspension. The 378 sill wandered more than I liked following alignment (which helped) I added a Rear stabilizer bar and Trac bar to the rear. I had a Safe T Plus on my 2001 Holiday Rambler F53 class A but found it needed re-adjustment. I added a trim unit with compressor to it from SuperSteer. It was a very nice re-centering on the fly system. Now that I am on the 378 I have placed a Blue Ox Tru center on the front of the rig. Excellent system and simple too. The only issue is that it doesn't seem to have a heavy enough spring so I am going to try the heavier version that is meant for diesel's. If that works well I will post it. The new 22" F53 is built heavier but does need some extra help. I know a lot of people will say this is all throwing money away but when I go down the road with the investment and lives at stake I want to make sure that I won't look back and say I should have spent the extra $2,000 to not go over the cliff when the idiot the cuts me off.

[Alan JS]

I was told by the salesman today that I should drive the unit first before installing any stabilizers which you all suggested as well.. Since it is being transported from Indiana, about 1200 miles, to the dealership there should be obvious signs of uneven tread wear on the front end by the time I see and I specifically insisted that a front end alignment or technical sign off by shop at their PDI be put in writing to verify it is .

The chassis according to the VIN spec is an F66 which apparently Ford has been installing as the basis for a number of larger motorhomes.
Does anyone know anything about an F66. Yes it is the beginning of my unit VIN but google and Ford spec were sparse on details.
Has anyone else received one in the past few years on any Forest River Class A?

[VinceU]

Originally Posted by Alan JS

I was told by the salesman today that I should drive the unit first before installing any stabilizers which you all suggested as well.. Since it is being transported from Indiana, about 1200 miles, to the dealership there should be obvious signs of uneven tread wear on the front end by the time I see and I specifically insisted that a front end alignment or technical sign off by shop at their PDI be put in writing to verify it is .

The chassis according to the VIN spec is an F66 which apparently Ford has been installing as the basis for a number of larger motorhomes.
Does anyone know anything about an F66. Yes it is the beginning of my unit VIN but google and Ford spec were sparse on details.
Has anyone else received one in the past few years on any Forest River Class A?

I just checked F-53 stripped chassis labeled 2013. Its being built now and will be used for the model 2014 motorhomes or very late 2013's. The vin #'s are 16 digits, when I questioned Ford customer service she relied on the last 5 to tell me F-53 for sure. You're correct there is no F 66, 660 is a truck. The F-53 is available to 26000 +4000 tow. Any bigger than that, you'll need a DP chassis. Freightliner, Spartan and others, no Ford

Check Ford F-53 Stripped Chassis, you can call customer service and they can answer all questions with your VIN#.

[Alan JS]

It is unsettling to receive so much bobus info from an RV dealership. Unfortunately there are too few RV sales locations otherwise we could just find another dealer locally. Because they have an advantage both on prices and service (warranty) we are forced to deal with them out of necessity.
I will call Ford customer service as you suggested. He originally suggested the chassis variant while trying to convince me I needed the big blue safe t plus shocks. That's dishonest and a lie either by naivety or intention.

[intercept]

I have a 2012 GT 378 with an F53 22,000 lb chassis.

Safe T Plus Red offers 160 pounds of cenrtering force and the Blue version offers 230 pounds.
The difference in Camping Worlds Blue and RED price is only $30.

I am using a Blue Ox Tru Center unit which is similar to the Safe T Plus but is adustable while u drive. It has 160 lbs of centering force and although it works OK I am going to try the 270 pound model because the GT378 has a much beefier (improved ) front end compared to the earlier versions. Blue Ox is working with me on this. The dealer may not be that far off base for what he is telling you. BTW, you can save tons of $ by shopping around and having a local truck repair shop do the install. I did it my self w/o issue.

[copsuno]

As stated Drive the unit first before messing with it. This is not a BMW and you cannot expect it drive like one. I have a 360xl, 2011, 13,700 miles and never touched front end. have traveled across the country, on side to other and no complaints except rear sway bar support bracket bolts vibrating loose and falling out. Call ford to confirm chassis.

[Alan JS]

I did call Ford customer service...they were very friendly and went through the trouble of looking up my VIN. They couldn't find it listed anywhere even after changing a number or two which might have been misread on the fax.
Even so they confirmed that there is no such chassis listed as "F66" which only has F650 being close but that is a truck.
They said the F53 is more than capable of handling 22000 lbs GVWR and many options have 22" wheels to support the larger weight of a Georgetown XL.
From what I saw and your forum members said, the Georgetown has been beefed up on its suspension and front end shocks as standard from Ford to handle better.
There are a few things I would like to spend $800-1000 on rather than stabilizers so I will spend a few weeks traveling and see how it feels. I am still tempted to get an alignment from a Ford dealer even though as that could be a good investment and introduce myself to the Ford people who would do most serious warranty work anyway.
The ability to re center while driving has me tempted on the Blu ox but that's a bunch of bucks.
This forum is a veritible encyclopedia of friendly ,helpful fellow travelers. Great group.

[Lostdog]

Originally Posted by Alan JS

It is unsettling to receive so much bobus info from an RV dealership. Unfortunately there are too few RV sales locations otherwise we could just find another dealer locally. Because they have an advantage both on prices and service (warranty) we are forced to deal with them out of necessity.
I will call Ford customer service as you suggested. He originally suggested the chassis variant while trying to convince me I needed the big blue safe t plus shocks. That's dishonest and a lie either by naivety or intention.

RV sales associates are there to sell an RV. In reality, just like house buying, RVs are sold on looks. Most buyers really are not that interested in what's "under the skin" of the "lovely" motorhome and sales staff are trained to hard sell the looks to a buyer. Same thing in Real Estate. I use to sell Real Estate, I know. Old addage: "a man never buys the house, she does" Probably the same in RVs. Example he says "how about the transmission, is a five speed or a six speed? Sales response "plenty of power, how about those color matched seats and window treatments."

We just need to look out for ourselves!