Keithl Posted August 30, 2017 Share Posted August 30, 2017 Derek Uzzell - 2017-08-29 1:39 PM PeterCK - 2017-08-28 5:44 PM ...the van was unstable and the Tyre Pro sensors were going off... Peter Peter May I ask you for more information about the “Tyre Pro” sensors, please? Do these sensors measure tyre pressure and, if so, are you sure you have got the name right? Peter, Derek has already asked but I will re-iterate his question - what are 'Tyre Pro' sensors? Are they the standard fit Fiat TPMS or an after-market system? And most importantly why are they 'going off'? I think you need to sort out tyre pressures and your monitoring system before worrying about how much water you are carrying. First suggestion, get your AT weighed, including individual axle weights, (or at least the overall and rear axle to be able to calculate the front afterwards). Keith. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ron. Posted August 30, 2017 Share Posted August 30, 2017 Sometimes I feel very sorry for newcomers to our hobby and the payload situation that exists. The EU standard EN-1646-2 was clear enough and everyone could understand it, even if loads of manufacturers chose to ignore it. I wonder why? That they have now superseded it has only confused the issue further and allowed manufacturers to build even less suitable vehicles with regard to payload for the unaware to trip over. Ron Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ron. Posted August 30, 2017 Share Posted August 30, 2017 As an example of what I'm labouring to say above is the case of our previous Auto Sleeper Broughton. The original payload was quoted as 392kg, just about sufficient for our needs. Now the same model has a quoted payload of a respectable 517kg! I have to say that the build quality was quite flimsy then so how have they managed to reduced the weight to obtain the increased payload? Have they found some super new material? Well no, they have just been allowed to do a paper exercise with the figures. Ron Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colin Posted August 30, 2017 Share Posted August 30, 2017 From what I've seen Autotrail now seem to fit tank behind axle assuming it will be used on road almost empty, couple this with a MWB chassis on a van which should be on LWB and I'm not surprised at any handling problems. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest pelmetman Posted August 30, 2017 Share Posted August 30, 2017 PeterCK - 2017-08-28 5:44 PM We have just bought a brand new 2017 Autotrail Imala 625 and, as this is our first 'proper' motorhome my wife went on one of the recognised motorhome manoevering courses. On the course she was advised NEVER to travel with any water in the fresh water tank as it could make the vehicle unstable and also exceed the weight limit. I must admit that I forgot that and did travel on a winding A road and the van was unstable and the Tyre Pro sensors were going off. However, the whole essence of a motorhome is to be independent so what do other folks do about fresh water levels? Cheers Peter Progress eh? 8-) ............ (lol) (lol) (lol) ...... Soon to be heading to Spain in our 1990 camper with a full water tank B-) ....... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lennyhb Posted August 30, 2017 Share Posted August 30, 2017 In all our vans we have always travelled with a full tank as you never know for certain when you can next fill up. No problem with payload, with our 160Lt tank full and gear on board for 8 weeks away we still have 600kg of payload spare. On the other hand, someone mentioned you payload is only 326kg if that is correct I don't see how the vehicle is usable even with an empty tank. From experience, I reckon for two people you need at least 500kg. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted August 31, 2017 Share Posted August 31, 2017 Auto-Trail’s website includes a Weight Calculator feature. The data for an Imala 625 are shown below https://www.auto-trail.co.uk/range/imala/625/weight-calculator and, with no options added to the basic specification, a ‘Weight remaining’ figure of 362kg is stated. This figure results from taking the vehicle’s MIRO of 2980kg, adding to it - 75kg for the one passenger for which the single designated travel seat has been provided - 83kg for food, clothing, etc. and subtracting the result from the motorhome’s Maximum Authorised Weight of 3500kg. The weights of a driver and diesel fuel (presumably 75kg and the 90-litre tank 90%-full respectively) will have been included in the MIRO, but (as HymerVan has highlighted above) Auto-Trail advises that "All weights quoted are with all water tanks fully drained” and the weight of the 1x13kg and 1x6kg gas-bottles that an Imala 625 can carry is not referred to. (With the proviso that the MIRO of 2980kg is correct) if I bought a new Imala 625 I would judge the 362kg figure to be adequate for my wife and I. We’d ’save’ some 20kg on the notional 150kg driver/passenger weight allowance, 83kg seems reasonable for two people’s stuff, and I would not want to add any heavy accessories. I would want to travel with a full fresh-water tank (135kg) but that would still leave over 200kg to play with. However, an Imala 625’s user-payload adequacy is not what Peter was asking about, it was the advisability of travelling with his motorhome’s fresh-water tank full. What is concerning is Peter’s comment about his motorhome being “unstable” when travelling on a winding A-road with a full fresh-water tank. I’m assuming that a 625’s 135-litre fresh-water tank is internal, sitting on the vehicle’s floor and under the left-hand ‘arm’ of the U-lounge seating, with the 85-litre waste-water tank towards the vehicle’s cab. If that’s correct, filling the fresh-water tank puts 135kg offset-to-the-left towards the vehicle’s rear but, even so, that amount of weight (still relatively low down) should not be expected to produce instability. Auto-Trail’s handbook advises how to fill the fresh-water tank, but makes no mention of limiting the water-contents when the motorhome is to be driven. Feedback from PeterCK is needed: crystal-ball gazing can only go so far. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keithl Posted August 31, 2017 Share Posted August 31, 2017 Derek Uzzell - 2017-08-31 8:44 AM What is concerning is Peter’s comment about his motorhome being “unstable” when travelling on a winding A-road with a full fresh-water tank.... Feedback from PeterCK is needed: crystal-ball gazing can only go so far. And PeterCK has not logged back into the forum since posting his initial query. So is he reading without logging in or merely not bothering to see if anyone has responded? Your guess is as good as mine. PeterCK, if you are still following the replies to your thread please answer the questions raised. Keith. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pepe63xnotuse Posted August 31, 2017 Share Posted August 31, 2017 PeterCK - 2017-08-28 5:44 PM We have just bought a brand new 2017 Autotrail Imala 625 and, as this is our first 'proper' motorhome .. Hi Peter.. If I may ask, what vehicle were you using before this "proper" one?..if it was a panel van conversion then you will obviously notice the difference when driving an over bodied(top heavy?) motorised caravan (aka "coach-built").. It's doubtful that the water you were carrying would cause any noticeable instability...if it was, as others have said, then what about fuel load?..kit?(..or even an additional passenger?)..etc. I would think(guess) that the tyre sensor things going off are a different issue...? (that's assuming you had the correct pressures and weren't grossly overloaded?) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted August 31, 2017 Share Posted August 31, 2017 pepe63 Peter’s previous motorhome (an Auto-Sleepers Nuevo) was mentioned in his initial 2014 posting. http://forums.outandaboutlive.co.uk/forums/Motorhomes/Motorhome-Matters/Has-anyone-lost-a-motorhome-/35335/ I notice that his Imala 625 has ComfortMatic transmission, though that shoudn’t affect its stability when driven with a full fresh-water tank. Fuel load is something of a red herring, as a current-model Ducato’s fuel-tank is low down, behind the front wheels and on the vehicle’s centre-line. Compared with travelling with a near-empty fuel-tank, driving with the tank full will blunt acceleration, increase braking distances and have some impact on handling, but those effects will be so minor they can safely be ignored. If changes in the amount of fuel in a Ducato-based motorhome’s tank significantly alter the vehicle’s handling, there’s a big problem! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EJB Posted August 31, 2017 Share Posted August 31, 2017 Never seen the 'instability' point raised before! My AT Tracker is filled when ever it's required and convenient. Leave site (Campsite, Aire, Stellplatz, etc) empty waste, fill fresh! Check fresh and waste tank support straps on every yearly service! Weight limits taken into account...of course! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pepe63xnotuse Posted August 31, 2017 Share Posted August 31, 2017 ...presumably, this bloke had forgotten to empty his washing up bowl!? ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
monique.hubrechtsgm Posted August 31, 2017 Share Posted August 31, 2017 A motorhome has three tanks of some capacity. A fuel tank, clean water, and a waste water tank. and a hot water boiler of some capacity. Very simple but crucial to keep them alive. Some others are the engine liquids and the screen washer. Quite a amount of them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterCK Posted September 5, 2017 Author Share Posted September 5, 2017 Thank you to all have posted replies, I'm sorry if I haven't replied as quickly as some might want but we have had a long session of hospital appointments and other family situations. Re the question of the tyre sensors, I got the names mixed up. It is a Fit 2 Go system from Road Pro, something to do with having 'chemo brain syndrome'! I noticed the sensors going off when taking bends on an A road and, as one of the contributors said, perhaps drive slower. The fresh water tank is fitted behind the rear axle and the last time I weighed the van I had over 100kg available but that was with the FW tank about 25% full. The reason I attributed to the sensors going off when cornering was that the weight of water was surging to one side and causing that tyre to deform sufficiently to affect the rolling radius which I believe is how the system works. The result or outcome of the question is obviously to please yourself but to drive accordingly. Thank you to all who did reply, PS I did try to search for this subject but didn't find anything, obviously I need to gain more experience in using the site and I apologise for any duplication. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keithl Posted September 5, 2017 Share Posted September 5, 2017 Peter, thank you for coming back with more info, it is apprecited. But I think your understanding of the Fit2Go system is incorrect. To the best of my knowledge this system only measures pressure and temperature of individual wheels by the sensor attached to the valve stem. It has no way of detecting rotational speed of the wheel. My suggestion would be to manually re-check your tyre pressures and possibly reset the Fit2Go settings then see what happens. Where your sensors showing low pressure or over pressure? PS For info there are TPMS which do use rotational speed as the trigger but these are normally only OEM systems utilising the wheel speed sensors of the braking system. Keith. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cattwg Posted September 5, 2017 Share Posted September 5, 2017 When the opportunity presents itself, we fill the fresh water and empty the waste tanks. Otherwise we travel with whatever water happens to be in them. I’ve never been aware of any instability. Ours is a PVC perhaps there are different dynamics at work in coachbuilt vehicles. Cattwg :-D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keninpalamos Posted September 6, 2017 Share Posted September 6, 2017 tonyishuk - 2017-08-29 5:46 PM Another factor is how do you intend to mhome ? If you are freeloading (wild camping) it pays to take water with you. If you intend to use camp sites, there seems little point in carrying water over the countryside, if there is water in the tap at The end of the journey. If you are going out for the day, enough to flush the loo is sufficient. As others have pointed out, hidden water in toilet cassettes and waste tanks add to the load if not emptied. The choice is yours , and that is what mhoming is about. Rgds And of course, that choice would include going to a campsite or "freeloading" oop's wild camping or parking, which is not always free, more priceless. I use a fisherman's storage forecourt from time to time which has what I consider a view which is worth paying for and i do. As you say, its a choice and often has no financial reason. As for the water issue, again it's a matter of choice. I chose a van that has no trouble carrying water and I'm lucky enough to have a second small pop top van that has a 40ltr tank to carry water but it is a bit of a waste filling it right up as it looses half the contents on our country roads through the 4 breather holes in the top of the tank. I'll modify it one day Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Kirby Posted September 6, 2017 Share Posted September 6, 2017 pepe63 - 2017-08-31 12:22 PM ...presumably, this bloke had forgotten to empty his washing up bowl!? ... Ah, a tank-slapper! It seems clear the water in the fresh water tank was surging around, but was it cause or effect! :-D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.