Fiat Ducato suspension
Dear all
Im hope your enjoying the holiday season and the good weather we've been having. Apart from today! Its raining here but I wont complain as the garden needs it!
I have a fiat ducato (6.4 m) Globe Car PVC. When I ordered it I ticked the box that offered a suspension upgrade. It wasn't an expensive option and I just thought it would be sensible given the weight of the vehicle being nearly 3.5t to have it.
However its turing out to be very crashy and I wondered if anyone had any experience of the standard ducato suspension vs the uprated suspension. I was thinking of getting it converted back with the hope it gives a more comfortable ride?
I don't really want to go down the route of air suspension (although Im sure my wife would love the idea) but I'd be happy to hear your views / experience of various set ups.
Best
Andrew
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Are you sure the 'crashy' feeling is caused by the suspension? We have the standard L1 (5m) Ducato and found the ride very harsh but it has camper tyres which are supposed to be inflated to a higher pressure than standard tyres. Reducing the pressure has helped considerably but the ride is still harder than our previous L2 which was fitted with air suspension. I’m not suggesting you run your tyres at an unsafe low pressure but tyres are a factor to consider as is the fact that Auto Sleeper see a need to fit air assisted suspension as standard.
Btw, you can choose your own username via My Profile at the head of the page.
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The suspension systems on Sevel built base vehicles seems to have got harsher with each model change and as you have opted for the upgrade in the suspension it will be even harsher when not fully loaded
Remember most white can man base vehicles are expected to be well loaded most of their working lives
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MHs tend to be almost fully loaded at all times due to the weight of the conversion.
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Large amounts? Perhaps 500kg which is why I said "almost fully loaded".
Yes, I know the OP has a PVC which will always be either almost fully loaded or fully loaded. I don’t see your point, tbh, as you seem to be reiterating words and that isn’t helping the OP.
I'm afraid the figures relating to your older Boxer built on a different chassis have no bearing on the matter of the OP's suspension on his new Ducato.
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We have a 2016 Ducato MH with standard suspension, (2800kg unladen, 3500kg max)
The suspension is quite stiff making it a wee bit harsh on rough roads, but it also doesn't sway on corners, making it pretty good to drive. I have driven Mercedes vans where the soft suspension makes cornering interesting!
I looked at recommended tyre pressures from tyre manufacturers for the weight of van and run them at 65psi, which is quite a bit lower then the figures on the van and improves the harshness a bit.
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That's much the same as us, LL. Ours is 2021 and can be very harsh with the tyres inflated further. The difference between this van and the last which had different tyres and air suspension is very noticeable.
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We are looking toward a PVC (Adria Twin Sport / Malibu currently catch our eye) as we approach retirement and watch a fair few YouTube posters. There appears a trend to change wheels and tyres from factory fitted to alloy with all terrain tyres that run at much lower pressures (IIRC 45psi) than the OEM set up at 65psi+. Said posters mention a better ride.
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Exactly, the OP's is the very latest Fiat on a longer wheelbase than yours.🙄
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I'll check the tyre pressures against the manufacturer as suggested. Agreed though it corners and handles well for a big lump and thats got to be a good thing from a safety perspective.
Anyone tried air suspension? Ive not looked at how much the conversion is but it might be of value if it does the self levelling bit as well.
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thats interesting, would you be able to post a link to the article?
Ive got winter M&S tyres fitted. The van came like that so Im assuming its a standard ducato thing for the UK.
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I don’t think those tyres are standard and they may contribute to the harsh ride. MH converters usually fit what they consider appropriate. As I said, mine has the hatefully hard camper tyres.
My experience is of Alko Air Top suspension which was adjustable but not in the same way as a hydraulic levelling system. I suppose it depends if you’re talking about air assisted suspension as in the Air Top, or full air suspension. All I can say is that the Air Top coupled with ordinary van tyres was absolutely fine and better than camper tyres with no air suspension.
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Agree with DD, tyre pressures make a big difference. Our 2017 Ducato runs at 3500kg and I weighed both axles and asked/emailed Continental to recommend pressures. Here is the reply...
ContiVanco Camper 225/75 R16 (CP*) 116 R tyres.
Front Axle: 1600 Kg - 3.0 bar/ 43.5 psi (maximum weight for pressure given = 1730 kg)Rear Axle: 1820 Kg - 3.75 bar/ 54.3 psi (maximum weight for pressure given = 1840 kg)
I've done a bit of experimenting and, for me, the best mix of ride comfort and handling falls at about 48 psi front and 60 psi rear.
Running any 3.5t van with pressures approaching 80 psi will seem rock hard.
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I would think that is where Autocruise (a first class make destroyed by a Swift buy out)came to advise owners in their manual at what tyre pressure each model was given to run at .
It was certainly far lower than the sticker that was on the door post that came from the base vehicle manufacturer
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