Ford F53

peterson · 03-16-2015, 08:56 PM

Hello, Do you drive an rv on a Ford F53 chassis? How does it drive? Does it have enough power for a new Winnebago Brave 31? Thanks, Nancy and Phil

vsheetz · 03-16-2015, 09:34 PM

I have a 2001 ford chassis with V10. 37' coach pulling a 5000lb toad. Works fine, gets the job done well.

You are talking a newer engine with more power, and an improved transmission with more speeds. Additionally a smaller/lighter house on top of it.

It will very handily get the job done. IMHO.

reinerka · 03-16-2015, 11:33 PM

We have the new 27B brave and no problem on power. Remember you deal wirh over 16000 lbs and it won't drive like a Mustang or get the mileage of a Prius.
We are having some front ens issues - wheel balancing, alignment and loose shock bolt - but otherwise it drives fine - almost better like our old Sprinter based RV.
Reiner

Mike and Cha · 03-17-2015, 12:09 AM

We have 2014 Newmar 3610 on the F53 26,000lb Chassis. Our dry weigh is 20,400 lbs, with a NCC of about 5600 lbs. Ours drive and handles great, takes the grades with no issues, and using the towhaul on down hill grades makes very little braking needed. Newmar equips our with some additional sway bars, and extends the wheelbase a little more than yours will be but it handle fine, tracks well, and does not get pushed around by the wind or passing trucks. We average about 8 mpg. So you will be fine, and have less weight to haul around.

KD4XR · 03-17-2015, 05:46 AM

I had a 2000 F53 with the Triton V10 and pulled a 24' enclosed Pace Shadow with a Mazda rx7 race car inside. It had plenty of power to pull the load but handling was an issue. I'm sure Ford has improved the F53 since 2000.

peterson · 03-20-2015, 09:55 PM

Hello again all,

We test drove a Winnebago Brave 27 in Lubbock. Got on the freeway and set the cruise at 60mph. Lubbock is flat and just going over an overpass made the transmission downshift from fifth to third. Is this normal? Has anyone drive an F53 chassis in mountains?

Thank you all again, Nancy and Phil

Johndale · 03-20-2015, 10:00 PM

Yes that is normal and that is one reason to do the 5 star tuning. Makes it a whole different machine. Make sure the rv has a steering stabilizer on it. If it is a new machine make them sweeten the pot a little for you.

Sent from my iPhone using iRV2 - RV Forum

aauummm · 03-20-2015, 10:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by peterson

Hello again all,

We test drove a Winnebago Brave 27 in Lubbock. Got on the freeway and set the cruise at 60mph. Lubbock is flat and just going over an overpass made the transmission downshift from fifth to third. Is this normal? Has anyone drive an F53 chassis in mountains?

Thank you all again, Nancy and Phil

Yes, it is normal for the F53 as it comes from the factory. A lot of the guys have gone to the 5-Star Tune which changes the way the transmission is used so that it will not downshift at every rise in the road-even on cruise control.

I've driven mine in the mountains a lot.

Mike and Cha · 03-20-2015, 10:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by peterson

Hello again all,

We test drove a Winnebago Brave 27 in Lubbock. Got on the freeway and set the cruise at 60mph. Lubbock is flat and just going over an overpass made the transmission downshift from fifth to third. Is this normal? Has anyone drive an F53 chassis in mountains?

Thank you all again, Nancy and Phil

I don't use the cruise control unless it is an extremely flat road. When the transmission senses a need to shift it will do so at will. When in the cruise control mode that is pretty normal. The best way I have found is to drive it without the cruise, it is nice and smooth with very little if any shifting when you are controlling the gas. As for hills, it takes them with ease, we live in Orange County Ca, and to get out of town in just about any direction you have to frequently take on grades of 6% (or more), it handles them with no problem.

reinerka · 03-21-2015, 10:22 AM

As everyone said it is normal. Our 27B is the same and it can drive you mad. I just do not use the cruise control any more and control the shifts with the gas pedal and let it sometimes drop more.
I noticed going around 70 it shifts not as bad.
Reiner

Gormleys · 03-21-2015, 10:23 AM

We had the Thor ACE on the F53 with V10 for a number of years. I would say that it is a great engine after the 5-Star tune and the cheap handling fix. See the Ford forum here at IRV for more information.

frankdamp · 03-21-2015, 11:30 AM

IMO, the Ford guys that designed the engine/transmission package knew better how to get the best performance from it than the majority of users do. I let mine do its thing (though we don't have it any longer).

Having been an engineer in the motorcycle industry, I think of engines doing 5000 rpm as being just above idle! I saw a Honda 50cc 3-cylinder engine with 4 valves per cylinder at races in the UK. Peak torque was at 18,000 rpm and max rpm was 24,000. It needed a 16-speed transmission and turned out to be not as competitive as they expected, since the clutch was pulled for shifting about 15% of the time. The Norton Commando 750, which I worked on most of the time, was a 750cc parallel twin with a pushrod valve train, and that had a peak rpm about 7000. On earlier bikes than the Commando, without the flexible engine mounts, it would rattle the fillings out or your teeth.

JimGeorgia · 03-22-2015, 05:14 PM

We have the Brave 26A on the F53 chassis. It's probably one of the lighter coaches with a V10 and it runs like a hot rod. I really have to watch the speed on the thing. Our issue with the F53 has never been power, but control. The light weight, combined with the short wheelbase (158) has made it a real "traveler". Spent some extra $ and added TruCenter, upgraded shocks, and sway bars and now it actually goes where we want it and not where we don't want it.

Don't use cruise control, but pedal control and it cuts down on the shifts.

peterson · 03-22-2015, 08:55 PM

Thank you all for your comments on the F58 chassis. The 5-star tune sounds like something worth looking in to. Please remember, you folks already know a lot more about rv-ing than we do so forgive this but, what is a 5-star tune?

aauummm · 03-22-2015, 09:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by peterson

Thank you all for your comments on the F58 chassis. The 5-star tune sounds like something worth looking in to. Please remember, you folks already know a lot more about rv-ing than we do so forgive this but, what is a 5-star tune?

It's a computer program essentially that changes the F53 transmission shift points, torque converter and engine parameters. Your F53 comes from the factory with Ford's generic settings in the vehicle's computer (called a PCM or Powertrain Control Module).

The 5Star Tune (program) comes stored in an electronic device that plugs into the OBDII plug on your motorhome. Complete instructions tell you how to load the "tune" or program into the vehicle's computer (PCM).

5Star Tuning has tweaked the program to eliminate a lot of the annoying shifting by using the fifth gear more effectively, and by changing the shift points in the rest of the gears, torque converter, etc. You can give them a call and they are very helpful in explaining it more in detail.

http://www.irv2.com/forums/f256/new-...ce-203724.html

1. Ford 1996-2015 6.8L V10 RV / Motor Home ONLY! X4 5 Star Tune - 5 Star Tuning

SuperGewl · 03-23-2015, 07:12 AM

I don't care for FORD, but I will say that the have done a great job with the Transmission management system. They call it Tow/Haul but it is actually Hill Descent. I have run my coach from the West coast to the East coast and back and can say that yes it will keep up with traffic and doesn't have any more of a problem pulling hills than most of your diesel trucks.
I do have the 5 Star in mine and for the most part shifts great, if you set the cruise control and let it down shift on the way up a hill it will go from 5 to 3 to 2 as soon as it starts having trouble. If you use your foot you can keep it from down shifting to fast and keep it in a higher gear.
I will get al little noisy in the cabin when its down in 2/3 pulling hills but heck, my Dodge Ram would also let you know it was working in the same situation.
Don't get me wrong it's no 500hp diesel pusher, but you look down and realize you are doing 75-80 you know it's time to back it down some.
What Ford needs to do is fix the ride on these things and add the possiblilty of the diesel (FRED). Ford make their own engine now and it seems to be doing OK.
They won't becasue they have the market on Class A Gas MH's. There is no other manufacture out there right now, so why fix it.

2wheelluge · 03-24-2015, 12:10 PM

Doesn't adding what is essentially a chip module potentially void the warranty?

aauummm · 03-24-2015, 01:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by 2wheelluge

Doesn't adding what is essentially a chip module potentially void the warranty?

The 5 Star X4 flash saves the original Ford PCM code so that you can return it to stock at any time.

To void the warranty, Ford would have to prove that the 5Star Tune was the cause of any engine/transmission problems. That is highly unlikely that it would cause problems since the 5Star Tune just tweaks the existing Ford parameters.

Banks has been providing their tune with their Ford V10 modifications for many years without any problems with the Ford warranty.

Now if you were to add a supercharger to the engine that would boost the pressure by 100 psi, that could be a problem with the warranty!

99Adven · 03-26-2015, 04:28 PM

Our F53 does a great job. I pull a Pontiac G-5 and forgot to set it in neutral the first time I had it hooked up. I pulled it about 25 feet and didn't know my tires were locked in park since I thought it was in neutral. Someone caught me and told me of my clumsiness. Plenty of power on my F53.

I also adjust the shifting by foot throttle. I'll kick it out of cruise and use the foot peddle to adjust the shifting. I read alot about the 5 star and think it's an ideal product. But I've done stuff to my cars that "void" the warranty and to convince the dealer who works on them is another challenge all together. Something I'd rather not address. I'd just wait till the warranty expired and then get it.

peterson · 03-27-2015, 12:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by reinerka

As everyone said it is normal. Our 27B is the same and it can drive you mad. I just do not use the cruise control any more and control the shifts with the gas pedal and let it sometimes drop more.
I noticed going around 70 it shifts not as bad.
Reiner

Your comment puts the "real" in "reality". Just accept it's not a Mustang and realize it's okay to slow down going uphill. It's not necessary to force it to keep going 70 up an overpass. And use the downhill to speed up again.

Having a Ford 6.7 diesel would be nice though. (Hey Ford - hint hint.

)