Technical information

54
Anti-swaybars
D
oes your motorhome handle like the Queen
Mary? Does it pitch and roll with every gust of
wind or passing semi, or list to port or starboard
on the curves, or waddle over speed bumps, railroad
tracks and driveways?
Well, it shouldn’t. As a matter of fact, motorhomes
(as well as SUVs, pickup trucks and vans) can be made
to handle just like what they are — motor vehicles —
with two aftermarket upgrades.
Upgrading your shock absorbers will control up and
down motion. But the best shocks in the world won’t
affect side to side motion (the “Queen Mary effect,”
commonly called “body roll” or “sway”) by one iota.
Thesolutiontoswayisinthesuspension.
Adding a set of custom anti-sway bars to your sus-
pension system will have the
same effect on sway as a
good set of shocks has on up
and down motion — there’s
an immediate improvement
in stability and tracking, es-
pecially on the curves.
For many motorhome
owners, this is an empow-
ering experience. What was
beyond their control, just yes-
terday, is suddenly within it
— cornering with confidence,
quicker maneuvering, and a remarkably level ride over
uneven terrain — all without launching the dishes out
of the cupboard. And even after eight or 10 hours at
the wheel, they arrive fresh, instead of fatigued. Which
means they can start enjoying the Grand Canyon, the
Grand Tetons, or the grandkids right away.
Howcouldonecomponent
havesuchadramaticeffect?
Both stock and custom anti-sway bars are designed
as a link between the suspension and the frame, and
both use the weight of the axle as a brace against the
chassis, so that pressure to one side of the motorhome
(by weight shift, crosswinds or passing trucks) is coun-
tered by the bar.
A custom anti-sway bar, however, is built to offer
significantly more resistance to sway…
• Bigger is better — custom anti-sway bars have
a thicker diameter than stock bars. Often, a quarter
to three-eighths of an inch more. Each incremental
increase in diameter has an exponential effect on
performance — on average, torsional roll stiffness is
increased by 30 percent with every 1/8” increase in
diameter.
In plain English, the bar offers 30% more resistance
to sway.
• A high-grade alloy — custom anti-sway bars
are made of 4140 “chromoly” steel (a chrome and
Bigger is better — the RSS anti-sway bar (to the
left) has a larger diameter, a better grade of steel and
polyurethane bushings, making it much more resistant
to sway than a stock anti-sway bar (right).
RSS
stock
molybdenum alloy), which is considerably more durable
than the standard spring steel (a 1020 grade) used in
many stock sway bars.
• Abetterpivotpoint — all anti-sway bars pivot and
rotate, in response to pressure shifts on the chassis. The
bushings (one at each connecting point) are the pivot
points, and also the points most vulnerable to abrasion.
Stock bushing are made of rubber, which hardens
over time, making it more susceptible to abrasion. Rub-
ber is also subject to corrosion, and additional wear,
from petroleum products such as gasoline or oil, and
from ozone in the atmosphere.
The more a stock bushing
wears, the more the sway
bar ‘gives.’ Over time, the
motorhome leans farther
and farther out of line, in
response to the same load
weights. That’s what causes
driver fatigue on big rigs —
constantly correcting for
excessive sway.
RSS bushings, on the oth-
her hand, are made of poly-
urethane, which has many
advantages over rubber — polyurethane is impervious to
gas, oil and ozone corrosion, is more resistant to abra-
sion, and doesn’t buckle under heavier load weights.
RSSanti-swaybarbenefits
• improved handling
• increased stability
• reduced body roll
• a safer and smoother ride
• combats crosswinds
• corner with confidence
• less driver fatigue
• improvement over factory standard equipment
Designed to fit specific…
• Class A and C motorhomes • SUVs • Trucks • Vans
Whatdoourcustomerssay?
“I noticed a difference as soon as I stepped into the
motorhome — there was no rocking movement.
During a recent trip we encountered substantial cross-
winds. With the RSS anti-sway bar, I estimate our motor-
home’s sway was reduced by 90 percent.
We don’t feel anything now when a tractor trailer blows
by us.
I’m 100 percent satisfied — everyone should experience
the benefit of this product.”
— Johnny Singleton, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina