well blow me, got me a autotrail 634 and my first query ?

[Molly A]

Mel raises a good point.....you need to know both the axle weights and, importantly, the ratio of the loadings....
even now the website quotes a MIRO of 3300kg for this nr 7.5m van....thats a lot of van for the light chassis with a longish rear overhang.
200kg 'payload' is unusable and, even with a 3650/3850 'upgrade' this will not change the capacities of the axles....(unless you add air assist or similar) so be very wary of that rear 2000kg limit.
if you loaded the van to the proposed 3850 limit (530kg payload) and the load proportions were just 48%/52% front/rear you would be at 1850/2000kg and at both axle limits.
with that rear overhang and the storage locker there, its likely you wont be able to keep the ratio as well balanced as that....more likely nearer 45/55?
so, if 55% of your total capacity is limited by the 2000 limit at the rear, then the remaining 45% (on the front) amounts to 1636kg...
so, unless you can get the weight distributed to make use of the maximum capacities of BOTH axles, you wont have a total capacity of anywhere near 3850kg.
in my example you would only have 3636kg before you hit the rear axle limit of 2000kg, which makes that upgrade irrelevent.
get the dealer to weigh the van with you, OH, all your kit, crockery, cutlery, bedding, tables, chairs, bikes, food, fresh water, electrical stuff, books, maps, etc, etc and note the axle weights.
if you are over 2000kg on the rear you will still be over 2000 on the rear even with a 3850 paper 'upgrade'.
you will then be in the area of physical axle upgrades like air assist and some help from SVtech or similar.
IMHO, this particular model should not be available on the light chassis, its just too darn big and heavy.
good luck, but this model van has been the subject of many a 'autotrail weight' thread.
tread very carefully.....good luck.

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[BryanS]

Have just picked up this thread again. We uprated our 634 to 3700 through SV Tech. They told us that if we wanted an increased rear axle weight and go above 3700 we would need air suspension and new tyres - all 5. A somewhat expensive option so we stayed with 3700 and fitted a Gaslow system which worked well. When we travelled abroad fully laden with full tank of diesel but little or no water we were well within the 3700 weight limit. Another issue here is that by uprating above 3500 you also need a C1 licence with appropriate medicals and all that that entails.

 

[Fraggle 22]

im going to get a air suspension fitted, does it have to be an approved place or can anybody do it ? if arranged it myself how do i prove it ect ?

We also have the same model. Going to have air suspension fitted in 2 weeks by Dave Newell in Telford. Seems to be highly recommended on this forum.

 

[Blue Knight]

The incredibly sad point about this thread (like many BTW) is that people are forced to modify their vans because the various manufacturers are producing motorhomes with such shoddy and unusable payloads.

 

[Compactliner]

agree with Anderw, this particular model needs to be available (std?) on the heavy 40 chassis....
the van is certainly unusable if unmodified on the light chassis....having to fit uprated suspension just to be able to drive it from the showroom is madness.
even then, payload isnt generous.

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[roadwarrior]

as i pointed out earlier, it would cost autotrail not even 50 quid extra to put in bigger springs that would achieve 3850 and be a free option and true kudos to the model and the company as a whole and boost sales even more.. So why dont they |??

 

[Compactliner]

...but why not just build it on the heavy chassis as every other manufacturer would do with a van of this weight...no need for spring chsnging or air bags or bigger wheels/tyres....its all there...
those desperate to run it at 3500 could do so by downplating yet they wouldnt have the same axle weight issues as those on the light chassis as the axle weights are higher on the heavy chassis.

 

[Minxy]

...but why not just build it on the heavy chassis as every other manufacturer would do with a van of this weight...no need for spring chsnging or air bags or bigger wheels/tyres....its all there...
those desperate to run it at 3500 could do so by downplating yet they wouldnt have the same axle weight issues as those on the light chassis as the axle weights are higher on the heavy chassis.

Only problem with that is the 'heavy' chassis is physically heavier than the standard chassis, this would therefore mean that those who wanted to run a 'heavy' chassis MH at 3500kg would 'lose' around 40kg simply because they have the heavier chassis but don't need it.

 

[Blue Knight]

We also have the same model. Going to have air suspension fitted in 2 weeks by Dave Newell in Telford. Seems to be highly recommended on this forum.

Did you ever have the van weighed?

 

[Compactliner]

Only problem with that is the 'heavy' chassis is physically heavier than the standard chassis, this would therefore mean that those who wanted to run a 'heavy' chassis MH at 3500kg would 'lose' around 40kg simply because they have the heavier chassis but don't need it.

thats true, but if the Heavy chassis was an option, the user could choose whats best...
however, this is a van that just cant be run satisfactorily at 3.5t...for those in the market for a lighter weight van, there are other transverse bed options out there.
AT's problem (their customers' problems) is that they've just made it larger and larger (heavier and heavier) as subsequent revisions come out....its just not the right size/weight for the light chassis....

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[Minxy]

thats true, but if the Heavy chassis was an option, the user could choose whats best...

Yup, assuming there was an option to do that but that's not what you were talking about, instead you said it should be built on the heavy chassis regardless which I actually agree with and plated over 3500kg, this would then hopefully stop people buying it who can't drive above 3500kg.

however, this is a van that just cant be run satisfactorily at 3.5t...for those in the market for a lighter weight van, there are other transverse bed options out there.
AT's problem (their customers' problems) is that they've just made it larger and larger (heavier and heavier) as subsequent revisions come out....its just not the right size/weight for the light chassis....

Agree ... its about time that manufactures weren't allowed to build these MHs without a provable usable minimum payload available (after accounting for the minimum kit), unfortunately there is no 'desire' out there from the ones who could possibly influence this to do so.

 

[roadwarrior]

right, airbags fitted.. what do we think is a good pressure, i have put in 2.6 bar as a starter , im reasoning that more air will make it a more harsh bouncy back end, so a softer back end will suit me, its lifted it by about 2 inches at a guess. Im guessing more if the back end goes down because of a heavier load so i will measure thr archway to the floor and make that benchmark for now.