As many of our followers on Parental Parolees already know, our Tiffin Open Road 36LA came with an innovative option at build; a Liquidspring rear suspension system. It replaced the old-style shocks and leaf springs typically put on large trucks with a hydraulic arm (among other things) which adjusts 1000 times per second to road conditions. It's designed to make these harsh-riding truck chassis ride smoother and more stable, and it has been a godsend for me as a driver of over 50,000 miles on America's sometimes horrendous roads.
Because the Liquidspring suspension is an active system (vs. a passive air bag system on most diesel motorhomes), it actually makes the ride on our gas motorhome better than a diesel. Not only do the arms in back smooth out the ride vertically over potholes and bridge transitions, it holds the house to the chassis horizontally, reducing side-to-side (or top to bottom) sway from crosswinds and 18-wheelers passing by at speed.
But on the (thankfully rare) times it doesn't work right, the full experience of our bad roads in America can be felt through my steering wheel, and things start bouncing in the back, making for very long, very tiring days behind the wheel.
Back in November of 2023, the control module beside my driver's seat began to flash red spasmodically rather than indicate Liquidspring's usual status of green and amber lights. Not for long, and it always came back to normal. Through December it got worse, to the point where sometimes the suspension wouldn't rise to it's normal ride height, and the ride became harsh with little or no control. Finally, on our drive from Red Bay, AL to our winter stay in Chiefland, FL, the system failed completely. Fortunately, we were going to be sitting for 2 months without moving the motorhome, so I called the folks at Liquidspring to give them the bad news.
They suspected that some moisture might have gotten into our Electronic Control Unit (ECU) underneath the chassis, and offered to program a new one and send it to us for me to install. Alas, the recent left hand break during last year's vacation and the location of the control unit made that impossible. Rather than head just a bit south to one of their authorized installers for the repair, I opted to set up an appointment in mid-March in Lafayette, IN - home of Liquidspring itself - to have the service done. While I have no doubt the folks in Florida would have done their best, I didn't want any issues with “We don't have the part(s) needed and have to order it” delays, and the techs at Liquidspring have computer diagnostics that their installers do not.
So, three days of about 300 miles each (about 6.5 - 7 hours driving each day), heading steadily northward with stops just south of Atlanta, southern Kentucky and finally Lafayette, Indiana, and we're plugged into a recently-installed 50A receptacle on the side of Liquidspring headquarters for the night, awaiting our technician the following morning.
After looking at our driver's controller, unplugging and reconnecting it in hopes that the system would recognize it for something other than a fatal error, our tech opts to forego the planned test drive because he knows the system is well and fully hosed. He seats us (with Grover – who had already wheedled a biscuit from a soft-touch at the door) in their comfortable lounge, and went to work at 9:00.
Two hours later (and after a refreshing nap on their comfortable couch) in comes two technicians with smiling faces. They've replaced the balky ECU with a newly-programmed one based on our specific chassis and Liquidspring unit, they've replaced our old ride height sensors with new ones that will provide better and smoother control down the road, and replaced the wiring harnesses for the ECU and ride height sensors. We take a test drive, and it appears that the system is working even better than it had previously!
This, after 4.5 years and 51,000 miles on the road.
We pull back into their parking lot, and they tell us we're ready to head back on the road. “No paperwork”? “Nope”. “Nothing to sign”? “Nope”. And more importantly, nothing to PAY. Just like that, we're done and gliding down the road to our next destination.
THIS is what working with American companies used to be like; well-trained people who understand not only the technical side of their business, but the customer-service side as well. A company who doesn't hem and haw when it comes to supporting their product and standing by their warranty. A company that makes an outstanding product in the first place, then backs it up with something even better when an occasional problem occurs.
That's why I put their product on our home on wheels in the first place, and why I tell anyone with a gas motorhome who thinks they might want a better ride on the road to get their motorhome upgraded with Liquidspring.
Great product, great people, great company!
