Sway bars for ‘05 Quigley & towing

[Truckin222]

Hi all,
I am the new owner of a 2005 E350 Quigley.
V-10 150k.
I want to be able to use this for multiple uses, camping,mobile mechanic and occasional tow rig.
Over the past week I towed an empty car trailer (2k pounds approximately) and it was less stable than I’d like. Much tail wagging.
I’ve towed this same trailer with my old trucks and they towed great, so not the trailer.

Anyway, I think the van could benefit from a rear sway bar (there is not one).
Who has installed one? Which one? Did it help the sway?
How about the front? Is there a reason to upgrade it? The bushings in the front are worn and I’ll be replacing those so maybe that’s all it needs. Idk.

First post here, but I’ve been reading a ton. Thanks for a great site.

 

[Twoxentrix]

Welcome!
This Thread may prove useful:
https://www.sportsmobileforum.com/forums/f33/rear-sway-bar-options-8005.html

 

[WhitH]

I towed a lot heavier than that with my 05 when I had it without those issues. I think you can sort it out. Bushings yes and maybe a sway bar although I don’t think I had one on mine so could be something else?

 

[Truckin222]

After reading the thread linked above and a bit more online, I’ve ordered a Roadmaster rear sway bar. I’ll update here after install and a bit of time.
Thanks again for a great site

 

[Timerider-SMB]

Although I wasn't motivated by a towing stability issue, in the course of diagnosing and curing a case of the dreaded "death wobble", I replaced the rubber bushings that Quigley uses in their front suspension arms ( i.e. control arms / radius arms / "insert your favorite nomenclature here" arms ) on our 2002 Quigley E-350 with urethane bushings of a higher durometer than the original Quigley parts. This produced a significant improvement in steering precision.

Note: the bushings that Quigley used on our 2002 SMB were originally intended for use as the leaf-spring shackle bushings on Chevy S-10 pickup trucks. That doesn't make them "bad" or "wrong" - just subject to improvement in this particular application. (Maybe your 2005 Quigley uses different parts, I dunno.)

Changing from the original Quigley bushings to Energy Suspension urethane ones at both ends of each radius arm (8 places in total) didn't cure our "death wobble" during braking. As it turned out, replacing the unbeknownst-to-me failed steering damper was the real solution to our "death wobble". But I'm really glad that I installed the urethane bushing upgrade along the way.

It seems possible that eliminating any abnormal steering "play" as a potential feedback mechanism that could allow the "tail to wag the dog" might be helpful in your case. So when you mentioned that "The bushings in the front are worn", I was reminded of one of the troubleshooting maxims that you already seem to be aware of, i.e. "Fix what you KNOW is wrong FIRST, and then re-evaluate what's left."

So if you're thinking of replacing these bushings anyhow, you might consider upgrading them while you're at it - I'm sure glad that I did!


Good luck, and be safe!

Timerider

 

[Glenn P.]

I also have an 05 Quigley E350 but with a diesel and I regularly pull a dual axle car trailer of that same weight. I can say I have never experienced it wagging all over when empty. I usually am hauling construction materials on the trailer and only once had a wagging issue due to a very tall and heavy load and just applying a little brake resolved the wobble with no additional issues.

Things to consider other than what is mentioned here could include the condition of the shocks and steering stabilizer. I have Bilsteins all the way around currently. Also, how is your van loaded when towing? Perhaps you need more rear end weight either on the trailer OR some load inside the van at the rear. When I am towing my van is always packed to the gills with crap headed to the desert for construction work so I have a heavy load even before adding the trailer. Also, I run 285/75/R16 tires, load range E and typically inflate to 70-80 PSI when carrying a heavy trailer and will back that down to 65-70 with the empty trailer and van full full of gear.

I hope the sway bar does the job, if not, here are some additional items to consider.

 

[KTMRIDER-SMB]

Also check your rear leaf spring shackle bushings. I had similar issues in high winds or when I had a dirtbike on the back. Ramsey from Agile took my van and gave me his truck to borrow while he diagnosed. He was dead set on figuring it out and took it as challenge. Took him a bit but after checking lots of things, and taking my van by various friends of his shops, it ended up being the rear leaf spring shackle bushings. He and Glenn replaced those and that fixed my particular issue at the time.

Also make sure your tires are up to the load and have the proper pressure.He mentioned a bad tire can cause strange things and tried swapping tires on mine as part of the process.

It was during this same time I talked him into swapping my Quigley for his TTB system in front