Governor at 75mph?!

Nursx2 · 04-04-2015, 02:10 AM

On my drive down here I noticed there is a governor on this 2015 Thor Hurricane 34J that cuts the power as soon as the speedometer hit 76 mph!

Anyone else notice this?!

I know this sounds silly but on two separate occasions this proved to be dangerous as no matter how much u push on the gas, it will not give power again till the speed reaches 73 mph.

I was in a passing lane and needed to get more speed to get in the other lane and all of a sudden a loss of power at 76 mph! It worked out well but scared the crap out of me! This is dangerous!!!!

Anyone know if this is a Thor or Ford doing?! And more importantly, how do I get this off the motorhome?!

Tytlfamily · 04-04-2015, 03:12 AM

HHmmm, not sure and have not experienced that yet in my 34E...interesting though that the Goodyear RV tire guide lists the max speed as 75 MPH. Maybe that is something they all agreed upon.

JamieGeek · 04-04-2015, 05:56 AM

A 5-star tune will get rid of the governor--if it is implemented via the ECU.

**EA37TS** · 04-04-2015, 02:27 PM

What chassis does the Hurricane sit on.

I know that the V10 in the E350 and E450 chassis are detuned down to 305 horse by Ford. The detuning has to do with excessive heat buildup in the cutaway chassis. The same engine on the F53 is tuned to 363 horse.

If the Hurricane is on the E series chassis the detuning may have something to do with the max speed.

Nursx2 · 04-06-2015, 09:34 AM

It is on the F53 chassis.

I noticed it all the way back to Ohio. A real pain when travelling in the hills of Tenn when I try to get a run down one hill for the next like I did in the old class C (E450).

Jamie, is that the one I read about in the RV magazine! (5 star tune up chip)!?

JamieGeek · 04-06-2015, 01:25 PM

I don't know if they were in RV magazine or not. The V-10 guys at ford-trucks.com swear by them (I had a 5-Star tune on my F-350).
Got a 2006-2015 V10 RV ? - 5 Star Tuning

They have excellent customer service. An e-mail to them may answer the governor question for you.

Our F-350 was governed to about 95 mph the tune got rid of that (I experimented with how fast the truck went once...an 8000 lb F-350 gets mighty scary going 100+ mph).

Tytlfamily · 04-06-2015, 05:57 PM

ok, now I am curious....going to have to get some steam up on the freeway next time I go out...I assume I have the same set up as up as everyone else.

Beacher · 04-06-2015, 06:06 PM

My 2014 Hurricane 34e has no issues going 80+mph.

However, I'm pretty sure that I can feel the gasoline dollars being syphoned out of my credit card when it happens. There is a burning feeling in my pocket.

On my shakedown trip from Florida to California there were a few states where the speed limit was 80mph, and I kept up the pace.

Nursx2 · 04-07-2015, 01:45 AM

Unreal! At first I thought I was imagining it but even showed my co pilot wife when it occurred. Even stopped looking at the speedo and could feel when it kicked in and the power lagged - confirmed by my wife who was looking at the speedo.

It even slowed it down going down a 4% grade!

I will have to email thor, 5 star tuning, and ford.

**EA37TS** · 04-07-2015, 01:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nursx2

Unreal! At first I thought I was imagining it but even showed my co pilot wife when it occurred. Even stopped looking at the speedo and could feel when it kicked in and the power lagged - confirmed by my wife who was looking at the speedo.

It even slowed it down going down a 4% grade!

I will have to email thor, 5 star tuning, and ford.

From what I have seen doing some research there is both a speed limiter and an RPM limiter set for the Ford V10. The RPM limiter is set to around 5200 or 5600 RPM and the speed limiter is set to the speed rating of the OEM recommended tire's speed rating.

Apparently this speed limiting has been around for a few years and impacts not only RVs but the whole line of Ford E and F series vehicles.

After the problems Ford had with the tires on the Explorers they probably did this to avoid a "why did you sell me a vehicle that goes faster than the tires can safely handle" lawsuit.

Tytlfamily · 04-07-2015, 01:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tytlfamily

HHmmm, not sure and have not experienced that yet in my 34E...interesting though that the Goodyear RV tire guide lists the max speed as 75 MPH. Maybe that is something they all agreed upon.

That was my initial thought on it after just having finished learning about the correct tire PSI and spec. I drive like one of those old guys in the right lane though LOL.....and so far I don't have any serious hills or mountains to contend with .

Nursx2 · 04-07-2015, 11:21 PM

I just received a response from 5 star tuning about my question of knowing if Ford has a governor and could they get rid of it!?

"Yes and Yes....lol this is a common issue with most any class a rv. We move the limiter up and add 30 hp, 70 tq, and fix the constant shifting"

dstankov, you theory is probably true! My old 2003 E450 either did not have one or was broken by the first owner. Oh well, perhaps I should drive slower.......NAH!!!!

Get Michelins and the tuner!

epinkks · 06-19-2015, 02:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nursx2

On my drive down here I noticed there is a governor on this 2015 Thor Hurricane 34J that cuts the power as soon as the speedometer hit 76 mph!

Anyone else notice this?!

I know this sounds silly but on two separate occasions this proved to be dangerous as no matter how much u push on the gas, it will not give power again till the speed reaches 73 mph.

I was in a passing lane and needed to get more speed to get in the other lane and all of a sudden a loss of power at 76 mph! It worked out well but scared the crap out of me! This is dangerous!!!!

Anyone know if this is a Thor or Ford doing?! And more importantly, how do I get this off the motorhome?!

Happened to me on my new 2015 Thor ACE over the weekend. Could not get over about 78 mph. Called Thor and they set me up with a Ford dealer for a checkup. They haven't checked it out yet but after reading this forum and talking to a friend that is a Ford truck mechanic I am sure it is a speed limiter. Here in Texas the speed limit is 80 and in some areas its 85. Guess I won't be keeping up. My biggest surprise however is that neither Thor nor the Ford dealership mentioned anything about a speed limiter. Makes me wonder about them.

**EA37TS** · 06-19-2015, 04:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by epinkks

Happened to me on my new 2015 Thor ACE over the weekend. Could not get over about 78 mph. Called Thor and they set me up with a Ford dealer for a checkup. They haven't checked it out yet but after reading this forum and talking to a friend that is a Ford truck mechanic I am sure it is a speed limiter. Here in Texas the speed limit is 80 and in some areas its 85. Guess I won't be keeping up. My biggest surprise however is that neither Thor nor the Ford dealership mentioned anything about a speed limiter. Makes me wonder about them.

Ford has an option for fleet customers to have a speed limiter installed on the E series stripped and cutaway and F53 chassis. The speed limiter is available for two settings I believe one is approx. 55 and the other is about 70.

I imagine Ford pre assembles the chassis and then when Thor places an order they get what Ford has available. It is quite possible Thor has no idea which coach chassis have the limiters installed.

Chance · 06-19-2015, 12:45 PM

The V10 in the E-Series is slightly different than the same-displacement V10 in F-53 motorhome chassis, or other applications as well. The E-Series uses 2-valve heads while the F-53 and others use 3-valves per cylinder. Thus it's not just about changing the tune.

It may also be of interest to many here since the 6.8-liter V10 in F-53 chassis is so common, that starting with 2016 chassis it will not only come with higher-capacity 6-speed automatic transmission, but it has been "derated" in power.

It's important to note that the power derating is likely only on paper. The maximum power is now listed at a much lower RPM which is reportedly required to meet new noise standards. At lower RPMs the maximum torque is actually a little higher.

Chance · 06-19-2015, 12:58 PM

All E-Series, cutaway and stripped chassis like used on Axis/Vegas, use 16-inch tires as far as I know. And these size tires typically have much higher speed rating than larger commercial truck tires. On E-Series RVs if speed is limited to 80 or less, I would not expect it to be due to tire speed rating.

I've driven a few E-Series vans and Class Cs and haven't noticed a speed limit, although none were newer models. I also usually keep speed lower than 75 MPH.

**EA37TS** · 06-19-2015, 01:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Chance

The V10 in the E-Series is slightly different than the same-displacement V10 in F-53 motorhome chassis, or other applications as well. The E-Series uses 2-valve heads while the F-53 and others use 3-valves per cylinder. Thus it's not just about changing the tune.

It may also be of interest to many here since the 6.8-liter V10 in F-53 chassis is so common, that starting with 2016 chassis it will not only come with higher-capacity 6-speed automatic transmission, but it has been "derated" in power.

It's important to note that the power derating is likely only on paper. The maximum power is now listed at a much lower RPM which is reportedly required to meet new noise standards. At lower RPMs the maximum torque is actually a little higher.

Having researched this issue after buying my class C on the E 450 chassis the reason for the detuning (305 vs 362 HP) is heat displacement and engine bay temperatures. The 362 HP variation produces higher operating and engine bay temperatures than are allowed in the E series chassis. This is primarily due to the configuration and placement of the firewall on the E series.

The Ford factory installed speed limiters are available for installation on both the E 350 and E 450 series chassis as well as the F53 chassis as well as both variations of the V10. The speed limiters are a chassis option normally installed at the request of fleet customers.

JamieGeek · 06-19-2015, 01:44 PM

I'm pretty sure all V-10 trucks from Ford have a speed limiter on them (my old F-250, and F-350 were both speed limited to 95 from the factory).

So far I haven't hit any limiter on the Axis but then I've probably had it only up to 80 mph or so when passing someone.

**EA37TS** · 06-19-2015, 01:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JamieGeek

I'm pretty sure all V-10 trucks from Ford have a speed limiter on them (my old F-250, and F-350 were both speed limited to 95 from the factory).

So far I haven't hit any limiter on the Axis but then I've probably had it only up to 80 mph or so when passing someone.

The optional limiters on the E 350 are 65 and 75 MPH.

Here is the link for the specs

2016 Ford Stripped Chassis E-350 DRW | See All The Stripped Chassis E-350 DRW Highlights | Ford.com

The option specifically state "Fleet Only"

epinkks · 06-19-2015, 02:02 PM

Well I found out my new ACE does have a speed limiter on it set for 75mph. I can get it to about 78 and that is it.
Now my next question is this: I performed the CHF on the front and rear sway bars to help with the sway but I feel every little crack in the pavement. My tire pressure is at 80 psi. I am thinking of getting a set of air bags for the front and rear suspension. Anyone have any this done and is it worthwhile? Does it improve the feel in the drive? Help!

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